This past weekend saw American lightweight star Keyshawn Davis confirm his potential as a future world title contender after dispatching Argentinian opponent Gustavo Lemos―who notably came in to the 135 lbs match as a welterweight―within two rounds by knockout (KO). The two Top Rank fighters headlined their promotions’ card on Friday, November 8, at the Scope Arena in Davis’ hometown of Norfolk, Virginia.

Preceding the lightweight (135 lbs) title bout between Keyshawn Davis (12-0, 8 KO’s) and Gustavo Lemos (29-2, 19 KO’s) was the fact that Lemos had weighed in at around 141 lbs during the official weigh-ins, and approximately 144 pounds during the second-weigh in held on the morning of the event. As such, Lemos came in as a welterweight (147 lbs) for his fight against Davis.

Despite Lemos’ indiscretions, the promoter of the card―as well as the acting promoter of both fighters, Top Rank, allowed the main event featuring Davis and Lemos to continue. Davis’ WBC USA and WBO Inter-Continental lightweight titles were on the line for the bout, and the vacant IBF Inter-Continental 135 lbs title was also made available to be won.

Surrounded by a full retinue of hometown fans, Keyshawn Davis would go on to surprise both his supporters and the opposition as he stormed to a 2nd round KO win over Gustavo Lemos.

As per his usual style, Lemos sought to land a powerful right from the orthodox stance―hinting at this egregious overblown weight having been part of a deliberate strategy to grab a victory by any means. However, Lemos’ extra weight gain would be no match for Davis’ own skill as he defended well against Lemos’ attempts to bully him.

Moreover, Davis made full use of his stamina and skillset, using his boxer-puncher style to avoid or neutralize Lemos’ offense and subsequently counterattack with blitzes of combinations. Davis also pressured well, especially in the second round, using a combination of speed and conditioning to keep the bigger man at bay.

It was this fluidness that paid off early in the second round as Gustavo Lemos found himself knocked down within 30 seconds of the fight after finding himself countered with a hard right following an attempt to approach Keyshawn Davis on the inside. Approaching the end of the 1st minute of the round, Lemos was dropped for the second time after an accurate left hook from Davis amidst an exchange.

That knockdown notably came paired with Lemos falling down once more after first getting up from the knockdown, highlighting the damage he had taken and giving Keyshawn Davis the opportunity to finish him up. The American 135-pounder would do exactly that, landing several combinations in the next couple of seconds to knock Lemos down―and the referee in a freak accident―for the third time of the match.

Gustavo Lemos was irresponsive after the third knockdown, ending the match and giving Keyshawn Davis the full glory as he would claim a victory by knockout while retaining his WBC USA and WBO Inter-Continental 135 lbs titles―while he also earned the vacant IBF Inter-Continental title that had been available for their match.

The victory puts the entire lightweight division on full alert due to the fact Keyshawn Davis managed to beat a welterweight version of Gustavo Lemos in quick and stunning fashion. Notably, the highly-lauded American super lightweight (140 lbs) talent Richardson Hitchins (18-0, 7 KO’s) largely struggled against Lemos during their 140 lbs fight back in April, giving Davis a sense of being a viable threat at both lightweight and super lightweight.

Following his victory, Keyshawn Davis would challenge his own perceived ability and talent by calling out American WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis (29-0, 27 KO’s) for a potential title bout in 2025:

“[A] world title’s definitely going to be next,” Davis stated during his post-match interview. “2025 we got big, big plans for everybody in the boxing world.

“Hey, Gervonta [Davis]! Knock, knock!”

Gervonta Davis will first have to defend his WBA 135 lbs title against American WBA super featherweight (130 lbs) champion Lamont Roach Jr. (25-1-1, 10 KO’s) before a fight between both Keyshawn and Gervonta Davis becomes feasible. However, with Davis already considered a genuine top 10 lightweight contender before his fight with Lemos, his performance this past weekend has likely catapulted him to becoming the next highest-rated contender behind #1 lightweight contender William Zepeda (31-0, 27 KO’s)―making him one of the most suitable candidates to face any of the 135 lbs champions currently in the division.

Undercard Results:

• American featherweight (126 lbs) contender Ra’eese Aleem (21-2, 12 KO’s) got back in the winning column after he lost his previous match last year against Australian contender Sam Goodman (19-0, 8 KO’s). Aleem faced and defeated Dominican opponent Derlyn Hernandez-Gerarldo (12-3-1, 10 KO’s) by UD over the course of 10 rounds.

• American lightweight prospect Abdullah Mason (16-0, 14 KO’s) continued his progress through the ranks facing experienced Dominican fighter Yohan Vasquez (26-6, 21 KO’s). Mason knocked Vasquez out in the 2nd round of their 8-round match to boost his own credentials as a 135 lbs contender.

• Both of Keyshawn Davis’ siblings, Kelvin (14-0, 7 KO’s) and Keon Davis (1-0, 0 KO’s) both grabbed UD victories in their own respective matches, with the latter successfully making his pro boxing debut.