LOS ANGELES – Reunited and it feels so good – the hullabaloo between Gervonta Davis and Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Mayweather Promotions has simmered down.
Ahead of the last Davis fight versus Hector Luis Garcia in January, “Tank” announced he was a contractual free agent from his longtime promoter.
Missing from the promotional picture leading up to the fight was the Hall of Fame fighter Mayweather and his longtime confidant and company executive Leonard Ellerbe.
Ahead of Tank’s much-anticipated fight against Ryan Garcia on April 22 at the T-Mobile Arena on Showtime pay-per-view, Davis has decided to reunite with longtime partners.
The knockout artist is holding training camp at the Mayweather Boxing Club in Las Vegas, and Ellerbe is part of the promotional team tasked with amplifying the event.
“I mean, why not [train at Mayweather’s gym]? Why not? I feel as though they have a good boxing gym. Why not?” Davis told BoxingScene.com in an interview.
The 28-year-old Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) had previously held training camps at Mayweather’s gym, but fractures in their relationship ultimately led Davis to move to other locales. For his last fight against Hector Luis Garcia, Davis held camp in Miami.
“I'm working the event. I'm working with Tank,” Ellerbe told BoxingScene.com in an interview.
Ellerbe reiterated that Davis is no longer tied to Mayweather Promotions but added that contracts don't define relationships.
Throughout 2022, Ellerbe maintained a position that “everything was cool with Tank.”
Davis versus Garcia is officially promoted by GTD Promotions, TGB Promotions, and Golden Boy Promotions.
When asked if the Davis-Garcia event will break the one million PPV buys marker – Oscar De La Hoya believes it would top 2.4 million buys – Ellerbe opted not to get into specific facts, figures, and proclamations.
“I don't want to get into those kinds of conversations on how well the event is going to do. But trust me – when you see me come out, you know what it is,” said Ellerbe.
In December, Mayweather commended Davis for wanting to be his own boss and said that he wanted to see his understudy grow.
Davis trainer Calvin Ford said reuniting with Ellerbe and holding camp at Mayweather’s gym was an easy decision.
“We like Mayweather’s gym. Tank has said he feels back at home. That feeling of being in Vegas in that gym is calming for him,” Ford told BoxingScene.com in an interview.
“Floyd is doing his thing. Gervonta is doing his thing. He gave Floyd seven good years. Floyd aint complaining. [Mayweather] said that ‘he made good money.’ A great investment. Now it’s Tank’s time to do what Floyd did. You gotta respect that. Floyd has respected that. Now it’s our job to do what we need to do and be the future of boxing.
“The door was never closed. You see Leonard is here. Leonard is standing right beside us. You saw how we embraced each other. It doesn’t take relationships and a contract to bind us together. It’s our respect. You understand where you came from. We did business. We’re always going to do business when it’s good business. We keep it real. I always believe in not burning bridges.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.
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