Finally, one of boxing’s highly sought matchups is signed, sealed, and delivered as Gervonta “Tank” Davis will face“King” Ryan Garcia on April 22. The fight is one of the most significant bouts the sport can make and provides fans with one of the fights they have desired.
Both fighters announced on their respective social media pages, ending months-long speculation that the fight wouldn’t happen. The deal was rife with pitfalls as Garcia’s promoter, Golden Boy Promotions, is a rival of Davis’ partner, Premier Boxing Champions.
The Compromise
The fault lines lie in the co-promoters and broadcast/streaming partners — Premier Boxing Champions works religiously with TGB Promotions as the regional promoter and usually broadcasts with Showtime — conversely, Garcia’s Golden Boy Promotions team works with streaming company DAZN.
However, the respective teams compromised and agreed to a 12-round non-title bout at a contract weight of 136 pounds, one pound over the lightweight limit, to be broadcast on Showtime PPV from a venue in Las Vegas.
Additionally, Showtime will be in charge of production for the event. However, DAZN will act as a distributor, with Showtime providing a platform for fans to purchase the pay-per-view, per reports.
The rematch clause is one of the most significant issues in making any fight of this magnitude. Per reports, Davis has the right to an immediate rematch if he loses, but Garcia does not. Showtime and the PBC wanted the right to control any potential sequels, and at first, it was a deal-breaker with Golden Boy and DAZN.
Ultimately, they agreed.
Challenge Accepted
The fight is the biggest test of Garcia’s career, and the young Mexican fighter from Victorville, California, has clamored for this fight for a while. Garcia knows his status as a popular fighter for his dazzling hand speed on the cobra training bag in social media clips is special; besting Tank Davis would be legendary.
Only a few fighters dare to be great against challenges that look like bad matchups for them on paper, and Davis looks terrible on paper for Garcia.
Davis has fought on large stages on the same cards with his former mentor, Floyd Mayweather Jr., and against larger formidable opponents like Leo Santa Cruz. Davis has also held multiple world championships in three weight classes and is a pay-per-view star.
Garcia became the interim WBC light world champion after surviving a second-round knockdown against Luke Campbell in 2021. In Garcia’s last fight, he delivered a sixth-round KO to Javier Fortuna, a former two-weight-class world champion.
Davis’ last bout was against Hector Luis Garcia to retain his interim WBA lightweight fight on Jan. 7 in Washington, D.C., in a Showtime PPV main event where he knocked him out in the ninth round.
In hopes of securing a fight with Davis and staying on point for the challenge, Garcia skipped a tune-up bout with former lightweight title challenger Mercito Gesta.
Now his patience has paid off.
Tank Davis has electrified the boxing business and is now out of the shadow of Mayweather and is the target of would-be usurpers. Ryan Garcia is the one who believes he can derail Davis’ path to continued supremacy, and the fans are all the better for it.
