While boxing stars shape up a division, legendary rivalries define them. In the history of boxing, certain rivalries have symbolized entire eras. From Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Roberto Duran to Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao—every legendary rivalry has paved the path for the future. The Shakur Stevenson-Gervonta Davis is one such game-changer, with the potential to shake up the lightweight division for years ahead.
Stevenson has described this match as the checkpoint to become an all-time great. Moreover, the pair has been at each other’s throats for a long time now. The constant back-and-forth has given this fight a personal angle with bad blood between the two, elevating this rivalry to the next level. However, things were not always like that as the duo shared a respectful relationship with each other. So, the question has to be asked, when did it all start? Well, Shakur Stevenson has an answer for us.
No one is on Gervonta Davis’ level
Recently, the WBC lightweight champion sat down with boxing commentator Naji Chill on his Cigar Talk podcast. During the interview, Chill mentioned how the lightweight duo boxed against each other in the amateurs. Furthermore, even though they were never close, they had mutual respect. “When did it go wrong?” asked a curious Chill.
The Newark native replied, “S**t started from home.” He accepted that things were not like that from the start and the duo had a healthy relationship. He further added, “People run with like false narratives. So they going to say their versions of like the story.” However, only he knows the truth.
It started when Shakur Stevenson was racking up wins in the professional circuit. As ‘Sugar’ garnered more popularity, everyone started comparing him with Gervonta Davis—something which did not sit right with the latter. “When I first was around the n**ga, he was showing a lot of love. And then once I became a threat, is where like everything switched over. Once like people start talking about me and my name started getting bigger then it was like ‘I’ll go fight, I’ll get on Twitter.’” revealed the WBC lightweight champion.
WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 07: Gervonta Davis punches Hector Luis Garcia in their WBA World Lightweight Championship bout at Capital One Arena on January 7, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
That was the time that Stevenson realized how Gervonta Davis was constantly discrediting his victories. He referred to the interview Tank made in 2023 where the latter rejected the fight claiming that Stevenson hasn’t fought anyone worthwhile. “He’ll like post, ‘Oh, he did that cuz it was a cab driver’ or he like he’ll just post some like hating that s**t to where like it was unnecessary to go do that s**t cuz like s**t,” stated the Newark native.
The sudden change in the Marylander’s nature even took Stevenson by surprise. He revealed how he “thought we was like cool type n***a. But now he like flipped it to turn it like I did something to him. And he made so believe that s**t.” However, now that he has seen everything, Stevenson thinks that it is Gervonta Davis’ own insecurity that has forced him to say such things. He added,“I think like in his brain, it’s just one person and nobody else could be up here too.” So, whenever puts his position in threat, Davis starts acting up.
However, as we all know, there is one simple solution to put an end to everything. A match with both WBA and WBC lightweight titles on the line. A bout for which Shakur Stevenson has been pushing for a while now, but Tank has always rejected the idea. However, a recent interview by Davis’ coach has flipped the entire script.
Shakur Stevenson wouldn’t accept the fight
Just hours before the Roach-Davis showdown, Gervonta Davis’ longtime trainer, Kenny Ellis, had an interview with FightHype TV. During the conversation, the interviewer asked Ellis about Tank’s future and whether their team has any plans against other 135 champions like Keyshawn Davis and Shakur Stevenson.
The well-renowned trainer claimed that there would be problems in making Stevenson fight. However, the rather surprising revelation was the fact that he denied accepting that the problem was from their camp. According to Ellis, it is the Newark native who won’t accept the fight even after asking for it.
“Well, they are Turki (Alalshikh) protected. If they can work out something, then you know anything’s possible,” stated Ellis. Considering how both Shakur Stevenson and His Excellency have been asking for the fight, the admission is rather odd. He added, “They’re not going to let it. So he’s going to talk knowing that Turki won’t let him do it.”
Does this mean that Gervonta Davis is ready to throw out a challenge to Shakur Stevenson soon? Well, only time will tell. What do you think?
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