LAS VEGAS – Jose Pedraza is the only boxer that has faced Vasiliy Lomachenko and Gervonta Davis.
Pedraza, who’ll fight Jose Zepeda on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena, thus has a unique perspective on who would win the long-discussed bout between them if it ever happens.
“Loma, definitely Loma,” Pedraza told BoxingScene.com on Thursday. “Loma has a high boxing IQ and he’s more of a complete boxer. Davis is stronger, but he’s not as fast as Loma. I definitely think Loma would win if he fought Davis.”
Interest in a Lomachenko-Davis fight intensified recently when Davis gave up his WBA “super” 130-pound championship and moved up to the lightweight division. The WBA immediately installed him as its No. 1 challenger to Lomachenko, its 135-pound champion.
Baltimore’s Davis (22-0, 21 KOs) is expected to battle Cuba’s Yuriorkis Gamboa (30-2, 18 KOs) in his next fight, which will take place either in December or early in 2020. The 37-year-old Gamboa is the WBA’s No. 2 lightweight contender.
The winner of the Davis-Gamboa bout is expected to become Lomachenko’s mandatory challenger.
Ukraine’s Lomachenko (14-1, 10 KOs) has agreed to fight the Richard Commey-Teofimo Lopez winner next. Ghana’s Commey (29-2, 26 KOs) and Brooklyn’s Lopez (14-0, 11 KOs) are set to meet December 14 at Madison Square Garden for Commey’s IBF lightweight title.
Bob Arum, Lomachenko’s promoter, has said that the WBA/WBC/WBO lightweight champion could move back down to 130 pounds even if he becomes the undisputed lightweight champion by beating the Commey-Lopez winner.
Pedraza still thinks Lomachenko and Davis will fight.
“I think it’s a fight that eventually will happen,” Pedraza said. “I think they’re protecting Davis too much. After he fought with me, he hasn’t fought anybody. He’s a world champion, so he should be facing world-class fighters and other champions, to show that he’s a great fighter.”
Davis stopped Pedraza in the seventh round of their January 2017 fight to take the IBF junior lightweight title from him. Lomachenko topped Pedraza by unanimous decision nine months ago to win the WBO lightweight championship from him.
Puerto Rico’s Pedraza (26-2, 13 KOs) will make his debut at 140 pounds when he encounters Zepeda (30-2, 25 KOs, 1 NC), of La Puente, California, on the Tyson Fury-Otto Wallin undercard. Their 10-rounder will be part of an ESPN+ stream scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
