Deric Davis envisions days of pay-per-view stardom, especially after training side by side with Gervonta Davis in camp.
For now, the recent Top Rank signee is still building toward that point.
Next up for Davis, 9-0 (9 KOs) is a six-round lightweight clash versus Anthony Mora this Saturday at the Maryland Live Casino in Hanover, Maryland.
The Barry Hunter-trained prospect signed with Top Rank last November, following a decorated amateur career. At first, Davis wanted to be Hunter’s last world champion; now that has slightly changed.
“The story is still the same, it is just bigger,” Davis told BoxingScene. “I am going to be [Hunter’s] first pay-per-view superstar.”
Hunter was the lead coach for Gervonta Davis’ most recent bout, his draw with Lamont Roach Jnr. last March. It was a temporary shuffling of the deck, as the former two-division titlist primarily trained with Calvin Ford and Kenny Ellis, while working intermittently at times with Hunter.
Deric Davis, a 23-year-old from Fort Washington, Maryland, trained beside Gervonta for the entire training camp last year. The grueling camp with Gervonta formed a bond, one he deemed a pivotal moment in his young journey.
“I was telling him, how my body was aching, and I was ready to do it all again tomorrow, and [Gervonta] said, ‘Dang, you got this motor in you’,” Davis recalled. “I let him know how bad I wanted to be in his position.”
Davis emphasized that he wasn’t envious or jealous of Gervonta, but rather wants to be in the spotlight that his peer has achieved. Davis has also diversified his interests, beyond being an unbeaten boxer, he is a twitch streamer, he has built a YouTube channel documenting his journey, and has been an assistant offensive coordinator for a youth football team for the last five years, where his father is the coach.
“I am a man of many talents,” Davis said. “I learned how to put it all together, and I got advice from [Gervonta] on how to do it.”
Mora, 7-6-1 (4 KOs), has spent most of his career testing up-and-comers and regional talents. The battle-tested, 37-year-old from New Britain, Connecticut, enters on a two-fight losing streak, with a September unanimous decision loss to Most Valuable Promotions’ Javon Walton.
The bout will serve as Davis’ second fight with Top Rank Inc. He reflected on the signing.
“It is always great to be wanted,” Davis said. “It is great [being with Top Rank], it is a well-oiled machine.”
Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.
