The WBA has unsurprisingly put their full support behind WBA lightweight (135 lbs) champion Gervonta Davis (30-0-1, 28 KO’s) after the fallout of his majority decision (MD) draw on March 1st against Lamont Roach Jr. (25-1-2, 10 KO’s) where Davis briefly dropped to one knee several moments after a clean punch from Roach, thereby confirming it as a knockdown.
The incident remains a point of contention given Davis’ knockdown saw the presiding referee, Steve Willis, vividly countdown before abruptly stopping and further allowing Davis’ corner to wipe his face during the round ― despite Willis not having paused the match to allow the interference.
With the Unified Boxing Rules further stating that the corner is not allowed to intercede during a round following a knockdown, Gervonta Davis has remarkably received no notable repercussions for at least two separate incidents. Had the knockdown counted, Davis would have lost on the scorecards and lost his WBA 135-pound title to Roach. A disqualification or points deduction for the interference by his corner would also have spelled a certain loss for the 30-year old American champion.
Following the controversial set of incidents, the WBA would come out to debunk the notion there had been a knockdown while further neglecting to mention the interference by Davis’ corner, substantiating in an article released on their official website that they found no basis in the claims that Gervonta Davis had suffered a knockdown:
“From our perspective, Willis’ decision was not unreasonable or unjustifiable,” The WBA’s statement on the controversy reads.
“He ruled in real-time that Davis had not been struck by a punch before going down, and therefore, no knockdown should be recorded. Judges, by regulation, must follow the referee’s rulings—they do not have the authority to override his decisions on knockdowns.
“Some skeptics have suggested that Willis’ call benefited Davis unfairly, but we do not subscribe to that notion. In our long experience judging fights, we see no evidence of favoritism—only a referee prioritizing the physical safety of a fighter who appeared compromised by an eye injury.“
WBA’s statements suggest a clear disinterest in pursuing a thorough investigation given their claims that Davis had been “compromised by an eye injury”. The veracity of any eye injury claims appear unfounded given Davis’ inability to prove his allegations of hair gel impeding his vision ― claims that were further combatted by rebuttals from his hairdresser who noted that the substance used on Davis did not contain hair wax or gel, and had been implemented at least three days before his March 1st bout against Roach.
The WBA deeming Davis not to have been struck down by a punch before dropping to one knee is perhaps the most egregious part of the sanctioning body’s position on the controversy. Film footage captured Davis being hit clean with a right hand from Roach seconds before he fell to one knee. While the blow may have appeared to merely graze Davis’ chin, it nonetheless connected and the knockdown could have easily been a delayed reaction to Roach’s punch.
Even if the knockdown was not the result of a punch, Davis still fell on one knee, and further caused a stir when he headed to his corner without the referee’s explicit instruction. Though the interaction Davis and his coach, who wiped his face, took but seconds, it was a clear breach of the rules which disbars a corner from directly interacting with their fighter during a round. This would warrant a disqualification result or at least a points deduction.
The WBA further has a vested history in protecting fighters affiliated with Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) of whom Davis is the face of. The past four WBA super lightweight (140 lbs) champions have notably all been PBC who have been put in the position to attain a WBA world title over other deserving challengers including Rolando “Rolly” Romero, Isaac Cruz, Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela and most recently Gary Antuanne Russell who was allowed to challenge Valenzuela this past weekend to become the new WBA 140-pound champion ― despite coming off a loss.
Other instances further point towards clear bias from the WBA towards the PBC, indicating a clear link between the two parties that PBC fighters, including Gervonta Davis, have benefitted from on numerous occasions.
