Keyshawn Davis demolished Gustavo Lemos in Friday’s Davis vs. Lemos main event at The Scope in Norfolk, Virginia. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Keyshawn Davis produced the best performance of his career in front of a sellout home crowd, sending a thunderous message to the lightweight division on Friday at The Scope in Norfolk, Virginia.
Davis (12-0, 8 KOs), who vowed pre-fight to follow in the legendary footsteps of Norfolk’s Pernell Whitaker, knocked down Argentina’s Gustavo Lemos three times in the second round, forcing the referee to call a halt to the action after the third knockdown. Lemos (29-2, 19 KOs) had only been defeated once before Friday’s highlight-reel setback in a razor-thin decision at the hands of Richardson Hithchins. Consequently, Davis beating Lemos in the fashion he did is a real statement in the lightweight division.
What makes the 2020 Olympic silver medalist’s win even more impressive was the size disadvantage he had in the fight. Lemos weighed in 6.4 pounds over the 135-pound limit at Thursday’s weigh-in, and by the time he entered the arena on Friday, he’d rehydrated all the way up to 155.6 pounds. Lemos was noticeably bigger than Davis in the ring, but that didn’t faze the American, who called out Gervonta “Tank” Davis for an eventual showdown following his stellar performance.
Davis will now likely fight for a world title in 2025. He is ranked No. 3 with the IBF and the WBO, and both title shots could be on the table in the near future. WBO officials said at their convention last month that they would consider making the winner of Friday’s fight the mandatory challenger for Denys Berinchyk. Vasyl Lomachenko’s future is unclear, which could leave the IBF title vacant as well.
On the undercard, top prospect Abdullah Mason rose from two knockdowns in the opening round to knock out Yohan Vasquez with a brutal left hand to the body in round two. The opening round of Mason vs. Vasquez was an instant contender for Round of the Year, as Mason was dropped twice in the round but also put Vasquez on the canvas across an exhilarating three minutes.
Check out Uncrowned’s Keyshawn Davis vs. Gustavo Lemos full results and live blog below.
Main Card (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
Lightweight: Keyshawn Davis def. Gustavo Lemos via second-round KO | Watch KO
Middleweight: Troy Isley def. Tyler Howard via unanimous decision (99-91, 99-91, 98-92)
Undercard (6:20 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
Lightweight: Abdullah Mason def. Yohan Vasquez via second-round KO | Watch KO
Welterweight: Kelvin Davis def. Yeis Gabriel Solano via unanimous decision (80-71, 79-72, 79-72)
Lightweight contender Keyshawn Davis calls out the WBA champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis in his post-fight interview with ESPN.
Davis vs. Lemos – Round 2
Keyshawn Davis DROPS Lemos with a counter left hook as Lemos was lunging in with a right hand. The Argentine rises to his feet but is on shaky legs. Lemos keeps throwing at Davis instead of trying to hold and is caught off balance with a left hook, and he goes DOWN AGAIN in round 2. Lemos is stumbling in the neutral corner, the referee lets the fight carry on but he is on borrowed time. Davis is letting his hands go, he knows one more flurry could finish this fight. The referee attempts to jump in but not before Davis can land a crushing right uppercut that puts Lemos on the canvas FOR GOOD!
Davis KO-2 Lemos
Davis vs. Lemos – Round 1
Keyshawn starts the fight behind his masterful jab on the backfoot. Lemos is trying to close the distance with wild hooks but he’s missing badly; he needs to feint and use his jab to set up power punches. Keyshawn has the advantage in speed and makes it count with a quick right hand which lands on Lemos and is quickly followed by a right hand to the body. Lemos responds with his own body shot.
10-9 Davis
Main Event: Keyshawn Davis vs. Gustavo Lemos
Lightweight contender Keyshawn Davis (11-0, 7 KOs) steps up to face the toughest test of his career against Argentina’s Gustavo Lemos (29-1, 19 KOs). A win here for Davis will likely set up a shot at the world title.
Lemos lost a close decision to Richardson Hitchins last time out in an IBF final eliminator at the weight above.
There was controversy at yesterday’s weigh-in as Lemos was 6.4 lbs over the 135-pound limit. Lemos made the 146 lbs weight limit today so the fight will go ahead. According to the ESPN broadcast, Lemos was 155.4 lbs when he arrived at the arena for tonight’s fight — 20 lbs heavier than the lightweight limit.
Isley Beats Howard via UD
Middleweight contender Troy Isley moves to 15-0 with a wide unanimous decision win (99-91, 99-91, 98-92) over Tyler Howard in Norfolk. The main event is up next.
Isley vs. Howard – Round 10
STRONG right hand from Howard in the first minute of the tenth and Isley is momentarily staggered; Howard’s best success in this fight. Jab-right hand-left hook combination from Howard, and all three punches land. Another good left hook from Howard lands on Isley. A good finish for Howard but he left it too late. Howard will regret not fighting with this urgency earlier in the fight.
10-9 Howard, 98-92 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 9
Howard is told he needs a knockout in the corner in between rounds 8 and 9 and he finally starts to increase the tempo but Isley knows how far ahead he is and has no intention of letting Howard get his work off. Isley is now holding and blocking, mitigating Howard’s late surge the best he can.
10-9 Howard, 89-82 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Rounds 7-8
Cut over the left eye of Tyler Howard which looks to have been opened from Troy Isley’s jab. Howard lands a straight right hand but it is quickly responded to by Isley’s left hook counter, a shot that he has had success with all night long.
80-72 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 6
The pair traded right hands at the centre of the ring, and a rare power shot landed for Howard. Isley throws the jab, steps to his right to create an angle and catches Howard clean with a straight right hand. Good offensive move from Isley to produce a punch that will surely catch the attention of the judges.
10-9 Isley, 60-54 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 5
Isley is landing his jab consistently throughout the round and that punch alone is winning him this fight. Howard just isn’t doing enough to make Isley open up. He seems hesitant to commit fearing a counter.
10-9 Isley, 50-45 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 4
Body attack from Isley early in the round. Howard is starting to create more offensive opportunities but the action is still few and far between and the crowd certainly isn’t impressed,
10-9 Isley, 40-36 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 3
Isley is winning the fight with his jab and the odd power shot on the outside. The contest is far from exciting though and the crowd has started with the boo’s in round 3. Howard is just standing in front of him and not taking any risks.
10-9 Isley, 30-27 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 2
A counter left hook from Isley is the best connect of round two. Howard was trying to throw his own counter: a right hand over Isley’s jab, but Howard misses and Isley landed with his.
10-9 Isley, 20-18 Isley
Isley vs. Howard – Round 1
Dominant opener for Isley behind his left hand. Howard is trying to punch in-between the guard of Isley where there is an opening for a shot through the middle.
10-9 Isley
Co-feature: Isley vs. Howard
2020 Olympian Troy Isley (13-0, 5 KOs) steps up to face Tyler Howard (20-1, 11 KOs) over ten rounds at middleweight in the Keyshawn Davis vs. Gustavo Lemos co-feature.
Mason vs. Vasquez – Round 2
Abdullah Mason recovers from the toughest test of his career to score a left-hand body shot knockout of Yohan Vasquez in round two. Tremendous fight for the five minutes it lasted with Mason overcoming adversity to finish the fight early. Mason will now progress to ten-rounders.
Mason vs. Vasquez – Round 1
Round of the year contender in Norfolk as top prospect Abdullah Mason gets dropped for the first time in his career by the heavy-handed Yohan Vasquez. Mason was caught by a counter left hook but recovered to put Vasquez down just seconds later with his own left hand. Mason was over-eager to get a finish and paid the price for it as Vasquez connected on Mason with another short left hook, sending the young prospect down for the second time in the round.
Next up: Mason vs. Vasquez
The frontrunner for 2024’s Prospect of the Year, Abdullah Mason (15-0, 13 KOs) faces the Dominican Republic’s Yohan Vasquez (26-5, 21 KOs) in an eight-round lightweight attraction.
Vasquez is coming off a 2nd-round stoppage win over 30-0 Kamil Laszczyk, and will be looking to beat another undefeated prospect tonight.
Davis Beats Solano by UD
Kelvin Davis scored a late knockdown en route to a dominant unanimous decision win (80-71, 79-72, 79-72) over Yeis Solano in their eight-round welterweight bout.
Davis vs. Solano – Rounds 7-8
Solano finally starting to come out of his shell in round 7 but a little too late to make an impact on the result of this fight. Davis blocking Solano’s work on the inside and looking to get back to long range where he gets off his best work with straight punches.
Davis FLOORS Solano at the end of round 8 with a reverse 1-2.
