BROOKYLN — Gervonta “Tank” Davis found Jesus Cuellar all night as he gained the WBA super featherweight world title with three knockdowns in the less than three rounds at the Barclays Center.
Cuellar, who had faced seven southpaws coming into this bout, began by leading with his jab, but Davis connected on some counter shots that created an action-filled opening round. Around the 1:40 point in the second, Davis, 23, caught Cuellar with a sharp body punch right underneath the opposing jab that saw the Argentinian take a knee for the fourth time in his career.
.@gervontaa becomes a two-time world champion as he defeats Jesus Cuellar via TKO in round 3. #DavisCuellar pic.twitter.com/83dPLy8MVr
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) April 22, 2018
Cuellar (28-3, 21 KOs), being under the watchful eye of trainer Manny Robles for the first time, was able to finish the round and found some success with his overhand left in the third round of the contest, however, Davis (20-0, 19 KOs) still found openings to land his uppercuts and body work that eventually finished Cuellar after tasting the canvas two more times.
Davis, who was fighting under the same guidance (Kevin Cunningham) as Adrien Broner for this fight, now holds a 130 pound world title for the second time after losing his IBF world title on the scale of the Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor event last August.
“It’s always bumps in the road, you know, going to — being successful,” Davis said after the fight in regards to his previous woes. “It’s all about how you come back and tonight showed I’m a real champion.”
