This Saturday night, Gervonta Davis will make his long-awaited return to the ring in a bout broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, against unbeaten lightweight contender Frank Martin. With Davis' legal issues resolved, “Tank” is set to entertain his growing fanbase with a bout broadcast live on PBC on Prime Video PPV.
Can Frank Martin exceed expectations in the main event of a pretty loaded PPV and prelim card? Will rust be a factor for Davis, especially when facing a sharp fighter like Martin?
Tank Davis got off to a busy start in 2023 after defeating tough opponent Hector Luis Garcia in January. Following his ninth-round TKO win, Davis faced off against then-unbeaten Ryan Garcia. The bout was highly anticipated, with over one million PPV buys and a very large live gate. Garcia got off to a fast start out of the gate with a few hard punches, but was taken down by a counter left hook, and eventually Garcia was taken to his knees by a vicious body shot.
Tank's lawsuit means he's on house arrest, serving time in prison, and ankle monitoring means he can't schedule his next fight. Leonard Ellerbe of Mayweather Promotions recently said Tank has a hit list and plans to fight some of the top names in and around the 135-pound division, including Vasiliy Lomachenko, Shakur Stevenson, and possibly a rematch with Ryan Garcia. But let's stop here, so as not to get ahead of ourselves.
Frank Martin is coming off a somewhat disappointing fight against Artem Harutyunyan and is fired up to take on the big man. Plus, Frank is earning the highest salary of his career and has the opportunity to rock the boxing world with an upset. There are a few key things Martin needs to work on, starting with the boring, basic jab. Jabs to the head, chest and occasionally the body provide great targets for Martin's power punches.
Punch rate is also key, but that doesn't mean you should suddenly be throwing 80 punches a round. Landing jabs and scoring points is a great way to show the judges that you're winning the round – as long as Martin lands a few clean punches that are easy to see, rather than just sympathetic punches, of course. Attacking the body when Gervonta is in the high guard can be effective, but should only be done to keep Frank from getting caught by Davis' deadly counter punches.
For Martin, setting the pace is the more important detail, instead of transitioning into a fighter who just rushes forward. A series of quick combinations of mini attacks followed by a retreat is a more responsible way to approach Davis. With lateral movements and subtle pivots on the outside between attacks, he keeps a safer distance. Frank cannot make the mistake of being overly aggressive in his attacks without injuring Davis, but he still needs to be careful.
Tank's opponents haven't done much in the early stages of fights in recent years, so don't be surprised if Martin wins early on. Watch for Tank to slowly but surely start timing Frank. At times it looks like Davis isn't doing enough or is losing the fight, but then like a bolt of lightning the fight ends or the fighter is in serious danger. Tank has a quality jab and this fight is the perfect style combination to bring it out even more.
Frank Martin is a technically sharp boxer with a strong grasp of the fundamentals. Tank Parr usually waits until the right time to strike. His weight is something to watch, having missed his big arrival and reportedly been spotted running shortly after. Tank has been strict with his weight in recent years, but it has been about 13 months since he fought Ryan Garcia. If rust is truly the culprit, this could be very interesting.
Frank hasn't shown his greatness yet, but maybe he will on Saturday. Either way, Martin is very good in a lot of ways. Martin hasn't fought in about 11 months, so both fighters will probably come into the bout a little rusty. Overall, this should be a competitive fight, and as a lifelong boxing fan, I expect it to be a great night of boxing overall.
My official prediction is for Gervonta Davis to win by late TKO.
Podcast link: http://tobtr.com/12346429
Additional Notes: Don't miss the co-main event between David Benavidez and Oleksandr Gvozdyk, as well as other bouts on the PPV undercard and prelims, including Russell vs. Puello and Garcia vs. Davis. DAZN will also broadcast Subriel Matias vs. Liam Paro.
Written by: Chris Carlson, Host/Producer of The Rope A Dope Radio Podcast Available at www.blogtalkradio.com/ropeadoperadio Follow on Twitter: @RopeADopeRadio
