Dent In Tank’s Armor

The stage was set for March 1st, 2025. Boxing pound-for-pound superstar and arguably the face of boxing, hard-hitting Tank Davis, was set to defend his lightweight championship against skilled and strong Lamont Roach Jr. To many casual boxing fans, Lamont was a severe underdog, but to real boxing fans, they knew he posed some level of a threat to Tank. Davis, known for his extremely powerful punching ability with a 93 percent knockout ratio—the highest in boxing—saw most opponents unable to make it to the 12th round! Lamont Roach did! This was the first time that Tank faced someone with people questioning if he would lose the fight.

What was really interesting about this fight was the 9th round when Tank "voluntarily" took a knee—not off a punch, but because he said a product from getting his hair done got into his eye. The referee did not call it a knockdown; many were furious and blamed Tank's star power for getting a pass on the knee. However, Lamont Roach's team took the call to the boxing council, and they did not overturn the no-call.

Taking nothing away from Roach's performance, I believe Tank Davis was in his own way. He has been hinting at retirement and having some issues in his corner with his longtime coach and father figure, Calvin, who essentially helped raise Tank. You could see it; throughout the whole camp, Tank wasn’t his normal self. This night, although the fight was called a draw, I don’t believe that was the 100 percent Tank Davis. He beat himself. If Tank does decide to rematch Roach, I’m sure this time around, Tank's performance will be more solid.

- Samuel

@samuelshouseofart