I first saw Gervonta Davis around four years ago as an amateur and I thought he looked very good; a real prospect for the future and a potential champion. I don't usually like a southpaw, but this kid looked so good that I was really impressed. It's been difficult to follow his pro career due to a lack of televised footage, however I have seen a few of his fights including his most recent outings on YouTube. I still think he looks like a star in the making. He can certainly box and he definitely seems to have power. However it bothers me that he has been fed a string of no hopers. Even his recent opposition has been fairly weak. They don't seem to have stepped him up and I wonder why. I'm not sure he even deserves a title shot off the back of the guys he has been fighting. Nonetheless he faces Jose Pedraza next week for the IBF strap. How do you guys see this fight going? And how good do you think Gervonta Davis actually is?
Relies too much on athlete ability and trying to land big flashy shots for my liking. That works against some guys but against the elite you need more. He needs to use his jab box more and work on his defense imo. If he can do that he can be a force.
He is athletic and you're right, he doesn't use his jab enough; he's always loading up and looking for the KO. It's the lack of opposition that bothers me most, though. Why haven't they put him in with a couple of legit contenders before granting him a title shot? Does he beat Pedraza? I think he probably does, but its by far the best opponent he wll have faced so far and Pedraza, who looks decent enough, is coming to win.
The three things that will make or break him, that are up in the air at this point in my opinion, are his IQ, his lifestyle, and how he is brought along (do they give him the fights needed to develop the proper layers to his game) Physically he looks good. But theres an endless line of prospects that never fulfilled the potential their physical talent provided.
The three things that will make or break him, that are up in the air at this point in my opinion, are his IQ, his lifestyle, and how he is brought along (do they give him the fights needed to develop the proper layers to his game) Physically he looks good. But theres an endless line of prospects that never fulfilled the potential their physical talent provided.
The thing is, Pedraza hasn't exactly been fighting legit contenders either. Even his title defenses except for his last against Smith weren't legit challenges, and he barely beat Cherry some even believing he received a gift in that fight.
We'll see soon enough. I'd be highly impressed if he beat Pedraza, but I'm not sure he's ready for what he's going to see next Saturday night. Pedraza is a very schooled fighter.
Good points. I don't know anything about his lifestyle, but I suspect he's a flashy Mayweather / Broner type character. His boxing IQ is a concern. He's been a one trick pony so far, relying on his power against overmatched opposition. I really don't think they have matched him up with the right guys in order to develop and improve on his potential. I wonder how he will fair against world class guys who have experience and can box and punch at a level he isn't used to dealing with. He does look pretty good, though. We'll find out soon enough, I guess. I'm looking forward to the Pedraza fight.
He's young, strong and talented, but must stay focused and grow up right with the right mindset. I think he made the right choice in staying in B'More and not moving to Vegas and getting distracted by Floyd's flash and cash life style. Once he gets a title he should move from Mayweather Promotions to a more cerebral camp like Hunter to help keep him grounded.
I think everyone's covered him very well here. I don't know if he has an AJ-esque desire to learn, because there are layers that he needs to improve on to fulfil his potential. At 22 and with a title shot, he's fast-tracking himself to get that experience but I feel his performances has shown me so far that he may not be that type who loves to the extra mile to learn his craft.
Pedraza is going to beat him with a workman like performance. Davis will lose rounds before he knows in the fight, may show his athletic ability here and there.
I agree his opposition has been trash. Pedraza is a very good test for him and I don't think it will be an easy fight at all. If he proves me wrong than he's better than I gave him credit for.
