Devin Haney says he was just as surprised as everyone else by the no knockdown call in the ninth round of Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis’ fight against Lamont Roach last Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Haney said he’d never seen anything like it before when WBA lightweight champion Tank Davis (30-0-1, 28 KOs) took a knee in the ninth. Referee Steve Willis chose not to score it as a knockdown. He even let Tank walk back to his corner to have his eyes toweled off.

The no knockdown allowed Tank to escape with a 12-round majority draw. So, he stayed the WBA champion, and Roach was left with nothing to show for his performance.

“I always knew Lamont wasn’t coming to lay down. I’ve been knowing Lamont since we were kids. So, we came up through the amateurs together,” said Devin Haney to Ring Magazine, reflecting on the Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach fight from last Saturday night.

“I knew Lamont was serious and coming in there to fight, but I thought he did a lot better than I thought he did. I thought he won the fight. The no knockdown, that was unheard of. That’s the first time I’ve ever seen in with my own two eyes,” said Haney about Tank Davis taking a knee in the ninth and the referee not calling it a knockdown.

Many people believe that if Lamont Roach had taken a knee and then walked back to his corner, the referee would have counted it as a knockdown and then waved off the fight. He’s not a superstar like Tank Davis, so he wouldn’t be given the special treatment that stars get.

The referee did start giving Tank an eight count, but then stopped for some reason. That was weird. Roach feels that it should have been a knockout, which would have given him the win. He’s since appealed to the New York State Athletic Commission, hoping that they’ll change the result to give him the victory. Surprisingly, they are taking a long time to decide.