Lamont Roach Aims to Accelerate Gervonta Davis' Retirement Plans With a KO

Gervonta "Tank" Davis' retirement might come sooner than he expected ... 'cause Lamont Roach tells TMZ Sports he plans to knock him out on March 1st and end his career.

Tank claims he's hanging up his gloves at the end of the year, but will enter the ring several more times before his departure -- starting with his matchup against Roach, who he'll face at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Roach, a 25-1 super featherweight, is well aware of Tank's plans ... and is determined to interrupt his agenda by making him quit earlier with a knockout.

"I worked my ass off," Roach said of the fight. "If he's on his way out, why not kick his ass out?!"

Despite Roach's confidence, he's seen as a major underdog in the 12-round bout ... considering Tank, an undefeated southpaw, is regarded as the face of boxing and often compared to a young Mike Tyson.

However, the doubt doesn't bother Roach -- in fact, he uses it as motivation.

"I like to prove people wrong and I damn sure like to prove myself right," Roach said.

"Right now, they really got me f'd up. So, you know, I got it on the agenda to upset a lot of people."

Overall, Roach said it's going to be the fight of the year and a start to his legacy run -- after, he will look to fight another champ in the ring next, either at 130 or 135.