Mayweather CEO: Many people think Tank Davis only has ‘urban’ fans, but he attracts a crowd wherever we go

Among the things Gervonta ‘The Tank’ Davis has proven since his rise to main event position is his ability to draw crowds no matter where he performs.

The driving force behind his growing box office status is his willingness to put that theory to the test in out-of-the-box thinking for his latest adventure.

Baltimore’s Davis (25-0, 24KOs) has established himself as a legitimate star, creating crowds of capacity in three different states in his last four games. The undefeated Nampaw will now be back in action on the West Coast, where he’ll face lightweight contender Isaac Cruz (21-1-1, 15KOs) atop the Showtime Pay-Per-View event on May 5th. 12 — Sunday night — at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

“Whenever Tank fights, my phone always explodes with calls, especially from celebrities everywhere wanting to attend his events,” said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions told BoxingScene.com. “He is one of the biggest draws in the sport today.

“It’s not just local. A lot of people in the sport think that Tank only has “urban” fans and we know what they’re talking about. But he pulled a crowd wherever we went. We saw it even before he made headlines but then we got to see what he could do when he was the star of the show in (Carson) California almost three years ago. Now we’re back in LA and it’s going to be a star-studded event. “

Davis’ first fight as Showtime’s main event in the United States took place in February 2019 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. The moment came during a junior lightweight title defense against former third-placer Abner Mares, who was forced to withdraw after suffering a retinal detachment during a late game in training camp. Instead, Davis faced Hugo Ruiz, whom he sent away in the first round in front of a crowd of 8,048 whose attendees included music superstars Drake, Lil Wayne and Jeezy as well as NFL superstars Odell Beckham Jr., who took a moment to pose with fake twins and the then undefeated Young Middleweight Champion Jarrett ‘Swift’ Hurd.

From there, the long overdue return home, with Davis attracting an announced crowd of 14,686 for a regular mandatory title defense in July 2019. Davis knocked out Ricardo Nuñez in the fifth round. two of his junior WBA lightweight title defense at the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, with the city hosting its first major title fight in more than 80 years.

The breakout campaign of 2019 ended with Davis turning Atlanta into a fight town—at least when he performed. Yuriorkis Gamboa’s 12th knockout round takes place on the last Saturday of the year at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Davis’ second hometown. An announcement crowd of 14,129 saw its first major boxing event since Evander Holyfield defended his unified WBA/IBF heavyweight title at nearby Georgia Dome in September 1998.

Davis’ ‘back to ‘Black Hollywood’ proved to be a bigger event, generating 16,570 spectators at State Farm Arena for his 11th-round knockout against undefeated Mario Barrios in June for his 16th consecutive stoppage-time winner. his next. The fight was in the junior weight division, two classes higher than Davis’ previous ring appearance as he delivered a spectacular one-punch knockdown, a sixth-round knockout of Leo Santa Cruz in the match. their last lightweight title fight on Halloween last year.

The win over Santa Cruz sparked the first major US boxing event to take place in front of fans since the pandemic. An announced crowd of 9,024 turned up for San Antonio’s Alamodome, well beyond Davis’ typical fan base.

Having proven his worth at the US coast-to-coast box office, Davis has clearly earned his team’s confidence by investing heavily in his future.

The upcoming game against Cruz – who replaces Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero, Davis’ longtime rival – will be the third consecutive Pay-Per-View trophy for the undefeated men’s team. This will be his first on a Sunday night, though the second Mayweather Promotions will host a big show that night of the week.

The first took place this past June — three weeks before Davis-Barrios when Hall of Fame, former five-division champion and box-office king Floyd Mayweather Jr faced social media influencer and newbie out at cruiserweight Logan Paul in an eight-round show. The rain-soaked event stunned the on-site crowd at the outdoor Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, although the Showtime PPV event reportedly sold 1,000,000 units with a $49.99 buy point. la.

Showtime also runs Sunday night for a PPV event headlined by Jake Paul, Logan’s younger and more talented younger brother. The undefeated Paul made it 4-0 (3KOs) for the first time in his youth career with a decisive eight-round win over former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley on May 29. 8 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Paul’s hometown. , Ohio. Final PPV numbers were not released, although the Wrestling Observer reports that the event topped with around 500,000 units selling for $59.99 each.

Davis is still in the process of building the mainstream popularity that Mayweather and the Paul brothers enjoy. His stardom continues to rise, with each of his two PPV events surpassing 200,000 buys and the second outperforming his market debut. That advancement, coupled with his entertainment value in the ring is enough to convince his financial backers to invest in a new trend.

“We booked Floyd on Sunday night and it was a big sale,” Ellerbe noted. “And think, what are most people doing on Sunday night? They are at home, watching TV preparing for the week. We already know fans will be packing Staples Center — we’ve been to four different states during his last five main events, and fans have turned up everywhere he goes.

“We are confident that the crowd will come out and people at home will pay for it on Pay-Per-View. They know what to expect. 100% will end in a knockout. Everyone knows that.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox