Photo by Marilyn Paulino/RBRBoxing
In what could easily qualify for Knockout of the Mid-year and Fight of the Mid-year come June, Gervonta “Tank” Davis stripped Jose Pedraza of his 130-pound IBF belt in a blistering fight that ended with Pedraza’s butt on the canvas in the seventh round.
Davis took the early rounds as it seemed Pedraza was trying to wear him down with counters from a distance. Being down a couple rounds come the fifth, Pedraza came out from his corner smoking, trying to put enough pressure on his man to break him down in the trenches.
As the fight picked up speed, Davis and Pedraza traded verbal jabs–Pedraza began to let off chants of “WOO!” as he landed to Davis’ body repeatedly, slowing him down and looking as though he was going to take control going deeper into the fight.
In a rather cinematic turn of events, Davis turned to his corner as he was taking incessant shots and winked before letting off with brutal combinations of his own.
Come the sixth, Davis tore into Pedraza’s body, nearly putting him on the ground. Pedraza held on though, protecting his body while taking a number of blows to the face.
With a minute left in the seventh, it all came tumbling down for Pedraza.
“My team told me to go back to the body,” Davis said after the fight. “Stay under control and go back to the body.”
As Pedraza’s guard lowered, Davis let off a vicious right hook that knocked Pedraza out.
Davis is now the youngest world champion in boxing at the age of 22. Promoter Floyd Mayweather Jr. had a lot to say of his young charge after the fight:
“Is this the future of boxing? Abso-fuckin’-lutely,” said Mayweather.
