By Keith Idec

After fighting once this year, Gervonta Davis expects to box three times in 2019.

According to Davis, he’ll battle Abner Mares in the first of those three fights. The WBA “super” super featherweight champ told the Los Angeles Times’ Lance Pugmire on Tuesday in Beverly Hills that he’ll square off against Mares on February 9.

Davis added that the fight will be held at an arena in Southern California, but didn’t specify a venue. Showtime is expected to televise the Davis-Mares match.

Davis was in Beverly Hills on Tuesday to attend a press conference at the Waldorf Astoria hotel for the Manny Pacquiao-Adrien Broner pay-per-view fight January 19 in Las Vegas. Broner and Davis are close friends and are trained by Kevin Cunningham.

The 23-year-old Davis is from Baltimore, but the powerful southpaw will come to Mares’ backyard if their fight does take place in Southern California. Mares (31-3-1, 15 KOs), a Mexican-American boxer, was raised and still resides in the Los Angeles area.

Davis (20-0, 19 KOs) last fought April 21, when he stopped Argentina’s Jesus Cuellar (28-3, 21 KOs) in the third round to win the WBA 130-pound title at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Mares edged Cuellar by split decision in their 12-rounder nearly two years ago at USC’s Galen Center in Los Angeles. Mares captured the WBA world featherweight title by beating Cuellar.

Assuming he faces Davis next, Mares, who’ll turn 33 on November 28, will move up from featherweight to junior lightweight. In his last fight, Mares lost a 12-round unanimous decision to WBA “super” featherweight champion Leo Santa Cruz (35-1-1, 19 KOs) in their rematch June 9 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.