In a Surprising Twist, Gervonta Davis Shared the Same Deadly Combo as Naoya Inoue to Knock Out Frank Martin

Gervonta Davis recently secured a spectacular eighth-round knockout victory over Frank Martin last Saturday night in Las Vegas. This impressive performance has sparked comparisons to Japan’s ‘Monster’ Naoya Inoue, particularly due to the strikingly dominant finishes in both fighters’ recent bouts.

While Davis finished off Martin, Inoue recently delivered a sixth-round knockout of Luis Nery at the Tokyo Dome. Even though either fighter is at different weight classes, that hasn’t stopped people from drawing parallels between the two, and after the Martin fight, the comparison escalated further due to the similarity in the finishing combos.

A coincidence or evenly matched

Hours earlier, r/boxing on Reddit pointed out the similarities in the final moments of both fights, writing, “The Monster and Tank using the same setup combo, and finishing blow on their last opponents, but from different stances”. However, the similarities don’t just end with the combo and setup, it’s also how either boxer pressured their opponent to the corner of the ring.

Like Davis, Inoue started the fight slowly, evaluating his opponents’ moves. Interestingly, Inoue was even knocked down in the early rounds of the fight against Luis Nery, but quickly made a comeback to end the fight in the sixth. Conversely, Davis started pressuring Martin after the third round and finished the fight in eighth. 

Apart from their skills in the ring, Davis and Inoue share a pristine undefeated record, while being considered the best not just in their divisions, but also in the sport. Fans and pundits alike have long speculated on who would emerge victorious if the duo ever faced each other in the ring. With Inoue achieving undisputed status at super bantamweight, there have been talks of Inoue moving up in weight. 

But still there would be some gap between Davis and Inoue’s weight, so a fight between them, while possible, isn’t guaranteed. However, should the Japanese ‘Monster’ take such a risk? A Boxing expert shares his thoughts!

Virgil Hunter doesn’t want Gervonta Davis to go down

History has shown that boxers from lower weight classes often struggle against heavier opponents. The fights between Canelo Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol, as well as Amir Khan and Canelo, exemplify this trend. But for Davis vs. Inoue match to occur, a change in weight class is essential. And Boxing trainer Virgil Hunter thinks Inoue has to be the one making the change.

In an interview with Fight Hype, Hunter said, “I don’t think Gervonta [Davis] should go below 135. I’m sure Inoue walks around at ’40, ’45 – 145. [Inoue would] have to come up just like everybody else.” Suggesting there’s no value in Davis moving down in weight, he added, “You’re big in Japan, and [Davis is] big in the States. So there should not be any weight concession”. 

With that said, a fight between Gervonta Davis and Naoya Inoue seems even more enticing than ever before, but one of them has to make the change in weight class, so the question is, who will make the change? If Inoue comes up, would it really be fair? A catchweight is the obvious answer, even so, at what weight? What do you think?