Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe threw cold water on the idea of Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis fighting unbeaten #2 WBC lightweight contender Ryan Garcia in his next defense of his WBA ‘regular’ title.
Tank Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) looked like a killer last Saturday night, stopping unbeaten challenger Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero (14-1, 12 KOs) in the sixth round at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Ellerbe says the 23-year-old Ryan (22-0, 18 KOs) doesn’t want the fight with Tank Davis. According to Ellerbe, he attempted twice to make a fight with Ryan for him to face Tank, and he didn’t want it.
Ellerbe makes it clear that if Ryan wanted the fight with Tank, he could force his promoters at Golden Boy Promotions to make it twice.
The decision by Ryan not to take the fight with Tank Davis tells you all you need to know about his desire to face the unbeaten WBA 135-lb champion
The obvious question is if Ryan isn’t interested in fighting Gervonta, why does he constantly tell the boxing media & his 9.7 million followers on social media that he wants that match?
Is Ryan feigning interest in a fight with Tank for clout chasing/name-dropping purposes to increase his popularity? Name-dropping is a passive way for a fighter to increase their popularity without needing to risk taking a loss and watching their careers sink into oblivion.
“Ryan don’t want to fight Tank, come on,” said Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe at the post-fight press conference last Saturday night when asked about his thoughts on Ryan Garcia challenging Gervonta Davis next.
“You got guys out there like Mannix, trying to pump him [Ryan Garcia] up, and like he’s a killer. Ryan Garcia is a good fighter, I got nothing but respect for him, but he doesn’t want none of that smoke because if he did, he’d make Golden Boy do it,” continued Ellerbe about his belief that Ryan doesn’t want to fight Tank Davis.
It’s hard to doubt what Ellerbe is saying about Ryan Garcia because he pulled out of two risky fights last year against Javier Fortuna and Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr. When Ryan did return to the ring last April after a 15-month layoff, he fought little known fringe contender Emmanuel Tagoe and failed to impress.
“I’ve tried on two occasions [to make the Tank vs. Ryan Garcia fight], but some of the reporters seem to forget when they say that Tank Davis doesn’t want to fight none of the top fighters,” said Ellerbe. “They say that Ryan Garcia is a top fighter, but we know what it is.
“I don’t want to discuss any fighter’s contractual situation with you guys,” said Ellerbe when asked what Tank Davis’ contractual position is with Mayweather Promotions now. “Yes,” said Ellerbe when asked if Tank is still with his company.
