Why Gervonta Davis’ controversial knee against Lamont Roach was a symptom of bigger problems for ‘Tank’

There was something lost in the aftermath of Saturday’s PBC pay-per-view card in Brooklyn, New York, where a missed knockdown call by referee Steve Willis in the main event cost 130-pound beltholder Lamont Roach Jr. the WBA lightweight title and a monumental upset of superstar Gervonta Davis. 

Roach (25-1-2, 10 KOs), a former amateur rival of Davis, deserved to be the leading story after handing “Tank,” a -1600 betting favorite, the first blemish of his professional career in their controversial majority draw inside Barclays Center. As did the New York State Athletic Commission, which was less than transparent in the immediate aftermath and claimed Monday a technical issue prevented it from reviewing the instant replay footage during the allotted time. 

By refusing to call the voluntary knee taken by Davis in Round 9 exactly what it was — a knockdown — the fallout cost Roach both a 10-8 point swing that would’ve swung the decision in his favor and multiple millions of dollars that could’ve come from Roach entering their inevitable rematch as the defending champion. NYSAC told multiple outlets it’s still “reviewing the matter.”   

But the most unexplainable storyline of all that still demands a bit more attention turned its way is this: What the heck was up with Davis (30-0-1, 28 KOs)? 

While it was definitely a shock to see the 30-year-old native of Baltimore struggle against such an overwhelming underdog after dominating the sport for so long, that’s not what necessarily was most surprising. Roach looked like the bigger fighter after bulking up to lightweight and relied upon the confidence and experience he drew from growing up in the same boxing circles as Davis to author the most impressive performance of his career. 

The biggest set of questions surrounded Davis’ mindset and the repeatedly bizarre behavior he showed before, during and after the fight, which has begged the question as to whether this was simply an off night for one of the sport’s pound-for-pound best or has Davis lost the competitive fire and killer mindset that made him such a wildly popular draw at the box office?

Star boxers being late for media events is far from a new thing, especially for Davis, who was nearly two hours late for the 2023 kickoff press conference against Ryan Garcia. In December, however, Davis took tardiness to a whole new level when he unapologetically arrived nearly 4.5 hours after the start of his first event with Roach in New York and followed it up by being 90 minutes late to last Friday’s weigh-in. 

Davis was largely playful and loose during fight week, which is his norm, but his behavior during the fight turned alarming when he twice took his eyes off of Roach to argue with Willis during the first half, only to eat clean punches in return. Prime Video cameras also caught Davis yelling over the advice of trainer Calvin Ford in the corner at times between rounds by screaming, “Listen to me!”

And then there was the uncalled knockdown in Round 9. 

After Roach connected on a series of jabs, Davis started to aggressively blink his left eye before turning his back to the action and taking a knee. Davis instantly rose up and ran to his corner where Ford used a towel to wipe his eyes, which could have been grounds for disqualification under the rules. Willis briefly began counting the mandatory eight count but stopped at three and warned Davis before letting the action continue. 

Not only was Davis’ explanation of what happened during the post-fight interview peculiar, his demeanor was noticeably less than serious (considering he came so close to losing his title and unbeaten record) as the crowd booed him after, which screamed of either embarrassment or disinterest. 

“I just got my hair done two days ago and she put grease in my shit so the shit was like coming into my face when I was sweating and it burnt my eyes,” Davis said. “Damn, why are you all booing like I’m saying bullshit? This is real facts, come on man. Look at my hair, I just got my shit done. But it’s all cool, man, you know how they get — they love you and then they hate you. Turn around and they will love you again.” 

Davis, who owns a mandatory rematch clause in his contract and shared his interest in one Monday on social media, appeared a bit more humble while explaining his performance at the postfight press conference, which only exposed a lack of situational awareness regarding the rules.  

“Nobody likes a draw from a guy who gets knockouts and things like that but it’s cool,” Davis said. “I feel like if we fight again, I could do more and I should’ve done more. I was lost and lost track of the rounds. That’s why we need [ring girls]. I didn’t know what round it was. Facts.

“I didn’t want to get caught while my eyes were burning. You can get knocked out like that so I would rather take the knee. But I didn’t really know that you could get disqualified for [receiving mid-round corner assistance]. When [Willis] started counting, I was like, ‘What the hell?’ But it’s cool.”

Although Davis has had close and relatively competitive fights in recent years with the likes of current welterweight titleholder Mario Barrios and former 140-pound champion Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, the Roach fight marked his first noticeably flat performance since 2017 in the co-main event of the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor superfight. Davis missed weight and lost his IBF 130-pound title on the scales before being booed for most of an uneven performance against Francisco Fonseca that ended via eighth-round knockout. 

The years that followed saw Davis become a truly breakout global star, where the distractions of constant (and concerning) headlines regarding his legal troubles never seemed to affect the performances of the typically joyful and endearing Davis inside the ring. 

But what only added to the questions surrounding Davis entering the Roach fight were the entire pre-fight narratives around multiple references from “Tank” that his retirement from the sport was imminent and could come as quickly as the end of 2025. Davis cited a want to undergo therapy and mental health treatment so he could be a better father.

“That’s why I don’t want to box no more,” Davis told “Inside Boxing Live” in January. “I want to do therapy but I feel as though if I do, it would lose the fire that I have inside of me. I want everything out of me where so I never think about fighting again or even getting angry. I have two girls and I want them to be much softer and be more humble.

“[It’s all about] being true to yourself, you just need to be true to yourself. Now, faking it, that’s when it’s like when you know you don’t want to do it and you continue to do it. That’s something wrong.” 

Wanting a more peaceful life for yourself and your family is as noble a reason as any to shift gears and bring about important change in your life. But it’s hard to imagine a more dangerous place to be when you no longer want to be there than inside of a boxing ring where the future of your physical and mental health is always at risk. 

Davis is one of the most dynamic and entertaining fighters the sport of boxing has seen in decades and one bad night at the office can happen to anyone in a sport as fickle as boxing where, for better or worse, you are largely judged on the merits of your most recent performance. 

But as talks quickly turn from the outrage of how Davis-Roach I was handled to the prospects of a must-see rematch, here’s to hoping “Tank” is still competing for the right reasons and brings with him the right mindset and focus to be at his very best.