Baltimore Boxer Gervonta Davis To Fight Mario Barrios On Showtime Saturday
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore native and boxing champion Gervonta Davis is taking center stage on Showtime pay per view Saturday.
No doubt for the 26-year-old, it's the biggest fight of his career, jumping two weight classes to fight an undefeated Mario Barrios.
WJZ's Rick Ritter sat down with his long time trainers to see how they feel heading into this main event showdown
By now you know the name -- and you certainly know the talent. Gervonta "Tank" Davis has quickly become the hottest young star in the sport of boxing -- chasing greatness once again on Saturday night.
Rick Ritter: How's training been with Tank? How you guys feel?
Coach Calvin Ford: His weight is looking good already. Everything is perfect. We could fight today actually, for real that's how excited we are.
Longtime trainers Coach Calvin Ford and Kenny Ellis have been in Davis' corner from day one of his career.
For the past couple of months, they've been getting the star ready to go in Las Vegas. It's fights just like this they used to dream of years ago -- taking Tank from the Upton Boxing Center off Pennsylvania Avenue to the bright lights of Showtime pay per view.
Ritter: Is it surreal that these moments are here now?
Ford: I'm still kind of pinching myself, the levels he's reaching,
Coach Kenny Ellis: Back in the 90s, I used to wonder what it felt like to be a part of Mike Tyson's group and now I know exactly how it feels. We're the most talked about fighter in the sport today.
When you're one of the most talked about fighters, you have to chase big opportunities.
And Tank is doing just that - jumping two classes for his fight against an undefeated Barrios.
Ritter: Kenny, what might surprise us the most about Tank in this fight?
Ellis: His power will surprise the fans. It's not going to surprise us because we see it behind closed doors.
His power that never seems to disappoint. He's 24-0 with 23 knockouts and trying to make it number 24 on Saturday night.
Perhaps it's a chance to solidify himself as the greatest youngster in the sport of boxing.
While showing all the kids of Baltimore, dreams do come true.
Let's just say it's something Ford and Ellis are feeling confident about.
Ford: I always say Tank is like my Michael Jordan of boxing. I'm just waiting to see what round he wants to take over in the fight. I don't make predictions i just want my guy to go out there and put on the greatest performance.
Ellis: That's the difference between me and him, I like knockouts. Our seniors want to go to bed before 12 so we can get some sleep.
