Tank Davis wants Roach rematch ‘soon,’ hopes for end of May

Gervonta Davis says he’ll rematch Lamont Roach by the “end of May” if he can.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis isn’t looking to take much time off if he can help it following his controversial draw with Lamont Roach.

Davis said on social media this week that “the rematch can be soon,” and specifically cited “end of May” as a possibility.

Coming into the fight, Davis (30-0-1, 28 KO) seemed like he was considering an early retirement at age 30, but now has said he’ll fight “like four more times,” and one of those will hopefully be a second go with Roach (25-1-2, 10 KO), and without the standard delay we’ve seen from Davis’ career in recent years.

Davis did have a pretty quick turnaround for a pair of fights in 2023, so he’s physically capable of performing well in that situation. He fought Hector Luis Garcia on January 7 that year, then turned around to fight Ryan Garcia on April 22, winning both fights by stoppage.

Davis vs Roach was controversial not just in the way that any draw is going to be debated and discussed, but because of a ninth round non-call by referee Steve Willis, who didn’t rule Davis voluntarily taking a knee as a knockdown.

The New York State Athletic Commission is blaming a “technical issue” for not reviewing a replay video, which is allowed in the state. There have been calls for the fight to be reevaluated and even changing it to a win for Roach, but this is unlikely. It’s not just because Davis is the star and money draw, but because had the knockdown been ruled, it’s simply impossible to tell how the fight may have changed from that point forward, or even how the rest of that round might have gone. Fighters change their approaches all the time after being knocked down, and simply ruling after the fact that it should be a 10-8 Roach round — which judges are not required to score it, by the way — seems like setting a dangerous precedent, with athletic commissions usually pretty conservative about playing with fire in that manner.

As unpopular as it may be, the draw call most likely will stand, and there is some logical reasoning for this, too.

Still, the rematch is now in-demand, far more than the original fight ever was, and the original fight did good business at the gate in Brooklyn, at the very least. Tank vs Roach 2 feels like it has to happen, or it’s a question that will too clearly and obviously haunt Davis’ career going forward, far more than conversations that he’s “ducked” this guy or that, because we actually saw this one happen and know it should really get the run-back treatment.

It may, however, be difficult for Premier Boxing Champions to turn around and spend that sort of money on another event by the end of May. I do expect we’ll see the rematch and see it this year, but within three months’ time does seem unlikely.