Stephen Espinoza recalls the first time he ever heard of Gervonta Davis and it was because of a call from Floyd Mayweather.
During an introductory press conference for Davis' next fight in July in Baltimore, Espinoza the president of Sports and Event Programming for Showtime talked about the network getting to televise Davis' next fight against Ricardo Nunez. Espinoza was excited about Showtime being a part of Davis' growth as a professional.
For Espinoza, it all started with a phone call from Mayweather back in 2014 that had the unbeaten former world champion talk about how great the youngster will be down the road. Now in 2019, the unbeaten Davis sits in as a two-time world champion and is the current WBA "Super" super featherweight champion.
"I remember I first heard Gervonta's name in 2014. Floyd Mayweather called me during his fight week and he asked me, 'how many times have I ever called you about a fighter?' I said 'none', and he told me to remember the name Gervonta Davis. I'm proud to be standing here today, five years later, and bringing 'Tank' home to Baltimore. Together, Showtime and Mayweather Promotions have done the biggest events that sports have ever seen. From Mayweather vs. Pacquiao to Mayweather vs. McGregor, and now we have a new project in this young man, Gervonta Davis," Espinoza said.
The fight between Davis and Nunez will headline the July 27 Showtime Championship Boxing card from the Royal Farms Arena in Davis' hometown of Baltimore. This will be Davis' second defense of the WBA title since he won back in 2018 and it will be Nunez's first world title challenge and is the mandatory challenger to Davis' title.