Keyshawn Davis puts lightweight division on notice with latest win
Keyshawn Davis (10-0, 7 KOs) made a statement in his latest fight on February 8, on the undercard of Teofimo Lopez vs Jamaine Ortiz.
The 24-year old Olympic silver medalist earned his most important victory yet by vanquishing former two-division world champion Jose Pedraza (29-6-1, 14 KOs) via sixth-round TKO.
After studying Pedraza for two rounds, Davis kicked his offense into high gear, using lead left hands to prepare vicious fusillades in the third and fourth rounds. Pedraza survived, so Davis boxed on the outside in the fifth. But he reinitiated his attack in the sixth, landing several combos before forcing referee Tom Taylor to stop the fight.
Keyshawn Davis said of his fight, “Throughout this whole training camp, I’ve been saying that I’m the best at 135. Everyone kept saying, ‘You’ve got to get the stoppage. You’ve got to get the knockout.’ But I told everyone to not worry about it and just watch me work. And that’s exactly what happened. I got the stoppage.”
Then “The Businessman” turned his attention to the victor of the main event above him, “Teofimo has been doing a lot of talking lately. I’ll go up to 140 and fight Teofimo. What’s up?! Get this win tonight. You already know how I’m coming. You and your father. So, let’s set it up. I’l come straight to 140. Let’s go! And if you’re scared, Teofimo, then Navarrete. He is a hell of a fighter. It would be an honour to get in the ring with you after you capture the WBO title. So let’s do it.”
Lopez had badmouthed his rival after Davis was quoted in an interview saying that the undisputed welterweight champion Terence Crawford would beat him in a fight.
At the final press conference for Lopez-Ortiz, Top Rank released the audio of what both fighters assumed was a private conversation.
Davis said: “What made you mention my name during that interview?”
“You said Crawford would beat me,” Lopez responded.
“It’s just an opinion,” Davis said.
Davis then later added: “Teo, I never disrespected you, right? I took that as disrespect, what you said.”
Lopez replied saying: “You know, a lot of times they mix my words up.”
In the end, the two fighters agreed that it was just differences of opinion, and their respect for each other resumed.
Davis (10-0, 7KO) has been near-faultless as a pro, seemingly having transitioned from his successful career in the amateur game with relative ease.
Lopez (20-1, 13KO), has potential unifications against the likes of Devin Haney and Subriel Matias awaiting him in boxing’s red-hot 140 lbs division.