BOXING bowls into the New Year with a blockbuster fight card in Washington DC on Saturday night, headlined perhaps for the one and only time in 2023 by controversial champion Gervonta Davis.

‘Tank’ may be in the conversation to take part in some of the biggest fights in the ring in 2023, but simply staying out of jail would represent his biggest victory.

Just a week after his latest arrest, the 28-year-old will take on Hector Garcia in the US capital on a card that also includes prodigious talent like Jaron Ennis, Brandun Lee and former world champ Demetrius Andrade.

The scheduled 13-fight card was likely stacked just in case Davis failed to make it to the ring. But with little more than 48 hours to go it appears his 12-round lightweight main event with Hector Garcia is progressing.

Davis, managed by Floyd Mayweather, boasts 25 knockouts in 27 straight wins and has accumulated a stockpile of glittering but not legacy-defining championship belts during his decade long career.

What makes Gervonta Davis so dangerous is he can knock you down with a number of different punches:

1. Lead right hand
2. Left hand
3. Two-fisted body attack pic.twitter.com/zQpJTILnhQ

— Dan Canobbio (@DanCanobbio) January 4, 2023

The Baltimore southpaw could be the most natural and devasting puncher in the sport today. But misdemeanours outside of the ropes make him an impossible character to admire.

Last week in Florida, Davis was jailed on a charge of domestic violence. And whilst his girlfriend has since retracted her accusations, it’s not the first time he’s been arrested for battery.

Davis also has a jury trial set for March after allegedly running a red light in 2020 then fleeing the scene. He has been indicted on 14 counts and could face up to seven years in prison.

Needless to say, underdog Garcia will have the fans in his corner in the early hours of Sunday morning then, if little else.

The Dominican southpaw is a former Olympian and arrives in the US Capital coming off the biggest win of his unbeaten 19-fight career last summer.

The 10 knockouts on the 31-year-old’s leger also suggest he’s something of a puncher. But he is a career feather (9 stone) / super-featherweight, whereas Davis has won titles as high as super-lightweight (10 stone).

Garcia is a polished boxer with a strong, accurate jab. Expect him to potentially win and round or two in the early running.

But the jab simply won’t be enough to foil Tank’s all-out offense and with a chin that has a habit of lifting off his chest, the end – when it arrives, and it will – will be swift and true.

As for Davis, all of boxing wants to see the much-publicised Ryan Garcia fight come off next – latest reports suggest April. But Gervonta has those impeding legal issues to deal with first and right now he’s more likely to be in a jail sell this Spring than a boxing ring.

NICK’S TREBLE

I’m not expecting any shocks on the Washington undercard, of course. But a TKO Triple featuring Ennis, Lee and Andrade could be worth a look.