Gervonta Davis surprisingly posted a “good luck” message to Naoya Inoue today on X, wishing the unified super bantamweight champion success in his title defense against Ye Joon Kim on Friday at Ariake Arena, Koto-Ku in Tokyo, Japan.
(Credit: Naoka Fakuda)
“The Beast” Inoue doesn’t need a lot of luck to defeat replacement challenger Kim (21-2-2, 13 KO) He’s not in the same league in terms of talent, nor is he on the level of many of the top 15 contenders at 122.
The true intentions of the tanks?
Fans are still wondering why Team Inoue selected Kim as a replacement after Inoue's initial opponent, Sam Goodman, suffered a cut and had to withdraw from the fight two weeks ago. In fact, a better fighter could have been chosen than Kim. It's very disingenuous for Gervonta to try to work his way into Inoue's good graces so he can put up a fight against him.
Many people find Tank's encouragement of Inoue (28-0, 25 KO) strange because he has wanted to fight him for the ages. Naoya, 31, a highly ranked pound-for-pound fighter, has shown no interest in moving up to lightweight to challenge Gervonta for the WBA belt.
The tank does not need to waste time Trying to gain favor With Inoue, hoping that if he's nice to him, he'll go up to 130 or 135 for a big money fight. The Japanese star has shown his streaks. He doesn't even want to move up to 126. If he's not willing to move up to featherweight to face the deadly Sharks in that weight class, he certainly won't move up to take on a predator like Tank. Davis has no chance of winning.
Look at what old Nonito Donaire did to Naoya six years ago in their fight on November 7, 2019, breaking his right orbital bone, cutting him above that eye, and breaking his nose. Inoue looked like he was in a train wreck. He was a mess. Since then, Naoya has not risked his career.
Yo Naoya Ino good luck family..
-Gervonta Davis (@Gervontaa) January 23, 2025
