Virgil Hunter believes Gervonta Davis still has to prove himself at super lightweight
Despite being the bigger fighter and the champion whose belt is at stake, Regular WBA super lightweight champion Mario “El Azteca” Barrios (26-0, 17 KO’s) is being looked at as the underdog in his next bout. On June 26 he will take on Regular WBA lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis (24-0, 23 KO’s). Davis is moving up in weight to make the bout happen. As a result, Barrios will enjoy a significant height, reach, and presumably, weight advantage.
RELATED: Mario Barrios On Davis: “He Has A Very Dangerous Task In Front Of Him”
Even still, most in the industry believe that the fast fists and dense knuckles on Tank will get the job done. Naturally, those on team Barrios have a vastly different perception of the matter. For example, El Azteca’s chief second, Virgil Hunter, wholeheartedly believes in his charge. He also realizes that outside of all the hype, Davis is still required to prove in the ring that he belongs at 140.
“Of course you’ve got your people who predict a Davis victory, a knockout, and that is understandable. But I think that Barrios’ power is way up there with the best and he is definitely the hardest puncher that Davis has ever faced. So it’s going to be an interesting fight because he is not going to back down and he is going to fight a smarter fight at the same time.”
Hunter and Barrios have developed into a seamless team in their time together. The Davis camp will be their eleventh. Yet only time will tell if the laid-back, and very cerebral, Virgil Hunter can devise a game plan to overtake Davis. Thankfully we don’t have long to wait and regardless of how it plays out, 3kingsboxing will be there to report the news.
By: Bakari Simpson
