Commentator Tim Bradley believes challenger Frank Martin, who takes on power puncher Gervonta “Tank” Davis for the WBA “regular” lightweight title on June 15 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, does not have enough experience to win this Saturday night.
Bradley predicts Tank Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) will use his power advantage late in the fight to score a knockout against unbeaten WBA No. 2-ranked Martin (18-0, 12 KOs) in the main event of the PBC on Prime Video PPV.
Martin's inability to close rounds against Tank will also work against him, as he won't be able to play it safe in the later rounds by holding a lead and ducking out when Tank is looking for the knockout.
Tank's Predatory Instinct
“I think what Frank lacks is experience. That's what he lacks. He has to be able to put the rounds together and I don't think he can do that. That's the problem,” commentator Tim Bradley said on Fight Hub TV about Frank Martin's June 15 fight against the more experienced WBA “regular” lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis.
Bradley is right when he says Martin doesn't have the experience to fight Tank Davis. What's worrying is that Martin was given a boxing lesson in the first seven rounds of his last fight against Artyom Harutyunyan last year, and was unable to launch an offensive attack from rounds eight through twelve, the deciding rounds.
If Martin gets off to a slow start against Davis on Saturday night, he'll be far behind in the bout with no chance of a comeback. Martin will be fighting desperately and recklessly by then, and Tank could take advantage and catch him with some big punches and score a knockout in the closing stages.
Late game stop prediction
“In the later rounds, I'm also worried about Frank. [Tank Davis] “He's comfortable with that and doesn't mind being followed,” Bradley said, “See, that's the thing. You don't realize it. There's a reason he's an apex predator, because he sets traps.”
If Martin gets off to a slow start like he did in his last fight against Harutyunyan, Tank Davis may not need to push back. If Martin does the same, Tank will hold a big lead in the later rounds and Martin will fight like a brute, leaving him vulnerable to the unbeaten WBA runner-up's powerful counter attacks.
“He waits for guys to make a mistake and then he takes that shot and kills it,” Bradley said of Tank. “Frank makes mistakes, he makes mistakes late, and a guy like Tank is able to expose them.”
It would have been better if Frank Martin's management had tested him against some of the more capable challengers in the 135-pound division before putting him against the experienced Tank.
It seems like Martin's promoters were rushing to get a cash-out fight for him without giving him the experience that would adequately prepare him for a big move up the weight class, and I would have liked to see Martin fight these guys before challenging for Tank's WBA belt.
– Abdullah Mason
– Floyd Scofield
– Edwin de los Santos
– William Cepeda
– Raymond Murata
– Keyshawn Davis
– Mark Chamberlain
“As the fight goes on, all the hype around the fight, all the bright lights and just being with Tank who can throw hard punches with both hands is going to wear Frank Martin down. I think Tank will get the stoppage late in the fight,” Bradley said.
