Errol Spence is confident his fighter Frank Martin will dethrone WBA ‘regular’ lightweight champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis this Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Martin’s Calculated Risk Pays Off
Martin (18-0, 12 KOs) is getting his opportunity to show the world that he’s the best at 135, and he wants to make the most of it against the unbeaten Tank Davis (29-0, 27 KOs).
Frank could have fought Shakur Stevenson for his WBC title, but turned it down and took a lot of criticism from fans. It’s worked in Martin’s favor because he’s getting a bigger fight against Tank.
“I’m very impressed. I think he’s ready. I think this is a moment he’s been waiting for a long time,” said Errol Spence Jr. to the media, when asked if Frank Martin is ready for his fight against Gervonta Davis on Saturday night.
Martin is 29-years-old, and it would be a mistake for him to wait longer. He’s got a fighting style where he’s about as good as he’ll ever get, and it would be risky to wait longer. He almost got beaten in his last fight against Artem Harutyunyan, and that guy is a fringe contender.
The performance that Martin put in against him is likely the reason he got picked for Tank because if hie’d looked sensational, he’d been seen as too dangerous to be used.
“A lot of people criticized him for not fighting Shakur Stevenson. A lot of people were like, ‘Ah, he gave us an opportunity,’ but a bigger opportunity came with Tank. I’m very excited about it. He can show people he is the top dog at 135 pounds,” said Spence.
“Frank listened to himself and decided it wasn’t the right fight to take,” said Spence about the Shakur fight.”
It’s good that Martin didn’t take the fight with Shakur because he might have lost that fight, and then his career would be in bad shape.
Saudi Boxing League Proposal
“Yeah, I think so for sure. As long as it’s under the boxing umbrella where you don’t take the UFC umbrella,” said Spence when asked about whether he would be in favor of the Saudi’s idea of a boxing league where all the promoters are coming together to put fights on.
If the Saudis create a boxing league, probably some of the major promoters in the U.S wouldn’t agree to it, and they would continue to do their events on their own as long as they have a network.
Golden Boy Promotions is reportedly interested in a boxing league, but it’s unclear whether Top Rank and PBC would agree to the idea.
“If all the promoters get involved and everybody is on the same accord, it can go well. That’s a lot of egos and pride, though. I don’t know about that. This is a major blessing, and he’s going to show everybody why he’s the best 135-pounder in the world,” said Spence about Martin.
In a boxing league, it would be a lot more difficult for fighters like Tank Davis to continue to be maneuvered around the risky fights the way he’s arguably been during his career.
He should have already fought Vasily Lomachenko years ago, but instead, Tank has been fighting guys like Rolly Romero, Leo Santa Cruz, Hector Garcia, and Isaac Cruz. A boxing league would rip apart the careers of a lot of pampered fighters, and Tank might be one of them.
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