WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis meets with Lamont Roach next Tuesday, December 3, for his kickoff press conference to discuss his main event fight on March 1 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Both fighters will fight on PBC on Prime Video PPV.
Tank (30-0, 28 KOs) and Roach (25-1-1, 10 KOs_ were originally scheduled to fight on December 14 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, but due to problems with the venue, it was rescheduled for March 1st.
The pay-per-view price has not been revealed, but it is likely to be the same as the $75 for Gervonta’s last title defense against Frank Martin on June 15.
That’s a steep price if the undercard isn’t loaded with big names. Fans who see the big cards full of big names for the events of the Riyadh Season can be amazed at the sticker price of Tank’s fight against Roach. With this fight perceived by fans as a cherry pick, they expect the PPV price to be dramatically reduced.
Why Roach was chosen
- Low risk option: Choosing Roach provides Gervonta with an opponent he has no chance of beating, and continues to bring in money safely.
- Regional interest: Tank is from Baltimore, and Roach is from nearby Washington, DC.
- Stay busy; fans in that area are familiar with Roach and don’t mind Davis fighting him rather than one of the talented contenders in the lightweight division.
- Sample opportunities: This fight gives Gervonta a chance to look good against a light puncher, who will put up a fight before being defeated. It is a much safer choice than if Tank fought a contender like Raymond Muratalla, Edwin De Los Santos or William Zepeda.
The fans would have preferred to fight and finish on December 14th instead of kicking the can down the road on March 1st. Even with the additional three months that the promoters for the Tank vs. Roach event have to market the fight, it’s still not one that’s going to attract a lot of interest, or PPV buys.
The promoters of the tank will begin to confront with a better opposition because his habit of choosing weak opposition for him has undermined his popularity. He is loosely called the “Face of Boxing”, but no one believes that. Aside from Grevonta’s match against Ryan Garcia in 2023, their fights have been on the low end of PPV buys. It shouldn’t be like that, but that reflects the low-level opposition that Davis has fought.
