The path to Gervonta Davis versus Ryan Garcia becomes clearer.
Davis, a 135-pound contender, will face 130-pound owner Hector Garcia on January 7 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, a fight that is expected to lead to a bout with Garcia in the spring, it was announced Friday.
Garcia (16-0, 10 KOs) stunned the boxing world by easily dismissing hot prospect Chris Colbert in February and then winning Roger Gutierrez’s WBA belt by one-way decision in August.
However, gaining weight to confront a boxer as capable as Davis will be a tough challenge for the 31-year-old Dominican boxer.
On Thursday, it was announced that Davis and Garcia plan to meet in an exciting match between the famous young knockout artists if they win the interims, though Garcia has not confirmed. that he will fight before he meets Davis.
Davis also has a legal problem that he has to overcome. The 28-year-old from Baltimore is scheduled to be tried on December 12 for a November 2020 hit-and-run charge.
However, Showtime and Golden Boy Promotions have confirmed the scheduled Davis-Garcia event.
Stephen Espinoza, president of Showtime Sports, said: “Tank Davis versus Ryan Garcia is one of the biggest and most exciting fights that can happen in boxing. We have two incredibly talented boxers, both at their peak, amassing huge fan bases, meeting in a career-defining match. This is the epitome of a cross boxing event. All credit to Tank and Ryan for continuing to compete and giving fans the fight they wanted.”
Golden Boy’s Oscar De La Hoya tweeted his confirmation.
De La Hoya said: “The fans have made it clear that the match they want is Ryan vs Tank. “Golden Boy Promotions and I are proud to be leading the effort to get this game signed and are delighted to have the deal finalized as soon as possible. It’s time for those outside the ring to stop hindering those who want nothing more than to step into the ring and fight.”
Davis was a two-time 130-pound champion, who also won minor titles in the 135th and 140th, winning 5-0 (5 KOs) in the championship matches. He gave up all his belts.
The “tank” is about to defeat Rolando Romero in the sixth round with a score of 135 this past May. That followed a unanimous decision over wayward Isaac Cruz in December, a match Davis said he fought with an injured hand.
Garcia, 24, took a break from boxing last year for mental health treatment but returned to beat the formidable Emmanuel Tagoe (UD) and Javier Fortuna (KO 6) in April and July respectively. in 140 pound weight class fights.
The Los Angeles boxer’s biggest victory came in January of last year, when he knocked out 2012 Olympic champion Luke Campbell in seven rounds with a score of 135.
