Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis destroys Naoya Inoue if the two fight at 135 says trainer Andre Rozier. He feels the superstar ‘Monster’ Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs) is too small, and would get steamrolled by Tank Davis at 135 or 130,
We saw earlier today how vulnerable Inoue is with him getting dropped hard on the canvas by Luis Nery in the first round of their headliner at the Tokyo Dome. That was against Nery, a fighter who had been knocked out by Brandon Figueroa three years ago.
Rozier admits that Inoue, 31, and Tank Davis could make an “insane” amount of money if the two fought. It just wouldn’t end well for the Japanese star with him getting knocked out.
Given that Inoue won’t even move up to 126, where there are much bigger fights for him than at 122, it suggests that he’s worried about what could happen to him if he mixed it with more talented opposition than the lesser fighters that permeate the super bantamweight division.
“He doesn’t have a prayer in the world”
“Gervonta Davis by a mile. Tank rolls Inoue. At 135, utter destruction,” said trainer Andre Rozier to Fighthype on who would win between Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis and Naoya Inoue. “If Inoue ever finds himself in that spectrum of 135 lbs, Tank is going to knock him out.’
If Inoue were a more courageous old-school fighter, he’d be willing to move up in weight to take on Tank Davis at 130 or 135, but he hasn’t shown any signs of wanting to leave the kiddie pool where he competes.
It’s safe there for Inoue, and he doesn’t have to worry about talented opposition with the kind of pop in their punches that Tank Davis or other fighters possess.
“He doesn’t have a prayer in the world,” Rozier continued about Inoue. “If he gets in the firing line, and he’s going to have to because he’s not a big guy. If he gets in the firing line, Tank is going to smoke him. That’s what’s going to happen.”
It wasn’t just Nery that gave Inoue problems. 40-year-old Nonito Donaire hurt him badly and cracked his face with some of his big shots in their first fight. You can only imagine what a prime version of Donaire would have done to Inoue.
“I’m dealing with the physicality, the capabilities of these men. Tank will smoke Inoue if they fight at 135, and possibly 130, but I don’t like 130 for Tank. I like 135. Stay in your lane. Why go down when you know you’re at 135?” said Rozier.
If one could transplant a different head onto Inoue’s body, someone willing to take risks, it would be exciting to see him and Tank Davis battle it out at lightweight. The stakes would be huge the face of boxing on the line.
Insane Money on the Line
“It’s insane,” said Rozier about the money Tank Davis and Inoue could make fighting each other. “I still don’t like him [Tank] going to 130. I’m not saying I would favor him [Inoue] there. I just don’t like the logistics of it.”
Inoue is already making money hand over fist in Japan, so I guess he doesn’t feel the need to put himself at risk of losing fights against elite-level fighters for the sake of making even more loot. He’s already set for life, but still, you’d like to see him take chances for the sake of his legacy.
“I don’t like those weight cuts where you go where you haven’t been in a while. Don’t return to that [scene of] that crime. If I won titles at 126, 130, and 135, why am I going backwards? Let’s go forwards,” said Rozier.
