Tokyo Olympics 2021

Gervonta Davis

Hearn: Calling Haney, Garcia, Lopez, Davis ‘Four Kings’ Is Adventurous

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The quartet of Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, Thomas Hearns and Marvin Hagler were known as the “Four Kings” in the 1980s because they all stepped into the ring and faced one another throughout the decade in memorable fights.

With the recent rise of the lightweights in Devin Haney (25-0, 15 KOs), Teofimo Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs), Ryan Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) and Gervonta Davis (24-0, 23 KOs), many have billed the foursome to be just as prolific as their eighties predecessors, despite the fact that none of them have even fought each other.

Matchroom Boxing head and Haney promoter Eddie Hearn believes the billing of the current 135-pounders is too ambitious.

“I saw ESPN put something out about the ‘Four Kings’ … which was a little bit adventurous,” Hearn told Boxing Social. “But they could be, but let’s look at that era. Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns, Roberto Duran, they all boxed each other, and numerous times.

“That’s what we have to do … let’s start making the fights. They can have trilogies, it doesn’t matter, but they’re all so young and they’re willing to take the risks and the challenges,” said Hearn. “There is not one fight between those four that is not mouth-watering. I was winding up Teofimo in Texas, saying, ‘you’re not undisputed.’”

The four lightweights have a combined record of 86 wins, no losses, and all of them are in their prime, with Davis being the oldest at the age of 26, and Haney and Garcia the youngest at 22. Lopez is 23.

Following his win over Luke Campbell, Garcia used his stage to call out Davis. The two carried the conversation and trash talk over to Mike Tyson’s podcast in the following days.

Hearn doesn’t think a fight will be feasible between Garcia and Davis because of their promotional and broadcast affiliations.

“I’d rather focus on what can happen, and that’s Haney against [WBC mandatory challenger] Garcia,” said Hearn. “Let’s start this ball rolling for these wonderful four young fighters.”

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com

Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia Continue To Hype Up Potential Blockbuster Showdown

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Clearly, Ryan Garcia has the attention of his future desired target.

Unbeaten two-time 130-pound titlist Gervonta Davis has heard his name mentioned leading up to and in the aftermath of Garcia’s recent off-the-canvas 7th round knockout win over England’s Luke Campbell (20-4, 16KOs). The lightweight bout—which aired live on DAZN this past Saturday from American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas—came with an interim title at stake, with the intention of the evening’s winner becoming the mandatory challenger to reigning WBC lightweight champ Devin Haney (25-0, 15KOs).

The WBC has since confirmed its intentions to next order that fight, though every comment from Garcia regarding his future has clearly suggested that Haney is—at best—a second desired option for his next fight. A showdown with Baltimore’s Davis (24-0, 23KOs) very much remains the immediate goal.

“I don’t have time for celebrations; I’m on one mission,” Garcia told TMZ Sports in a recent interview. “I’m on a mission to knock out Gervonta Davis in [two] rounds. This man will go down. Two rounds—that’s a promise.”

From there came a more direct claim from the rising star.

“If you do not take this next fight from me, you will not be remembered,” insists Garcia. “Your legacy will forever be tainted if you do not accept this fight.”

The attempted threat drew a chuckle from the other side.

“Lol, when I ever been a bitch,” Davis rhetorically asked in a since-deleted tweet. “You know who you talked to 10 [minutes] before ya ring walk… the fight already been made.

“[N]ow… shut up and get ready!”

Representatives from both sides declined comment on any progress being made in putting together such a fight at least in the foreseeable future.

Davis is coming off of a 6th round knockout of Leo Santa Cruz last Halloween at The Alamodome in San Antonio. The feat marked the first stateside title fight to take place with an audience beyond a small gathering since the pandemic, with 9,000 or so in attendance.

The bout topped a Showtime Pay-Per-View event, the first such headliner for Davis who sold a reported and profitable 225,000 units. It comes on the heels of Davis establishing himself as a marketable draw, pulling in favorable attendance numbers in three separate U.S. cities in 2019 including sold-out crowds in Baltimore and Atlanta, both which he considers home.

Garcia’s last two headliners have also sold all available inventory. The unbeaten lightweight drew 10,000 in attendance for his 1st round knockout of Francisco Fonseca last Valentine’s Day at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. More than 6,000 people were in attendance for this past Saturday’s win over Campbell, with added tickets made available to the public after selling out the venue which was originally configured to hold 25% capacity—roughly 5,000 for the 20,000-seat arena.

Both fights for Garcia headlined separate DAZN telecasts, with the platform having housed his last four starts through an output deal with Golden Boy Promotions. Davis has fought primarily on Showtime (and its PPV arm) during his rise to stardom.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox

De La Hoya: I Think Ryan Garcia Walks Right Through Tank Davis; I Really Do

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There was a time when Oscar De La Hoya wasn’t nearly this confident about how Ryan Garcia would fare versus Gervonta Davis.

Based on Garcia’s considerable improvement while working with trainer Eddy Reynoso, though, “The Golden Boy” doesn’t think the undefeated Davis would stand a chance against the fighter his company promotes. De La Hoya primarily mentioned Davis during a press conference Thursday as the lightweight champion he wants Garcia to fight “when” Garcia beats Luke Campbell on Saturday in Dallas.

“I think that Ryan Garcia can fight anybody at 135,” De La Hoya told DAZN’s moderator, Todd Grisham. “I think he can go up against [Devin] Haney. I’d love the ‘Tank’ fight. I think Ryan Garcia walks through ‘The Tank’ [Davis]. And if you were to ask me like three years ago, I would’ve been kind of like maybe questioned it. But now that Ryan Garcia’s the fighter who is improving, the fighter who is growing, the fighter that’s getting stronger and faster, I think Ryan Garcia walks right through ‘The Tank.’ I really do.”

The 22-year-old Garcia (20-0, 17 KOs) has regularly mentioned Baltimore’s Davis (24-0, 23 KOs) as his preferred potential opponent throughout the buildup toward his 12-round, 135-pound title fight against England’s Campbell (20-3, 16 KOs). The fourth-ranked Garcia, of Victorville, California, and the third-rated Campbell, of Hull, England, will fight for the WBC interim lightweight title in the main event at American Airlines Center.

Las Vegas’ Haney (25-0, 15 KOs), the WBC world lightweight champion, expects to face the Garcia-Campbell winner in his next fight. Grisham informed De La Hoya that Haney will part of DAZN’s broadcast team for Saturday’s show (8 p.m. GMT; 3 p.m. EST).

“Look, the beautiful thing about Ryan is that every world champion is calling him out,” De La Hoya said. “You know? It’s not the other way around. Every world champion out there, and this is the unique position that Ryan Garcia’s in, that every world champion needs Ryan Garcia. It’s not the other way around, so it’s a pretty cool position to be in.”

Davis, meanwhile, owns the WBA world 135-pound title and the WBA “super” 130-pound crown. The left-handed knockout artist is open to taking his next fight either in the lightweight division or at the junior lightweight limit.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.