Sixers star Tyrese Maxey reacts to Tank Davis knocking out Frank Martin

Philadelphia 76ers star Tyrese Maxey reacts to Tank Davis knocking out Frank Martin in the eighth round.

The sports world was captivated by boxing on Saturday night as Gervonta “Tank” Davis took on Frank Martin out in Las Vegas.

Davis was able to knock Martin out with a vicious knockout punch in the eighth round to retain his WBA knockout title. It was a left uppercut and a straight left that knocked him out after it appeared that Martin had the upper hand in the first handful of rounds.

Philadelphia 76ers star Tyrese Maxey, like the rest of the world, was in awe of Davis being able to knock Martin out. He took to Twitter to give his reaction to the result.

Maxey, who is currently in France, had to get up a little early over there to watch the fight. He stated that he was up so he could watch the fight.

Maxey and the Sixers will now look ahead to the offseason in order to add the right piece that will push them over the hump in the Eastern Conference.

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Report: Gervonta Davis set to defend 135-pound title against Frank Martin

Report: 135-pound champ Gervonta Davis and contender Frank Martin have reached an agreement to fight in late spring or early summer.

Gervonta Davis reportedly has his next opponent.

The popular 135-pound titleholder and No. 2 contender Frank Martin have reached an agreement to fight on pay-per-view in late spring or early summer, ESPN is reporting.

Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) evidently has put legal issues behind him, which allows him to get back into the ring. He hasn’t fought since he stopped Ryan Garcia in seven rounds last April.

Martin (18-0, 12 KOs) also fought only once last year, defeating Artem Harutyunyan by unanimous, but close decision in July.

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Report: Gervonta Davis set to defend 135-pound title against Frank Martin

Report: 135-pound champ Gervonta Davis and contender Frank Martin have reached an agreement to fight in late spring or early summer.

Gervonta Davis reportedly has his next opponent.

The popular 135-pound titleholder and No. 2 contender Frank Martin have reached an agreement to fight on pay-per-view in late spring or early summer, ESPN is reporting.

Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) evidently has put legal issues behind him, which allows him to get back into the ring. He hasn’t fought since he stopped Ryan Garcia in seven rounds last April.

Martin (18-0, 12 KOs) also fought only once last year, defeating Artem Harutyunyan by unanimous, but close decision in July.

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Is Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz on path to becoming face of Mexican boxing?

Is lightweight contender Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz on the path to becoming the face of Mexican boxing?

The unofficial race to become the face of Mexican boxing is on.

Super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, the country’s biggest star over the past decade-plus, has begun to decline in the opinion of many observers. That means someone will supplant him on the coveted throne sooner rather than later.

The list of potential candidates isn’t long. Setting Alvarez and longtime star Juan Francisco Estrada aside for the purposes of his exercise, among the names that come to mind: Jaime Munguia, Emanuel Navarrete, Oscar Valdez and William Zepeda.

And, of course, there’s swarming, powerful 135-pound contender Isaac Cruz, who, at 25 and surging, might be leading the pack.

Oddly enough it was a setback that lifted “Pitbull” to his current status, his unanimous, but disputed decision against pound-for-pounder Gervonta Davis as a 23-year-old pup in December 2021. No has pushed Davis harder than Cruz, who faces Giovanni Cabrera on the Terence Crawford-Errol Spence Jr. card on July 29.

His fans back home certainly noticed, which he thought “was something beautiful” because acclaim came sooner than he expected. However, he believes he’s still in the process of winning them over.

“I don’t feel like I have the fans in my back pocket,” he told Boxing Junkie through a translator. “I have to keep grinding, keep working to get the fans on my side.”

The grinding resumes in less than two weeks, when he faces the rangy (5-foot-9) Cabrera on pay-per-view from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Cabrera (21-0, 7 KOs) will have been Cruz’s third relatively nondescript opponent since the Davis fight, following knockouts of Yuriorkis Gamboa and Eduardo Ramirez. Cruz (24-2-1, 17 KOs) sees Cabrera as another important step toward where he wants to be.

He insists he has no issues with motivation even though much bigger fights against the top lightweights are on the horizon.

“I don’t overlook anybody,” he said. “I prepare for every fight the same way because each win is [important].”

Indeed, if he continues to have his hand raised, the super fights will come. Cruz wants a rematch with Davis first and foremost. But he also has the likes of Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson and Vasiliy Lomachenko in his sights.

Those fights – or at least one or two of them – would give Cruz the opportunity to join the aforementioned 135-pounders as stars in the deep division, although he feels his performance against Davis should’ve have already led to that perception.

“Absolutely I should be mentioned with that group,” he said. “I faced down the monster (Davis) when I was just a nobody. I don’t feel I’m getting recognition for that. Regardless, I don’t care what people say or don’t say.

“Results speak for themselves. Eventually, inevitably I’ll be named among the best in the division.”

And perhaps the very best from his country.

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Is Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz on path to becoming face of Mexican boxing?

Is lightweight contender Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz on the path to becoming the face of Mexican boxing?

The unofficial race to become the face of Mexican boxing is on.

Super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, the country’s biggest star over the past decade-plus, has begun to decline in the opinion of many observers. That means someone will supplant him on the coveted throne sooner rather than later.

The list of potential candidates isn’t long. Setting Alvarez and longtime star Juan Francisco Estrada aside for the purposes of his exercise, among the names that come to mind: Jaime Munguia, Emanuel Navarrete, Oscar Valdez and William Zepeda.

And, of course, there’s swarming, powerful 135-pound contender Isaac Cruz, who, at 25 and surging, might be leading the pack.

Oddly enough it was a setback that lifted “Pitbull” to his current status, his unanimous, but disputed decision against pound-for-pounder Gervonta Davis as a 23-year-old pup in December 2021. No has pushed Davis harder than Cruz, who faces Giovanni Cabrera on the Terence Crawford-Errol Spence Jr. card on July 29.

His fans back home certainly noticed, which he thought “was something beautiful” because acclaim came sooner than he expected. However, he believes he’s still in the process of winning them over.

“I don’t feel like I have the fans in my back pocket,” he told Boxing Junkie through a translator. “I have to keep grinding, keep working to get the fans on my side.”

The grinding resumes in less than two weeks, when he faces the rangy (5-foot-9) Cabrera on pay-per-view from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Cabrera (21-0, 7 KOs) will have been Cruz’s third relatively nondescript opponent since the Davis fight, following knockouts of Yuriorkis Gamboa and Eduardo Ramirez. Cruz (24-2-1, 17 KOs) sees Cabrera as another important step toward where he wants to be.

He insists he has no issues with motivation even though much bigger fights against the top lightweights are on the horizon.

“I don’t overlook anybody,” he said. “I prepare for every fight the same way because each win is [important].”

Indeed, if he continues to have his hand raised, the super fights will come. Cruz wants a rematch with Davis first and foremost. But he also has the likes of Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson and Vasiliy Lomachenko in his sights.

Those fights – or at least one or two of them – would give Cruz the opportunity to join the aforementioned 135-pounders as stars in the deep division, although he feels his performance against Davis should’ve have already led to that perception.

“Absolutely I should be mentioned with that group,” he said. “I faced down the monster (Davis) when I was just a nobody. I don’t feel I’m getting recognition for that. Regardless, I don’t care what people say or don’t say.

“Results speak for themselves. Eventually, inevitably I’ll be named among the best in the division.”

And perhaps the very best from his country.

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Gervonta Davis to serve remainder of hit-and-run sentence in jail: reports

Gervonta Davis reportedly will serve the remainder of his hit-and-run sentence in jail after an “impromptu hearing.”

Gervonta Davis reportedly will go to jail after all.

The 135-pound contender, who had been serving 90 days of home detention for a hit-and-run conviction early this month, was taken into custody Thursday at Baltimore Central Booking after an “impromptu hearing” and ordered to spend the remainder of his sentence behind bars.

Davis’ attorney, Michael Tomko, confirmed that the hearing took place and that Judge Althea Handy sent Davis to jail but made no further comment, according to The Baltimore Banner.

It’s not clear why Handy changed Davis’ sentencing.

Davis received a prison sentence of two-plus years on May 5 but the sentence was suspended, meaning he wouldn’t spend time behind bars if he fulfilled other requirements. He also received 200 hours of community service and three years probation from Handy in Circuit Court for Baltimore City.

He reportedly had been serving his home detention at the residence of his trainer, Calvin Ford.

Handy initially allowed Davis to avoid jailtime even though she was critical of his refusal to apologize to one of those injured in the crash.

“Three words: ‘I am sorry.’” she said, according to The Baltimore Banner. “And he was not man enough to do that. … He’s shown absolutely no remorse.”

The unbeaten fighter pleaded guilty last February to four of the 14 misdemeanor counts for which he was indicted, which allowed him to avoid a trial.

The four counts were leaving the scene of an accident in which someone was injured, failure to report property damage, driving without a valid license and running a red light, according to ESPN.

The accident occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 5, 2020.

Davis reportedly left a restaurant in downtown Baltimore in a Lamborghini Urus SUV, following a police escort. However, he split from the escort, ran a red light on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and struck a Toyota Solara, which a report says was “destroyed.”

The two people in the Lamborghini, which struck a fence after the collision and was disabled, allegedly fled the scene on foot. Police later determined that Davis was driving, citing witnesses and surveillance videos.

Four adults were in the Toyota, all of whom were transported to a nearby hospital. The driver evidently suffered the most-serious injuries, although not to the level required for Davis to be charged with a felony.

The woman’s attorney, Gil Amaral, told the Baltimore Sun that she suffered “fairly serious injuries” and has had complications in her recovery.

“Fortunately, the victims in this case were able to survive this alleged hit-and-run collision with recoverable injuries despite the potential for a far worst scenario,” State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby said in a statement at the time of the indictment.

“My office will continue to do our part to hold reckless drivers accountable when their harmful actions put innocent lives in jeopardy.”

Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) had knocked out Leo Santa Cruz in the sixth round only a few days before the accident. He has fought five times since, including a seventh-round knockout of Ryan Garcia in a high-profile fight on April 22.

Davis has had a number of brushes with the law. Here’s a timeline:

2017 — Arrested for assaulting a childhood friend but charges were later dropped.

2018 — Arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for his role in an alleged street fight.

2019 — Arrested and charged with simple battery-domestic violence after allegedly assaulting the mother of his child in Florida. She later recanted her story.

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Gervonta Davis to serve remainder of hit-and-run sentence in jail: reports

Gervonta Davis reportedly will serve the remainder of his hit-and-run sentence in jail after an “impromptu hearing.”

Gervonta Davis reportedly will go to jail after all.

The 135-pound contender, who had been serving 90 days of home detention for a hit-and-run conviction early this month, was taken into custody Thursday at Baltimore Central Booking after an “impromptu hearing” and ordered to spend the remainder of his sentence behind bars.

Davis’ attorney, Michael Tomko, confirmed that the hearing took place and that Judge Althea Handy sent Davis to jail but made no further comment, according to The Baltimore Banner.

It’s not clear why Handy changed Davis’ sentencing.

Davis received a prison sentence of two-plus years on May 5 but the sentence was suspended, meaning he wouldn’t spend time behind bars if he fulfilled other requirements. He also received 200 hours of community service and three years probation from Handy in Circuit Court for Baltimore City.

He reportedly had been serving his home detention at the residence of his trainer, Calvin Ford.

Handy initially allowed Davis to avoid jailtime even though she was critical of his refusal to apologize to one of those injured in the crash.

“Three words: ‘I am sorry.’” she said, according to The Baltimore Banner. “And he was not man enough to do that. … He’s shown absolutely no remorse.”

The unbeaten fighter pleaded guilty last February to four of the 14 misdemeanor counts for which he was indicted, which allowed him to avoid a trial.

The four counts were leaving the scene of an accident in which someone was injured, failure to report property damage, driving without a valid license and running a red light, according to ESPN.

The accident occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 5, 2020.

Davis reportedly left a restaurant in downtown Baltimore in a Lamborghini Urus SUV, following a police escort. However, he split from the escort, ran a red light on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and struck a Toyota Solara, which a report says was “destroyed.”

The two people in the Lamborghini, which struck a fence after the collision and was disabled, allegedly fled the scene on foot. Police later determined that Davis was driving, citing witnesses and surveillance videos.

Four adults were in the Toyota, all of whom were transported to a nearby hospital. The driver evidently suffered the most-serious injuries, although not to the level required for Davis to be charged with a felony.

The woman’s attorney, Gil Amaral, told the Baltimore Sun that she suffered “fairly serious injuries” and has had complications in her recovery.

“Fortunately, the victims in this case were able to survive this alleged hit-and-run collision with recoverable injuries despite the potential for a far worst scenario,” State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby said in a statement at the time of the indictment.

“My office will continue to do our part to hold reckless drivers accountable when their harmful actions put innocent lives in jeopardy.”

Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) had knocked out Leo Santa Cruz in the sixth round only a few days before the accident. He has fought five times since, including a seventh-round knockout of Ryan Garcia in a high-profile fight on April 22.

Davis has had a number of brushes with the law. Here’s a timeline:

2017 — Arrested for assaulting a childhood friend but charges were later dropped.

2018 — Arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for his role in an alleged street fight.

2019 — Arrested and charged with simple battery-domestic violence after allegedly assaulting the mother of his child in Florida. She later recanted her story.

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Gervonta Davis’ domestic violence charge dropped

Prosecutors have dropped a domestic violence charge against boxing star Gervonta Davis.

Gervonta Davis will not be tried for domestic violence.

Prosecutors on Monday dropped one count of misdemeanor battery after the alleged victim, the mother of the fighter’s child, refused to press charges, TMZ Sports is reporting.

Davis and the woman, Vanessa Posso, had agreed that he must complete anger management and parenting classes, according to prosecutors. He did so, after which the case was dropped.

Posso called 911 after accusing the lightweight contender of hitting her in the face amid an argument last Dec. 27 in Broward County, Florida. He was arrested, jailed and then released.

However, three days later she indicated on Instagram that Davis, “did not harm me or our daughter.”

She or someone else wrote on her Instagram account (@itsrgnessa): “These past days have been hurtful, and extremely exhausting for all parties involved. I pride myself on being extremely private; this situation was the last thing I wanted to be made public.

“The state of our relationship has been in a fragile space and Gervonta and I were both at fault for the argument. While the emotions were running high I made an unnecessary call to law enforcement in an intense moment while I was frantic. Gervonta did not harm me or our daughter.

“Today, we have sought the help necessary to move forward with our lives. I am confident that we will succeed within our coparenting dynamic with the counseling provided to us.”

Davis denied the allegations, calling them “bull—-.”.

“I NEVER PUT MY HANDS ON MY CHILD MOTHER NOR MY F—ING DAUGHTER ARE YOU F—ING CRAZY!! IM NOT A MONSTER,” he wrote on Instagram.

He also seemed to say in the long post that the incident was an attempt by his accuser to get money out of him.

Davis allegedly struck Posso on the right side of her face by what was described in a police report as a “closed hand,” which caused an abrasion on her upper lip.

The police report indicated that he “did actually and intentionally touch and strike [the woman] against her will [and] did intentionally cause bodily harm to her.”

Audio of the alleged victim’s 911 call was obtained by multiple outlets. She reportedly told the operator: “I need help, please! I’m trying to go home. I have my baby in the car, and he attacked me in front of the kid. And, now he’s messing up my tires!” She then paused and said, “Please, help me! He’s going to kill me!”

The call was disconnected but she called back, adding, “I need to go home, I’m in danger right now!”

Police received one more call from a woman, apparently Posso, who claimed Davis also spat at her.

The incident took place around 1:25 p.m. on Dec. 27. He was arrested at 2:50 p.m. that day.

Davis has fought twice since the incident, knocking out Hector Luis Garcia and Ryan Garcia.

The lightweight contender earlier this month received a sentence of 90 days home detention and 200 hours of community service for a hit-and-run conviction in 2020.

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Gervonta Davis’ domestic violence charge dropped

Prosecutors have dropped a domestic violence charge against boxing star Gervonta Davis.

Gervonta Davis will not be tried for domestic violence.

Prosecutors on Monday dropped one count of misdemeanor battery after the alleged victim, the mother of the fighter’s child, refused to press charges, TMZ Sports is reporting.

Davis and the woman, Vanessa Posso, had agreed that he must complete anger management and parenting classes, according to prosecutors. He did so, after which the case was dropped.

Posso called 911 after accusing the lightweight contender of hitting her in the face amid an argument last Dec. 27 in Broward County, Florida. He was arrested, jailed and then released.

However, three days later she indicated on Instagram that Davis, “did not harm me or our daughter.”

She or someone else wrote on her Instagram account (@itsrgnessa): “These past days have been hurtful, and extremely exhausting for all parties involved. I pride myself on being extremely private; this situation was the last thing I wanted to be made public.

“The state of our relationship has been in a fragile space and Gervonta and I were both at fault for the argument. While the emotions were running high I made an unnecessary call to law enforcement in an intense moment while I was frantic. Gervonta did not harm me or our daughter.

“Today, we have sought the help necessary to move forward with our lives. I am confident that we will succeed within our coparenting dynamic with the counseling provided to us.”

Davis denied the allegations, calling them “bull—-.”.

“I NEVER PUT MY HANDS ON MY CHILD MOTHER NOR MY F—ING DAUGHTER ARE YOU F—ING CRAZY!! IM NOT A MONSTER,” he wrote on Instagram.

He also seemed to say in the long post that the incident was an attempt by his accuser to get money out of him.

Davis allegedly struck Posso on the right side of her face by what was described in a police report as a “closed hand,” which caused an abrasion on her upper lip.

The police report indicated that he “did actually and intentionally touch and strike [the woman] against her will [and] did intentionally cause bodily harm to her.”

Audio of the alleged victim’s 911 call was obtained by multiple outlets. She reportedly told the operator: “I need help, please! I’m trying to go home. I have my baby in the car, and he attacked me in front of the kid. And, now he’s messing up my tires!” She then paused and said, “Please, help me! He’s going to kill me!”

The call was disconnected but she called back, adding, “I need to go home, I’m in danger right now!”

Police received one more call from a woman, apparently Posso, who claimed Davis also spat at her.

The incident took place around 1:25 p.m. on Dec. 27. He was arrested at 2:50 p.m. that day.

Davis has fought twice since the incident, knocking out Hector Luis Garcia and Ryan Garcia.

The lightweight contender earlier this month received a sentence of 90 days home detention and 200 hours of community service for a hit-and-run conviction in 2020.

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Rolando Romero: ‘I became a better fighter’ as result of loss to Gervonta Davis

Rolando Romero said that “I became a better fighter” as result of his knokckout loss to Gervonta Davis last year.

Rolando Romero doesn’t view his fate against Gervonta Davis as a total loss.

Yes, the powerful Davis caught him with a big left hand and knocked him out in the sixth round of their 135-pound fight last May. That’s a matter of record.

At the same time, the fact he fought Davis on roughly even terms until the stoppage and the experience he gained left him with a positive outlook going into his fight with Ismael Barroso on Saturday night in Las Vegas (Showtime).

Romero will be fighting as a full-fledged 140-pounder for the first time. The vacant WBA title reportedly will be at stake.

“Gervonta Davis didn’t win that fight, I lost that fight,” Romero told Boxing Junkie. “I can say it like that. It was a reflection of a mistake I made more than him being great. Before that, the person being great was me.

“… Regardless, I’m forever grateful for that opportunity. I became smarter, I became a better fighter.”

The fight Saturday at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas is another significant opportunity.

Romero (14-1, 12 KOs) had been scheduled to challenge WBA beltholder Alberto Puello but Puello was pulled from the card after allegedly testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. He reportedly was stripped of his title.

Barroso, a 40-year-old slugger from Venezuela, agreed to step in about three weeks before the fight.

Romero is perfectly happy fighting Barroso – particularly because the full title will be on the line – but he was outraged when he heard about the doping allegation of his original opponent.

“It’s just disgusting,” he said. “Testing positive for banned substances is f—ed up. Our health is at stake. It’s not like every other sport. Boxers die all the time. … I think anyone who gets caught with that should be permanently banned from boxing.”

The positive drug test opened a door for Barroso, who Romero believes could pose a stiffer challenge than Puello would have.

Puello is an athletic, slick technician. Barroso (24-3-2, 22 KOs) is known more for his punching power than his boxing ability, although he has solid skills. He was stopped by then 135-pound beltholder Anthony Crolla in 2016, his only title shot.

Both Puello and Barroso are left-handed, which will have made the transition easier for Romero in one sense.

Romero was asked about Barroso’s knockout record.

“Oh, he can punch,” he said. “He’s one of those guys with heavy hands. And he’s tricky, experienced. Is this a step down? I think it’s a step up. Puello can’t punch. This dude can punch.

“I can’t fall asleep on this guy. You can’t even compare the two on that.”

You also can’t compare Barroso to Romero’s previous opponent, Davis. That could bode well for him, as he can box and punch hard, too. The glory that eluded him against one of the best in the business last year could come one fight later.

“I’ll be excited to be champion,” he said, “and to put on a show for my hometown fans in Las Vegas. I’m just excited to be back.”

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