Keyshawn Davis is next. But if you ask him, he’s now.
And he might be right as a future staple on the pound for pound rankings.
Davis is only 24 years old and will attempt to improve to 9-0 when he faces Francisco Pantera on July 22 at the Firelake Arena in Oklahoma as the chief support to George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes.
The 2020 Olympic silver medalist has only been a pro for two years but has shown a pedigree that is well beyond his years. And in a day and age where talented fighters aren’t expected to wait for their chance at championship gold, it won’t take long for Davis to begin belt collecting and stake his claim as one of the best fighters in the world.
I know, it’s far too early to suggest that a fighter with under ten fights isn’t too far from a world title. But Davis is impatient. After stopping former title contender Anthony Yigit in April, Davis wasted little time calling for a title fight. Of course, it’s too early and the only lightweight with a world title is the undisputed champion Devin Haney. But Davis believes that he’s ready now and the only reason he would fight lesser opponents is to build his name. Aside from that? The Virginian wants only the biggest and best names the sport has to offer.
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“I don’t want any more development fights,” Davis said on The Last Stand podcast with Brian Custer. “I want fights that will keep me interested.”
Eight fights into his professional career and Keyshawn Davis is already over it. Is he overly confident? Maybe. But considering that he is trained by Brian “Bomac” Mcintyre and spars regularly with former unified super featherweight champion Shakur Stevenson and arguably the best fighter in the world, Terence Crawford, there is reason to believe that Davis is prepared for the next level.
There’s a lot to like about Davis. He’s skilled yet hyper violent. For a young fighter, his approach is surgical but he can end things quickly with a typhoon of punches once he smells blood in the water. He’s defensively responsible and possesses quick reflexes. And even though he has yet to be tested, he’s already demonstrated the ability to adjust when something isn’t quite working for him in the ring.
While Davis is just one of many young fighters under the age of 25 with promising careers, he has the potential to be one of the best sooner than later. Part of the reason is that Davis resides in one of the most exciting divisions in boxing at 135 pounds. Although Haney currently reigns supreme — and is only three months older than Davis — “The Dream” appears to be ready to make the move to 140 pounds, which opens the door for Davis to stake his claim to one of the world titles should they be vacated.
The lightweight division is loaded with talent that includes Isaac Cruz, Gervonta Davis, Frank Martin, George Kambosos Jr. and Davis’ friend, Shakur Stevenson. Davis has said that he has little interest in ever fighting Stevenson and that could make things interesting should Stevenson get his hands on a world title first.
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) May 11, 2023
But Davis has teased that he plans to move up as high as 147 pounds and could drop down to 130 if the right situation presented itself for the 2020 Olympian to challenge for a super featherweight title. But, for now, Davis will have to be content with a steady climb as his next fight is set for July when he faces Francesco Patera. It’s not quite the world title fight he asked for but the German will have to suffice as he will get the opportunity to be the first fighter to stop Patera.
He surely relishes in that challenge. After that? Who knows. He’ll undoubtedly tell the world that he’s ready for a world title opportunity and it’s highly likely that he’ll repeat these things until he final gets what he asks for.
And with Terence Crawford and Shakur Stevenson vouching for him, there’s no reason to deny him the opportunity to be great.
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