Gervonta Davis has raised some eyebrows with his publicly-stated intentions to face British fighter Conor Benn at welterweight after deliberately refusing to fight Devin Haney at 140 lbs; a weight class below welterweight. While it had been first thought that Davis was not willing to face Haney because of the reports that surfaced of Haney rehydrating up to 165 lbs when he faced Regis Prograis last December, this can no longer be the case as Benn fights at a higher weight and can rehydrate to even higher levels than Haney did in his last fight.
The potential bout between Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KO’s) and Conor Benn (23-0, 14 KO’s) was sparked by a series of Tweets that both fighters launched at each other following Benn’s February 3rd victory over Peter Dobson (16-1, 9 KO’s).
Since this exchange, Matchroom chairman and Benn’s promoter―Eddie Hearn―has seemingly confirmed he has reached out to Davis to stage a fight between him and Benn in the near future.
While Gervonta Davis fights two weight classes below Conor Benn at lightweight, his sudden interest to fight Benn appears quite confusing given he had expressed no such interest to fight Devin Haney. Notably, Haney arguably proved his credentials as an elite fighter with a dominant win over a world champion in Regis Prograis (29-2, 24 KO’s), while Benn just completed a win over a relatively unknown fighter in Dobson in a non-title bout who he was expected to stop or knock out.
At this point in time, Haney would be regarded as the more dangerous fight despite fighting a weight class below welterweight where Benn currently fights at. A former undisputed lightweight champion, Haney carries more accolades and experience than Benn, and is arguably the better fighter; hence Davis’ decision to opt for a fight with Benn even at the cost of jumping up two weight classes.
While an argument can be made for Davis that he is essentially a prize fighter and may see a Benn fight as more profitable, there is no evidence to proof that a fight with Benn would generate more than a fight with Haney unless Davis and Benn fought in the UK. However, due to the circumstances surrounding a pending appeal by UKAD and the BBBofC, Benn is currently not allowed to fight in the United Kingdom; which has resulted in Benn fighting in the United States twice over his past two fights.
Compared to Haney, Benn’s name does not carry the same weight in the United States, thus there would not be more of an incentive for Davis to fight Benn for monetary reasons given he would stand to make more by fighting Haney. Additionally, since Haney is currently the WBC champion at 140 lbs, Davis would not only benefit from fighting at a weight class that’s easier to reach, but he would also stand to become a world champion in another division to add to his legacy.
Gervonta Davis last fought at super lightweight/junior welterweight in June of 2021 where he stopped Mario Barrios (28-2, 18 KO’s) in the eleventh round, but he has not yet fought at welterweight.
Whatever the reasoning behind Davis’ intent to fight Benn, it is quite clear to see that he has no intentions to face Haney despite the magnitude of such a potential fight between these two Americans―with both Davis and Haney being undefeated fighters with world title credentials. Benn, compared to both of them, has never won a title nor fought any notable ranked fighters through his career. Based on competitiveness and potential earnings, a fight between Davis and Haney would be substantially more attractive.
While Conor Benn is currently undefeated, there is ultimately little to suggest a fight between him and Davis would make sense at this point of time, even for monetary reasons.
