Gervonta Davis has appeared to accept Ryan Garcia's fight call-out on social media after his rival knocked out Javier Fortuna.
Garcia and Davis have traded verbal barbs since their respective rises in the sport, with fans calling for the pair to step in the ring and settle their differences. There have always been obstacles to the fight as Davis is signed to Premier Boxing Champions and Garcia is contracted to Golden Boy Promotions.
On Saturday night, Garcia put in another powerful display, dispatching Fortuna with three knockdowns en route to the win. And he immediately took to the microphone after his victory to take aim at his long-term foe. “100 per cent, I felt way better," Garcia responded when asking about his 5lb weight increase. "I’m not going back down to 135 for nothing, but I will fight Tank [Davis] next.
“If Tank wants that at 140, I’m going to record all the negotiations so that you guys don’t make no headlines saying I’m ducking. If he wants it, let’s get it. It is going to give me the respect I deserve, and I’m never afraid. I’m trying to tell you that I have the spirit of competition in me and you’re going to see it come out when I fight Tank and whip his a**. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
Davis then posted a cryptic response on Twitter, writing: "See you all at the end of the year." Despite not responding to the call-out by naming Garcia, Davis was clearly gesturing that he is ready to enter negotiations to fight Davis.
Garcia fought for the second time in barely six months after going the distance against Emmanuel Tagoe. He started slowly against Fortuna and was caught twice by his rival in the opening round, which left him holding on. He settled down in the second period starting to dominate proceedings.
Who would win if the pair fought - Ryan Garcia or Gervonta Davis? Let us know in the comments section below...
By the fourth round, Garcia started to fire away at Fortuna and he made his breakthrough with a whipping left hook to the body which saw his opponent take a knee. Garcia then found a second opening in the fifth round, catching him with a short left hook, leaving him on the canvas again.
His next breakthrough was the all-important one, with a one-two combination sending his opponent down and leaving him unable to beat the count. The referee waved off the contest, leaving Garcia one step closer to a challenge against Davis. Garcia's promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, confirmed talks will now begin to stage what he believes is the biggest fight in boxing.
"That’s the fight that we’re going to go after and I strongly feel that the only way this fight can happen is by the fans rallying behind Ryan and myself and beating the drum and making noise," he said. "Let’s make this fight happen. If [Floyd] Mayweather is Gervonta Davis’ promoter, I strongly feel that fight can easily be made."
