Gary Russell Jr. wants to step back into the ring against Gervonta Davis. The former world champion hasn't fought in two years but feels ready to face one of boxing's biggest stars.
Russell Jr. lost his WBC featherweight belt to Mark Magsayo on points in January 2022. Before that, he fought once a year between 2015 and 2020, with a notable win over Tugstsogt Nyambayar.
Davis, known as 'Tank', holds the WBA Lightweight World Champion title. He's coming off two big wins. In April 2023, he stopped Ryan Garcia in the 7th round with a body shot. More recently, in June, he scored an emphatic stoppage against Frank Martin.
Russell Jr. made his intentions clear in a recent statement:
"I would love to get back in the game. I hear 'Tank' don't got an opponent yet. What's up, Tank? They say he don't got no opponent yet. I'm open to it."
He added:
"It's never been personal or anything like that. I just think the sport – it's been too small for both of us to co-exist and not at least come together to see what'd happen. For some weird reason he strayed away from it – him or his team."
While Russell Jr. is keen, there are hurdles. He'd need to move up two weight classes for the bout. His long period of inactivity also works against him. Davis has other potential opponents in mind, including Shakur Stevenson and Vasiliy Lomachenko.
Davis is expected to fight again in late November or December in Las Vegas. Jose Valenzuela is currently the frontrunner for that slot.
Given these factors, a Russell Jr. vs Davis matchup seems unlikely. But in boxing, you never know what might happen.
You can read more about Russell Jr.'s call-out of Davis on Boxing Scene.