The WBA has responded to Lamont Roach Jr's comments about the Gervonta Davis knee incident. This comes after their recent fight for the WBA Lightweight World Title ended in a controversial majority draw.
Davis kept his title in a fight that left fans talking. In the ninth round, Davis took a knee. Referee Steve Willis started a count but didn't call it a knockdown. This moment became a big talking point after the fight.
The WBA first put out an article saying Willis made the right call. They said no knockdown should have been counted and criticized those who thought Davis got lucky. But WBA President Gilberto Mendoza quickly took down the article. He explained it was just one person's opinion and didn't speak for the whole organization.
Mendoza then reached out to Roach on social media to clear things up. He wrote:
Champ, as president of the WBA I must apologise on the opinion of a collaborator of the website. We believed in you since day one, we knew you would had a marvellous performance and feel proud of you as champion.
He also sent a message to Roach's father:
Champ, please extend this message to your dad: I apologise for the misleading opinion of a collaborator [on the] WBA website. We believed in you since day one, we knew it was going to be a great fight and feel proud of your marvelous performance.
Mendoza didn't stop there. He addressed the possibility of a rematch:
I have asked the WBA committee to follow up [Lamont Roach Jr's] direct rematch case closely. However, we believe the parties as expressed in the post fight interview will amicably agree to run it again.
Davis seems keen on fighting Roach again right away. But there's more to sort out. The New York State Athletic Commission didn't use instant replay during the fight because of technical problems.
We'll have to wait and see what happens next. It looks like there's more news coming soon about this fight and its aftermath.
