Kenny Ellis, assistant coach to Gervonta “Tank” Davis, claims he could outbox Vasiliy Lomachenko if he wanted to, but would knock him out. The two lightweight champions are in negotiations for a unification bout on PPV in November.
WBA lightweight champion Tank Davis' boxing ability is considered a weakness, as he is behind in every fight and relies on power to bounce back.
Tank's power is the only thing that's kept him going in his career. Without it, he'd be humiliated by Lomachenko or any other top lightweight. He's not going to box Loma because he'd lose every round.
Davis was also outboxed by Leo Santa Cruz and Frank Martin, knocking them out with one punch after taking significant damage from both men, so you can't just say Tank absorbed so much damage in his fights because he was lazy.
In reality, Tank (30-0, 28 KOs), a Baltimore native, never really developed his boxing skills, and one of the reasons for that is coaching. As the saying goes, “Junk in, junk out.”
Poor coaching produces fighters like Tank who rely more on power than technique, which is why his only chance of beating IBF lightweight champion Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs) is by knockout.
Once Tank realizes this, he will likely step down as coach and hire someone better to train him, but it may already be too late.
Mind games: Tactics used by Lomachenko fans
Kenny says Lomachenko fans are trying to trick Tank using psychology: They say Tank can win at boxing, but only by knocking out a talented fighter.
Ellis believes fans are encouraging Tank to prove them wrong with boxing rather than punching, but that won't work.
“Gervonta Davis can outbox Lomachenko but he's not. We're going to knock him out so take that mentality somewhere else,” Kenny Ellis said on Instagram, claiming that Gervonta Davis could outbox Vasiliy Lomachenko if he wanted to.
“You've heard Lomachenko fans and Gervonta critics say the only way Gervonta Davis can beat Lomachenko is by knockout. That's because they want Gervonta Davis to box Lomachenko and prove them wrong. They don't want Gervonta blowing that smoke.”
“That psychology doesn't work here. In boxing, you have to recognize clever psychology when you hear it,” Ellis said.
