Jose Pedraza to defend title against Gervonta Davis, Jan. 14

Floyd Mayweather’s prized prospect Gervonta Davis (16-0, 15 KOs) will get his shot at a world title when he takes on IBF junior lightweight titlist Jose Pedraza (22-0, 12 KOs) on January 14. The fight will serve as the Showtime co-feature for the James DeGale-Badou Jack super middleweight title unification bout at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Promoter Lou DiBella confirmed the news to RingTV yesterday while also noting that Pedraza received an exception from the IBF to stall his mandatory title defense against Liam Walsh to make this fight with Davis.

Pedraza, 27, has been out of action since April when he successfully defended his title against Stephen Smith. Before that he faced a stiff challenge from Edner Cherry - in a fight where I personally thought Cherry caught a raw deal on the scorecards. Now Pedraza will be putting his belt on the line against the very young and talented Davis.

Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis, 22, may only have 16 fights under his belt, but he’s backed by one of the most influential figures in the sport in Floyd Mayweather and has mostly looked the part of a legitimate contender. ‘Tank’ is currently riding a seven fight stoppage streak, with the most recent coming by way of a knockout over Mario Antonio Macias back in June.

Who do you like in this fight? Is it too far too soon for the young Davis, or is Pedraza easy pickins for a belt-grab?