Gervonta Davis did continue his knockout streak, but it had to come in the form of the longest fight of his budding career.
Moving up to lightweight for the first time, Davis scored multiple knockdowns and eventually stopped Yuriorkis Gamboa in the 12th round of their Showtime-televised main event bout in Atlanta. The fight was for the vacant WBA "Regular" lightweight title, giving Davis some hardware in two divisions after capturing the WBA and IBF super featherweight titles.
The fight was mostly one-sided in favor of Davis, who landed a vicious right hand in the second round to send Gamboa to the canvas. After Gamboa recovered, the two traded shots at various points in the fight with Davis winning nearly every exchange, save for a timely combination of punches from Gamboa that briefly stunned the unbeaten Davis. In the final round, Davis scored a third knockdown in the final round, leading to referee Jack Reiss stopping the fight.
.@Gervontaa sends @gamboa to the canvas in round 2 #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/udD3qyJgaQ
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
.@Gervontaa investing in the body in Round 4! #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/4mZ1Rdfhlg
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
.@Gervontaa tags @gamboa and sends him to the canvas for the second time. #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/jrPBpb8Kkm
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
.@Gervontaa is a BEAST -- #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/YI1dT95Cqg
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
.@Gervontaa’s left is a PROBLEM -- #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/sXsH1vIMXy
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
12th round stoppage for @Gervontaa -- #DavisGamboa pic.twitter.com/ZKG3tyjMOX
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
The co-main event saw a competitive back-and-forth fight between light heavyweight stars Jean Pascal and Badou Jack that ended with Pascal retaining his WBA "Regular" light heavyweight title with a split decision victory. All three judges' scorecards had scored the fight 114-112 with two of those judges giving Pascal the win. Both men were able to secure knockdowns with Pascal getting one in the fourth round and Jack dropping his opponent in the final round.
.@jeanpascalchamp staggers @BadouJack and sends him to the canvas in the fourth! #PascalJack pic.twitter.com/4iutL8PiBe
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
WOW #PascalJack pic.twitter.com/Z1LYC5EXmb
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
.@BadouJack sends @jeanpascalchamp to the canvas in round 12! #PascalJack pic.twitter.com/oYXxm66Xb5
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) December 29, 2019
In the opening bout of the Showtime telecast, Lionell Thompson made his super middleweight debut after fighting as a light heavyweight for years. Thompson scored an upset victory over former IBF champion Jose Uzcategui by unanimous decision (95-94, 96-92, 96-92) thanks in part to a first-round knockdown from Thompson.
