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Keyshawn Davis is taking a risk fighting Gustavo Lemos next month in a lightweight clash on November 8th in Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
After Keyshawn’s last weird fight against Miguel Madueno and his equally poor showing against Nahir Albright, there’s a high probability that he’s going to lose to the Argentinian Lemos (29-1, 19 KOs) in their 10-round headliner. Keyshawn almost lost to Albright and was staggered in the eighth round when he got reckless.
In Keyshawn’s fights against Madueno and Albright, it looked like he was having PTSD flashbacks to his defeat against Cuba’s Andy Cruz in the 2020 Olympic finals when he was under pressure against those fighters.
Against Madueno, Keyshawn panicked when he started getting hit hard, turning the fight into a WWE wrestling match, throwing the rulebook out the window, and doing stuff that should have resulted in a disqualification. You can argue that if Keyshawn wasn’t the A-side, he would have been disqualified.
I was watching the fight, thinking, ‘What on earth is Keyhawn doing?’ He went pure big-time wrestling mode. If I had been Bob Arum of Top Rank, I’d have been thinking, ‘How do I get rid of Keyshawn? I need to dump this guy because he ain’t got it. Let me throw him in with Abdullah Mason and let the youngster finish this loss.’
What To Do With Keyshawn Is He Loses?
If Keyshawn loses on November 8th to Lemos, Top Rank will need to consider making the best of what’s left of his contract with them. They won’t be able to maneuver Keyshawn into capturing a world title with slick matchmaking to create a pseudo-champion.
That’s not going to happen. There’s too much talent at lightweight, and Keyshawn is too big for the division to capture and hold down a world title.
Options For Salvage Expedition for Davis
– Mario Barrios
– Eimantas Stanionis
– Brian Norman Jr.
– Conor Benn
One alternative would be for Top Rank to move Keyshawn up to where they should be fighting at 147 and target the beatable champions, Mario Barrios and Eimantas Stanionis. Those are guys that would lose to many of the top fighters at 135, 140 and 147.
It wouldn’t be a good idea for Top Rank to match Keyshawn against WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. because he punches too hard and has too much toughness for him.
We saw how Albright staggered Keyshawn and how he fell apart mentally against Madueno when he started getting hit hard. Norman would be a disaster for Keyshawn and would knock him out in a bloody fashion.
What we’ve seen from Keyshawn in his fights against Albright and Madueno is a fighter who doesn’t have the talent to be a world champion-level fighter. Those two fights were eye-openers, showing that the Virginia native Keyshawn lacks the goods to be a champion unless it’s the paper variety.
Top Rank noted Keyshawn’s recent problems against fringe contenders and offered him a lesser fighter for his November 8th headliner, but he chose Lemos.
Unwilling to Face His Conqueror Andy Cruz
Keyshawn wanted someone good, but obviously not someone too good. If he wanted to put his career at risk to show true courage, he’d bite the bullet and face his four-time conqueror, Cuba’s Andy Cruz, who beat him like a drum repeatedly in the amateur ranks.
Cruz has repeatedly called him out since turning pro and refers to him as his “son.” Interestingly, Keyshawn is adamant about not wanting to fight Cruz, which indicates that he knows what he would do to his career, such as it is. Being beaten four times by Cruz in the amateur ranks is one thing, but losing to him in the pros would finish Keyshawn’s hopes of ever making the millions that he’s dreaming of.
This could backfire on Keyshawn because Lemos has talent, and he could win, provided there’s no controversy.
Lemos’s power and aggressive style are pure trouble for Keyshawn, who is about to turn 26-years-old and still hasn’t fought anyone. Davis is ranked #3 in IBF, WBC, and WBO.
Top Rank is positioning Keyshawn to fight WBO lightweight champion Denys Berinchyk, who is seen as the weakest link among the division’s available champions.
Keyshawn would have his best chance of winning a belt against him because he’s essentially a welterweight who boils down to 35 to fight smaller guys. Keyshawn will have an enormous size advantage against Berinchyk, who is a true lightweight.
The 2020 Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn (11-0, 7 KOs) is being fast-tracked by Top Rank, who recently lost Shakur Stevenson. They’re pushing Keyshawn faster than they probably would have if things had been different.
I’m that new upcoming star the sport needs. I will be the face it’s in Gods Plans. #november8th⭐️
— Keyshawn Davis (@KeyshawnDavis8) October 23, 2024
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