WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis has long been criticized for his choice of opponents. Despite being known as the face of boxing, people claim ‘Tank’ hasn’t fought anyone besides a sprinkle of names here and there. However, the Baltimore native doesn’t seem to see it that way, as he offered his verdict on the Terence Crawford vs. Errol Spence Jr. fight to justify his resume. 

Davis, of course, prepares himself to square off against WBA super featherweight champion Lamont Roach Jr. on March 1st in Brooklyn. Much like Davis’ other fights, this bout also invited criticism, with people suggesting that it would be a walk in the park for ‘Tank.’ The motivation behind such a view relies on a couple of points.

First, Davis is fighting someone from a lower weight class, and second, Davis has already defeated Roach twice in the amateurs. Critics also point out that Davis is avoiding a fight against WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson, who many believe is the biggest challenge for the Baltimore native. 

Davis’ past fights, leaving Ryan Garcia and Isaac Cruz, have met with a similar reception from the wider public. However, while appearing in an interview with ‘Mr Jay Hill Network’ recently, Davis pointed out that people used to say similar things about Terence Crawford before he defeated Errol Spence Jr. in July 2023.

“They were saying that Terence Crawford didn’t fight nobody until [he fought] Spence,” Davis said during the interview. “And then you seen the outcome. You seen Errol was fighting top guys and whatever the case may be. And Errol my boy, so I don’t even want to like you know…” However, unlike Davis, Crawford had fought several established names by the time he fought Spence.

‘Bud’ defeated Shawn Porter, Kell Brook, Amir Khan, and Jose Benavidez Jr., whereas Davis picked his fight mindfully. The only reason Davis fought Isaac Cruz was that his original opponent in that fight, Rolly Romero, had to pull out. And for Ryan Garcia—the fight was on a catchweight of 136 lbs, where Garcia was dehydrated.  

Regardless, Davis’ verdict about Terence Crawford’s fight came at an interesting time. 

Gervonta Davis brands Terence Crawford a ‘raccoon’

Gervonta Davis and Terence Crawford’s long-standing tension has reignited, with ‘Tank’ taking to social media to fire back at Crawford after the latter’s recent comments. During an appearance on the Cigar Talk podcast, Crawford dismissed the idea of Davis ever moving up to face elite opponents at 147 or 154 pounds, saying, “He gets to pick his opponent.” 

He didn’t hold back on his personal feelings either, adding, “I just really don’t like that dude… I don’t like [anything] about him.” While acknowledging Davis’ talent, he criticized his character, stating, “He’s a damn good fighter… I respect him as a fighter… But his core personality and his ways [I don’t like that].”

Davis did not take kindly to these remarks. In a now-deleted tweet, he lashed out, writing, “F**k the guy that interviewed that raccoon and f**k the raccoon! And I will be in NYC in 2 weeks no security how about that. Link up.” Crawford has yet to respond, but Naji defended himself, tweeting, “Don’t know why he be so mad at me I only ask fair questions.”

That said, Gervonta Davis may have problems with Terence Crawford, but he also seems to be envious of Crawford because people often regard him as the best. Do you think Davis has been treated unfairly?