Will it finally become the first ‘L’ in one of boxing’s most storied careers? It’s a matter of days before fans hear anything concrete. The New York State Athletic Commission has decided to review the Gervonta Davis–Lamont Roach Jr. fight. The match at the Barclays Center ended in a majority draw. But the verdict, which followed Davis taking a knee during the ninth round and referee Steve Willis refraining from action, has now snowballed into a major controversy.

Had it been a knockdown, which is what boxing rules mandate, and the three judges scored the round a 10-8, Roach Jr. would have won the bout by unanimous decision bagging the WBA lightweight champion. Eric Malinski scored the bout 115-113 in favor of Tank, while Steve Weisfeld and Glenn Feldman scored the bout 114-114. Feldman and Malinski scored the ninth round in favor of Davis, while Weisfeld gave the round to Roach Jr.

Davis initially gave a reason. A hair product ran into his eyes, thus prompting him to take a knee and check his corner. Given its potential to change the course of a title fight, questions around the incident nevertheless continue to bother. Meanwhile, Dan Rafael of Fight Freaks Unite reported on Tuesday that Roach Jr.’s lawyer, Greg Smith, sent a letter to New York State Athletic Commission executive director Matt Delaglio. In the four-page letter Rafael also reported that Smith is calling for the NYSAC to overturn the majority draw into a decision win for Roach Jr.

The NYSAC has already released a statement on the matter, saying it was reviewing the controversial call by referee Steve Willis in the ninth round and that technical difficulties led to them not being able to review the call. Amid the chaos, Claressa Shields, who hasn’t enjoyed the best of dynamics with Gervonta Davis, also felt the decision could have been different.

Claressa Shields was responding to a user’s query. “In your opinion, was the fight judged correctly?” the poser read. Interestingly, it followed when Shields defended Gervonta Davis against claims that he’s overrated. Admittedly, Davis had a rough night against Lamont Roach Jr., but she believed it was just an ‘off night’ rather than proof that he’s not elite.

Shields suggested that external factors – like arguing with his corner and possibly having grease in his hair – may have contributed to his performance. “And the arguing with corner and grease in his hair didn’t help,” said the two-time Olympic gold medalist. But despite the debate over whether the fight should’ve been a draw, the Flint native insisted that Davis remained a dangerous and highly skilled fighter. Following the outcome, based on the judges’ scores and the ninth round incident, Shields felt that Lamont Roach Jr. should have won.

“If one judge had Tank 115-113 and the others had it even 114-114, I believe Roach won the fight because that knee he took was 100% a knockdown,” she said. At the same time, she acknowledged that it was a very close fight. Interestingly, one boxer who has been calling out Davis for a fight, claimed after the fight that he had anticipated the outcome.

Top Comment by Cipher

After the knee which everyone can clearly see he wasn’t hurt… did he not dominate that round or did he...more

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Debate

Shakur Stevenson was a happy soul after the fight was over. Ask why? The WBC lightweight champion hopped on X to reveal, “I made at least 20k tonight on Lamont.” When asked who he saw winning the fight, Shakur said to Fight Hub TV, “Lamont. We’re going to see [if Tank fight happens for him]. I’m the best fighter in boxing. I’ve been saying this. I think he got overconfident. I think he was thinking Lamont wasn’t that good. I told everybody how I thought the fight was going to go. The fight went exactly how I said. Exactly.” And yet, he was not the only one who thought Lamont won.

Commentary from a familiar opponent

Earlier, another Gervonta Davis bête noire, Terence Crawford, made his stance crystal clear. After the match, the multi-division champion contended, “Roach won, and that should have been called a knockdown. Let’s see what happens.” Later, following the verdict, like many, he also felt that ‘The Reaper’ had been ‘robbed.’

Questioning the referee’s decision, Crawford cited the famous case involving Floyd Mayweather. The unbeaten former champion had his first fall on the canvas back in 2001 when he faced Carlos Hernandez. In the sixth round, he touched the match with an injured hand. As a result, the referee immediately initiated the mandatory count for a rules knockdown.

Fans will now have to wait and see what the athletic commission decides. Do you agree with Claressa Shields and Terence Crawford’s opinions? Let us know.