Colin will be talking boxing with Jeff “Tito” Thitoff on 97.1 The Fan Saturday at 4:15 pm. Tune in!

I had to google my own World’s Worst Boxing Blog to see the last time I posted a story. Turns out it was August 2022. (Click here to read that story) I swear I haven’t been lazy, it’s just that there haven’t been any fights worth covering in the past (counting on fingers) eight months. Sure, there have been a handful of interesting matchups for true fight fans, but nothing worth highlighting to a reasonable sports fan. As we all know, boxing sucks and brings nothing but questionable scorecards, post-midnight ring-walks and overpriced disappointment to its most loyal followers. 

Until it doesn’t. And finally this weekend, it doesn’t suck. It’s a must-watch banger at a catch weight of 136 lb. between undefeated SoCal heart throb Ryan Garcia and Baltimore’s own undefeated Marlo Stanfield, I mean, err….Gevonta “Tank” Davis. (Gevonta literally trained as a kid at the boxing gym made famous on the HBO series The Wire.)

And get this, the fight of the year has zero belts on the line. Yup, this is just straight up pugilism at its finest. West Coast Hispanic pretty boy vs East Coast urban bad boy. In fact, Gervonta has a sentencing hearing two weeks after this bout and jail time is expected. I’m not making light of this fact, it’s just another storyline. Davis is managed by Floyd “Money” Mayweather and to this point has followed his advice, which is to win a belt and then pummel helpless tomato cans and cash big checks. Gervonta sells out arenas and headlines PPV events. Problem is, if you want to be mentioned in the same breath with the greats, eventually, no matter how sweet that cash is, you have to fight somebody real. 

The obvious comparison for building legacy is the Four Kings of the 80’s. Hagler, Hearns, Leonard and Duran all fought each other and ALL FOUR lost in the process. And guess what, they ALL became superstars and remained superstars in the process. 

If Rocky taught us anything, it’s that in boxing, sometimes losing gallantly has more value than winning easily. (Unless Drago kills you in the ring. I’m sure Apollo wished he was still around to enjoy all those excellent Creed movies but I digress..)

Enter Ryan Garcia. He of millions of instagram followers, dazzling hand-speed and he who took a year off to battle depression. All hail to King Ryan. He made this fight happen. He gave into all of the Money Mayweather demands. At one point a silly rematch clause threatened to derail the entire event.  Ryan stepped up & over his promoters and said, “I want this fight so bad, I don’t even need a rematch clause. I’m planning on winning.”  Wow. Think about that. If Gevonta Davis loses, he gets an instant rematch on his financial terms. If Ryan loses he walks away hat in hand. Hats off to Ryan. That is balls. And to top it off, Team Money Tank insisted on a bizarre “rehydration clause” that even after making weight at 136, Garcia could not exceed 146 pounds the morning of the fight. Ok, that’s a new one and obviously intended to disrupt Ryan’s. Big fights have been cancelled over WAY less than this nonsense but Garcia agreed to all of it. He must see something he likes because he had plenty of excuses to back out.

Having said that, Gervonta is a -300 favorite and probably deserves to be. Tank is a wrecking ball with skills and a great ring IQ.

I have no idea what is going to happen but the atmosphere in Las Vegas is going to be absolutely electric. I’m talking Leonard v Duran 1 electric. In fact, I think this fight has a lot in common with that classic battle. A young, good looking fighter who is tired of hearing he is just a media sensation so he picks a fight with the biggest bully on the block to prove his manhood. Unfortunately for Sugar Ray, he tried to bang with the Hands of Stone and took the first loss of his storied career. In the rematch, Leonard stuck to his fight plan and won in the famous No Mas victory.

I think if Garcia comes forward to prove he is more than a social media sensation, this will end in a Tank KO. However, if he fights from distance and piles up rounds early forcing Davis to come to him in the later rounds, Ryan’s power and counter-punching ability could hurt Gervonta, who has never been knocked down in his professional career. Everyone has a plan until they get hit. The boxer who lands the first big shot in this one probably wins it. Enjoy the fight!

This is boxing at its best. This is Pencil Storm. This is the World's Worst Boxing Blog. Are you ready to rumble?

Ryan Garcia vs Gervonta Davis Saturday, April 22nd: Showtime and DAZN PPV.