Adviser Leonard Ellerbe says he understands why lightweight champion Vasily Lomachenko chose not to fight Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis this year, but he’s open to the possibility of it happening later.
Ellerbe isn’t sure if Lomachenko will retire, but if he does, he will respect that decision because he feels he’s had a great career. Indeed, Lomachenko captured three division world titles and chose to fight at 135 when he could have stayed on top for many years if he had remained at 130 or 126.
Lomachenko, 36, has taken the remainder of 2024 off after capturing the IBF lightweight title with an 11th-round knockout of George Kambosos Jr. on May 12th.
Ellerbe states that a fight between Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs) and WBA lightweight champion Tank Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) is the biggest one Loma’s promoters at Top Rank can make.
Tank Davis is tentatively scheduled to defend against Lamont Roach on March 1st, 2025. That’s a fight that has been postponed several times since initially being scheduled for December 14th.
Why Did Lomachenko Choose to Take Time Off?
“He just decided to take the rest of the year off. He had a lot going on, especially with what his country has been through,” said Leonard Ellerbe to K.O. Artist Sports about Vasily Lomachenko deciding not to take the fight with Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis at this time.
It’s believed that Lomachenko opted not to fight Tank Davis next because of these reasons:
- Judging worries: Lomachenko lost a controversial decision to Devin Haney on May 20, 2023, and he’s unhappy with the judging for that fight.
- Not motivated enough: The motivation is not there to return to the ring for what would be a difficult fight against Tank.
- Risk Not Worth It: Fighting Tank Davis at this point in Loma’s career would involve a lot of risk, and it could end badly for him.
- Being Set up to Lose: Did Tank wait until Lomachenko got old before fighting him? That could be a reason for Loma’s reluctance to fight him.
“I have nothing but respect for him, Egis, and they know it’s the biggest fight they could humanely possibly make,” Ellerbe continued about Lomachenko. “It’s the biggest fight for Top Rank that they can make, and they know what it is.
“So, if he [Lomachenko] chooses to ride off into the sunset, so be it. He’s had a good career, and I respect him. He knows what it is going up against Tank Davis. He definitely knows what that looks like.”
Some fans believe Lomachenko feels that Tank Davis intentionally waited until he got in his mid-30s before fighting him. In other words, Tank aged him out before agreeing to make this fight to ensure victory. Lomachenko had wanted to fight Tank six years ago in 2018, but was ignored.
Tank Davis’ Sweepstakes: Who’s Next?
“He’s a warrior at heart, he’s a champion. Tank isn’t going to sit around and wait. If it pops off, it pops off, and if it doesn’t, the show goes on. It was a fight that I thought was going to happen, but the show has got to go on. You have to move on to the next. Who’s up next? Who else is going to win the Tank sweepstakes?” said Ellerbe.
The ideal lucky sweepstakes winner for ‘The Big Tuna’ Tank fight is #1 ranked William Zepeda, who is the most entertaining fighter among the contenders and ready for a world title shot.
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