Both Paulie Malignaggi and Teddy Atlas praised the boxing ability and intelligence of Gervonta Davis after his eighth-round knockout of Frank Martin on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas while looking ahead to potential “Tank” rivals – like Shakur Stevenson.
Davis made the first defense of his WBA lightweight title with the victory since being elevated after Devin Haney left the lightweight division.
During the ProBox TV post-fight show, Paulie Malignaggi and Teddy Atlas shared their insights on Gervonta Davis (30-0, 28 KOs), 29, and his performance. The Baltimore native landed a crushing knockout blow over Frank Martin (18-1, 12 KOs), also 29, who now trains in Dallas. This victory prompted the obvious question every fighter hates: what is next?
“Martin did start well, but you could sense that mental pressure that was being applied by Gervonta Davis was bothering Martin,” Malignaggi said. “It was forcing him to be uncomfortable. Typically, pressure busts pipes, right?”
“In reality, Gervonta never looked uncomfortable going forward and keeping that pressure up,” Malignaggi continued. “It was basically what you kind of expected. Not so much because it is a Gervonta Davis performance and he loses the early rounds and comes back and gets you late. But also in the way he did it. A lot of times, earlier in these fights, he looks a little lackluster and comes back to get you. I didn’t think he was lackluster early on; he was making an effort to put that mental pressure on Martin despite Martin’s early success.”
Atlas added that Davis, known for his punching power, is underrated in terms of his fight IQ and craft in the ring. Because of his powerful punches, many people overlook his other skills.
“As good as Martin is, there is nothing he did better than Davis,” Atlas said. “Anything Martin could do, it is kind of like that song: anything you can do, I can do better. I really felt that was the theme.”
“Martin is a good fighter,” Atlas continued. “Technical, textbook, boxing 101, sweet science guy, but Davis is too. That is what we forget sometimes because of his power.”
When asked if anyone could challenge Davis in his prime, the panelists brought up fellow unbeaten lightweight Shakur Stevenson.
“Stevenson is a difficult out for anyone,” Atlas said. “He is not just difficult to beat but difficult to look good against. That’s the problem, too. He controls range so well.”
“Here is my issue: Shakur is the new Lomachenko,” Malignaggi added. “Before it was Lomachenko; none of the big names wanted to name Lomachenko.”
“The new fight to make is Gervonta Davis vs. Shakur Stevenson, and that is probably why boxing is not going to make it,” Malignaggi concluded.
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