Frank Martin looks forward to dethroning WBA ‘regular’ lightweight champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis on June 15th in their fight on PBC on Prime Video PPV at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas.
Martin Unfazed by Doubters
Martin (18-0, 12 KOs) likes that he’s the underdog and that people are doubting him against Tank Davis (29-0, 27 KOs). He views that as motivation to show them they were wrong about him.
It’s understandable why some people believe the 29-year-old Martin has zero chance against Tank Davis because he hasn’t beaten any of the killers at 135.
In Martin’s last fight, he struggled to defeat Artem Harutyunyan in a narrow twelve-round unanimous decision in July last year.
Harutyunyan gave ‘The Ghost’ Martin a boxing lesson through the first eight rounds but wilted in the championship rounds due to the desperate fighter’s late rally.
If not for Harutyunyan gassing out, Martin would have lost that fight and he wouldn’t be getting this opportunity to challenge Tank for his WBA belt.
Some feel that Martin isn’t deserving of a fight against Tank, and the only reason he was selected is that he’s another ‘safe fight’ for the Baltimore native, who has yet to face any of the killers at lightweight during his 11-year professional career.
Embracing the Underdog Mentality
“I feel like I got a lot of things that he, the world, and a lot of people don’t expect that I got. I’m just ready to go in there and capitalize off of this moment,” said Frank Martin to TMZ Sports about his fight against WBA lightweight champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis on June 15th.
Martin needs to put in the kind of performance against Tank that he put in when he defeated previously unbeaten Michel Rivera in 2022. That was the best showing of Martin’s career against a fighter that some fans felt was destined to capture a world title and become a star.
“That’s something I embrace,” Martin said about being the underdog against Tank. “I’m eating off of it. It’s fueling me. It’s not going to change, though. I just got to out there and do the unexpected.
“It means everything,” said Martin on what it would mean for him to defeat Tank Davis. “It doesn’t come by for a lot of fighters. Me going in there and getting it and changing the seat [dethroning Gervonta of WBA ‘regular’ 135-lb title]. It’s a blessing to have that type of opportunity.”
This is a once in a lifetime fight for Martin, who probably wouldn’t be getting this opportunity if he were tested against the best at lightweight in fights against Vasily Lomachenko, Floyd Schofield, and Abdullah Mason.
“You got to see me June 15th. I hope I get the best version of you. You going to get the best version of me for sure,” said Martin when asked to give his message to Tank Davis.
Read the full article here
