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Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach: NYSAC acknowledges referee’s error but declines to alter result

Gervonta Davis will keep his unbeaten record.

The New York State Athletic Commission ruled Friday that it will not be changing the result of Saturday’s “Tank” Davis vs. Lamont Roach WBA lightweight title bout.

Boxing Scene — which is owned by ProBoxTV, which co-promotes Roach — was first with the news.

Davis vs. Roach was ruled a majority decision draw (115-113, 114-114, 114-114), however Roach appealed the verdict due to the controversial call made by veteran referee Steve Willis in Round 9.

Davis dropped to one knee in the ninth, seconds after being hit with a left hand from Roach, the reigning WBA super featherweight champion. Willis began to administer a 10-count for Davis after he took the knee, but then inexplicably stopped and ultimately decided not to rule it a knockdown.

Davis said afterward that he took the knee so he could wipe his eyes after complaining that grease from his braids was bothering him, however, the rules of boxing are clear in not allowing fighters to call their own timeouts, thus Davis’ impromptu kneel-down should’ve been counted as a knockdown.

Had Davis’ kneel-down been ruled a knockdown, Roach would’ve likely won the contest on all three of the judges’ scorecards, because two of the three judges scored Round 9 in favor of Davis; if Roach had been credited with the knockdown, all three would’ve been inclined to score the ninth a 10-8 for Roach, which means the final scores would have been 114-113, 114-113 and 115-112, all in favor of Roach.

NYSAC uses instant-replay technology to overturn referees’ decisions if the commission feels those decisions are incorrect, but a similar reversal was not possible Saturday because of a “technical issue,” according to the commission.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Lamont Roach

NYSAC acknowledged in its final decision Friday that Roach should’ve been credited with a knockdown in the ninth and that referee Willis made a mistake, yet while it has the power to retroactively overturn Willis’ decision and change the result of the bout to credit Roach with the knockdown, NYSAC ultimately opted not to do so.

Despite the commission’s refusal to alter the draw, Roach does have a strong chance of landing a rematch with Davis, which would likely come with a significantly larger purse than the first fight.

As Davis holds a WBA title, the WBA sanctioning body has the power to order him to face Roach again, and failure to do so could result in Davis being stripped of his belt. WBA president Gilberto Mendoza indicated to The Ring that he is “poised” to order a second fight between the pair.

Davis also has the opportunity to voluntarily make an immediate rematch with Roach, as the contract for the first fight provided Davis with a rematch clause in the event that he did not emerge as the winner — which he did not.

“Say no more. I’m pushing for the rematch,” Davis said in a social media post Monday.

Claressa Shields Portends Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach Rematch: “He’ll Be Even Better”

Claressa Shields has weighed in on the Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach rematch.

Davis and Roach are expected to do battle again this summer following their controversial first meeting in March, which finished in a majority decision draw.

The biggest talking point from the fight came in the ninth round where ‘Tank’ voluntarily chose to take a knee, but no knockdown was scored.

If a 10-8 round had been scored in Roach’s favour, it would have been enough to earn him the win and see him become the new WBA lightweight champion, due to the final scorecards reading 115-113 Davis and 114-114 twice.

Multi-weight world champion Shields has now given her take on how a second fight between the two men would go, telling Fighthype that she believes Davis is capable of competing better.

“I think that Tank is a great fighter and Roach is a great fighter. They both had a good fight. I think Tank is going through things that we don’t know what he’s going through mentally…I wish him well and I think if he gets his mental together he’ll fight better.

“I think if Roach would have been more aggressive he would have won the fight clearly. I think he had some good counters, I’ve never seen somebody take punches from Tank and be able to still stand up. I don’t think I saw Roach get wobbled at all, I think I saw Tank get wobbled a couple times. I’ll be watching the rematch.”

In a separate interview with Fight Hub TV, Shields backed Roach to win when the pair run it back but says Davis can change that if he prepares mentally.

Claressa Shields and Gervonta Davis and Lamont Roach

“I think Lamont will be even better in the rematch … Right now, I think Roach wins the rematch, only because I think Tank needs to get his fear out the way.

“Sometimes anger helps you in a fight, you don’t want to completely lose it, you have to know how to use it. He’s so frustrated with other parts of his life that it’s hard for him to use all of it inside the ring. So I think therapy would help.”

Shields isn’t the only big name to make a prediction for the rematch, with former two-weight world champion Tim Bradley also offering his thoughts.

Claressa Shields took a powerful stance on Gervonta “Tank” Davis’ mental health in a recent interview.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis has been at the center of discussion among the boxing community ever since his controversial March 1 fight against Lamont Roach, which resulted in a majority draw and set the stage for a rematch later this summer. And most of this discussion has not been positive for the undefeated WBA lightweight champion.

When speaking with Sean Zittel on March 28, legendary boxing promoter Bob Arum said, “I think Davis has to start taking boxing seriously. You know, it’s not just a media kind of thing. I don’t know, I don’t know the kid. But he seemed sort of ordinary [against Roach].”

Undefeated women’s boxing pound-for-pound great Claressa Shields is more concerned about Davis’ mental space than his performance in the ring, which she conveyed during a March 28 interview with Fight Hub TV.

“I feel like Gervonta is a hell of a fighter, but I feel like he needs to get his mental together,” Shields said. “When I hear some of his interviews, and I see some of the stuff that he’s saying, I can just tell that he’s not in love with the sport no more.”

She later added, “I think he would be better, and even a better fighter, if he went and did therapy like ASAP. Because I can tell he’s a little sad, little depressed… he needs to take some serious time to deal with whatever he has to deal with.”

Shields concluded this part of her response by saying, “I think therapy would help [Davis in his rematch with Roach].”

Women’s boxing champion Claressa Shields stated a clear case for why Gervonta “Tank” Davis will lose his rematch against Lamont Roach.

The boxing world is still buzzing about the March 1 fight between Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Lamont Roach Jr. for Davis’ WBA lightweight title.

Since this title fight was controversial and the majority draw decision didn’t produce a clear better fighter between these two, the boxing world is clamoring for a rematch. And all indications are that a Davis vs. Roach II fight will take place this summer, perhaps as early as June.

During a March 28 interview with Fight Hub TV, women’s boxing pound-for-pound great Claressa Shields said, “I feel like Gervonta is a hell of a fighter, but I feel like he needs to get his mental together… I think he would be better, and even a better fighter, if he went and did therapy like ASAP. Because I can tell he’s a little sad, little depressed.”

Later on in that same interview, Shields conveyed why she believes Roach is destined to win this eventual rematch against Tank.

Claressa Shields and Gervonta Davis and Lamont Roach Jr

“I think Lamont Roach did a great job in that fight. I think if he would have been a little more aggressive we would’ve really won, like a unanimous decision. But he kept stepping off the gas,” Shields said.

“Now that he knows we can take Tank’s punch, I think Lamont will be even better in the rematch, because he’s gonna take those punches, he’s gonna give those punches back, and he’s gonna step on the gas this fight.

“But right now, I think that Roach wins the rematch… only because I think Tank is so frustrated with other parts of his life that it’s hard for him to use all of it inside the ring,” Shields continued. She later added, “I guess I favor Lamont Roach in the rematch.”

It sounds like Shields will be tuned in like the rest of the boxing world when this rematch occurs.

Leading boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has questioned whether a rematch between Gervonta Davis and Lamont Roach will happen next.

‘Tank’ retained his WBA lightweight title against Roach in New York on March 1, despite the fight being declared a split decision draw after 12 closely fought rounds.

Roach forced Davis into taking a knee midway through the ninth round, although referee Steve Willis failed to rule this as an official knockdown which effectively squandered Roach’s chances of dethroning ‘Tank’ of his WBA crown.

It had been expected that the two would face each other in an immediate rematch, however, Hearn has cast some doubt on that after revealing he will be facing Jake Paul in November.

Speaking to Fight Hub TV, the Matchroom boss suggested ‘Tank’ might go straight into the Jake Paul fight rather than take on Roach again.

Gervonta Davis and Lamont Roach 

“He’s fighting Jake Paul isn’t he.

I dunno whether he’ll still fight Lamont Roach, I know he’s fighting Jake Paul in November, and then maybe [Shakur] Stevenson after that.”

Jake Paul has had a controversial professional boxing career since his debut five years ago. The 27-year-old from Cleveland, Ohio has faced a number of retired MMA stars during this time, including Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley.

‘The Problem Child’ returned to the ring last November when he faced heavyweight icon Mike Tyson at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas where he defeated the 58-year-old via unanimous decision after eight rounds.

His next opponent will be former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr on the 28 June in California.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) will defend his WBA lightweight title against Lamont Roach (25-1-1, 10 KOs) on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

The two men have tons of familiarity dating back to their amateur days.

Many doubt that Roach can present Davis with a serious challenge, but the former is determined to convince the world that it won’t be as easy as everyone expects.

Here is the information for the main card, which you can order on Prime PPV or PPV.com.

  • Date: Saturday, March 1
  • Time: 8 p.m. ET
  • Stream: Prime PPV and PPV.com
  • Location: Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York

Davis-Roach is expected to begin their ring walks at 10pm ET.

Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach – Full Prime PPV Card

  • Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach: WBA lightweight title
  • Jose Valenzuela vs. Gary Antuanne Russell: Super lightweight
  • Alberto Puello vs. Sandor Martin: WBC super lightweight title
  • Yoenis Tellez vs. Julian Williams: Super welterweight
  • Jarrett Hurd vs. Johan Gonzalez: Middleweight

What Roach Needs to Do to Pull the Upset

Let’s be honest—Roach is justifiably a huge underdog. He’s fought Davis twice in the amateurs and lost decisions in both fights. As a pro, he has never faced an opponent on Davis’ level.

Roach also hasn’t shown the kind of punching power that would convince fans he’ll be able to hurt the lightweight champion. If Roach is going to have success, he’ll need to establish his jab—which is easier said than done against a fighter like Davis, whose lack of height often works in his favor against taller opponents.

Roach also has to prove that he can take a shot without wilting, as most of Davis’ opponents have done in his 30 pro fights. Lastly, Roach has to frustrate Davis. Whether it’s through wrestling, roughhousing, or unpredictable movement, he’s got to bring some anxiety to Davis’ performance.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Lamont Roach

 

 

It may sound overly simplistic, but Davis needs to be himself. He’s as physically gifted as any fighter in the sport, and his fight IQ is exceptional.

He starts slow while getting an opponent’s timing, but once he has it, he’s on a seek-and-destroy mission. If there is anything he must be careful of in this fight, it’s falling into the trap of being too friendly and familiar with Roach.

The two men seemingly have a good relationship. Davis showed immense respect for Roach’s mother at the presser on Thursday.

If Davis stays focused on the task, he will have this finished by the sixth round.

Here is a look at the boxing schedule for 2025 following Tank vs. Roach.

Boxing Schedule 2025

Friday, March 7, 2025

Location: Royal Albert Hall, London, GB

Time: 1:00 PM (ET)

  • The Ring Welterweight Championship: (c) Natasha Jonas vs. Lauren Price

Wednesday, March 12, 2025

Location: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia

Time: 3:00 am ET

  • Keith Thurman vs. Brock Jarvis
  • Michael Zerafa vs. Erkan Ay

Saturday, March 15, 2025

Location: M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool, GB

Time: 1:00 PM (ET)

  • WBA World Featherweight Championship: (c) Nick Ball vs. TJ Doheny

Sunday, March 16, 2025

Location: The Theater at MSG, New York City, US

Time: 9:00 PM (ET)

  • Callum Walsh vs. Dean Sutherland

Saturday, March 29, 2025

Location: Fontainebleau, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, US

Time: 9:00 PM (ET)

  • WBO World Welterweight Championship: (c) Mikaela Mayer vs. Sandy Ryan
  • Bruce “Shoo Shoo” Carrington vs. Enrique Vivas

Saturday, April 12, 2025

Location: Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US

Time: 8:00 PM (ET)

  • The Ring Welterweight Championship: (c) Jaron “Boots” Ennis vs. Eimantas Stanionis

Saturday, April 26, 2025

Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, GB

Time: 12:00 PM (ET)

  • Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn
  • Anthony Yarde vs. Lyndon Arthur
  • Liam Smith vs. Aaron McKenna
  • Chris Billam-Smith vs. Brandon Glanton
  • Cheavon Clarke vs. Viddal Riley

Saturday, May 2, 2025

  • Location: Times Square
  • Time: TBD