Gervonta Davis says hair product burned his eyes in fight vs Roach Jr.

Photo : AP

Gervonta Davis said that a hair product got into his eyes and burned them during his fight against Lamont Roach Jr. The fight happened on Saturday at Barclays Center in New York and ended in a draw. One judge gave Davis the win with a score of 115-113, but the other two judges scored it 114-114, making it a majority draw.

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Many people believe that Roach should have won the fight. In the ninth round, Davis suddenly went down on one knee without getting hit. After that, he walked to his corner, and his trainer quickly wiped his face with a towel.

Roach, who is the WBA super featherweight champion and was fighting in a heavier weight class for the first time, spoke about the fight later. He said that, according to boxing rules, if a fighter kneels on his own, it should be counted as a knockdown.

"The rules say that if you take a knee without being hit, the referee must start counting," Roach said. "But it is what it is. I was not depending on that. I fought well, landed more punches, and controlled the fight. If my knockdown was counted, I would have won."

Many boxing fans agreed with Roach. Famous boxer Terence Crawford posted online that Roach was "robbed" of his victory. "I have never seen a fighter take a knee, and it is not counted as a knockdown," Crawford wrote.

Boxing expert Dan Rafael also said that the referee made a big mistake by not giving Roach the knockdown.

Davis, however, defended himself. He said he hit Roach with more punches and deserved to win. He explained that his eyes were burning from hair grease, which is why he took a knee.

"He didn’t even hit me when I went down. I know I shouldn’t have done that, but that hair product was burning my eyes!" Davis wrote on social media.

Even though the fight ended in a draw, Davis keeps his WBA lightweight title. However, this is the first time he has not won a match. Before this, he had won all 30 of his fights, with 28 of them by knockout.

At a press conference, Davis explained why he took the knee. He said that before the fight, he washed his hair but did not remove all the hair product. When he started sweating, it ran into his eyes and made it hard to see.

"I didn’t want to get hit when my eyes were burning. A boxer can get knocked out like that," Davis said. "So I took a knee. But I didn’t know the referee could count it as a knockdown. When he started counting, I was surprised."

Davis also admitted that he got confused during the fight and lost track of the rounds. He thought there were more rounds left and suggested that ring girls holding number signs would have helped him keep count.

His coach, Barry Hunter, said that Davis thought it was the eighth round when it was actually the twelfth. "I think he lost focus for a short time, but we will fix that," Hunter said.

Both Davis and Roach said they are open to a rematch in the future. Roach, who now has 25 wins, one loss, and two draws, believes he fought well.

"I believe I did enough to win against a great fighter," Roach said. "I told everyone before the fight that I have the skills. I proved it in the ring. I can’t wait to fight him again."

March 3, 2025 6:22 p.m. 372

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