WEIGHED DOWN: Keyshawn Davis Ices Gustavo Lemos in 2
Troy Isley dominates Tyler Howard in co-feature
The Seven Cities has a superstar. Hometown hero and lightweight contender Keyshawn Davis knocked out Argentina’s Gustavo Lemos in the second round Friday evening before a sold-out crowd of 10,568 at Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
This marked the biggest boxing event at the famed venue since local legend Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker fought Buddy McGirt in 1994. Thirty years later, Davis (12-0, 8 KOs) made his Scope debut in grand fashion.
Despite missing weight by more than six pounds and having a noticeable size advantage on fight night, Lemos (29-2, 19 KOs) had no answer for “The Businessman.” Davis knocked down Lemos three times in the second round, punctuating the carnage with a brutal left hook/right-hand combination. Referee Raul Caiz Jr. dived in to stop the fight as Lemos tumbled to the mat.
“I had no hesitation. Me and my team, we stuck to our guns. We said if he comes in too much over we ain’t gonna fight. But he followed his game plan, and he didn’t come too much over (at the weight check on Friday morning), so we had a fight and we gave a spectacular night,” Davis said. “I didn’t feel no power in him. I actually sat back on the ropes one little second, and I let him throw his overhand that he loves and I felt it on my shoulder. And I looked at my brothers and gave them that face like, no, not enough (power). It ended in the second round so maybe he didn’t really get a chance to hit me.”
Davis landed 76.5 percent of his power shots, while Lemos connected on only 13 punches. That told the story of the one-way traffic that brought the ‘757’ fans to their collective feet.
Middleweight: In the co-feature, Keyshawn’s Olympic teammate, Troy Isley (14-0, 5 KOs), won a gritty 10-round decision over Tyler Howard (20-2, 11 KOs) to retain his NABO belt. Isley, from Alexandria, Virginia, picked up his third victory of 2024 and maintained his WBO world ranking. Scores: 99-91 2x and 98-92.
Lightweight: Abdullah Mason (16-0, 14 KOs) overcame his first gut check as a pro, surviving a pair of first-round knockdowns to knock out Yohan Vasquez (26-6, 21 KOs) with a left hand to the body in round two. Mason suffered a flash knockdown early in the first, then scored a knockdown of his own midway through the round. As he went for the finish, Vasquez landed a peach of a counter left hand. Mason survived the round, came out possessed in the second, and knocked out Vasquez at 1:59 of the round.
Junior Welterweight: Kelvin Davis (14-0, 7 KOs) continued the DB3 momentum, outboxing Colombian veteran Yeis Solano (15-4, 10 KOs) en route to an eight-round unanimous decision win. Davis knocked down Solano in the closing seconds of the fight to put an exclamation point on the proceedings. Scores: 80-71 and 79-72 2x.
Middleweight: Virginia native Austin Deanda (16-0, 10 KOs) overcame a spirited challenge from DeAundre Pettus (12-3, 7, KOs), edging out an eight-round unanimous decision by scores of 77-75 2x and 78-74.
Junior Middleweight: The youngest fighting member of DB3, Keon Davis (1-0), had a successful professional debut with a four-round unanimous decision over Jalen Moore (1-2, 1 KO) by scores of 40-36 3x. Davis hurt Moore with several shots in the fourth round, but the native of Dallas, Texas, survived to hear the final bell.
Junior Lightweight: Emerging prospect Robert Meriwether III (8-0, 3 KOs) picked up his fourth win of the year, turning away a tricky Eric Howard (6-3, 1 KO) over six rounds. Scores: 60-54 and 59-55 2x.
Featherweight: Former junior featherweight contender Raeese Aleem (21-1, 12 KOs) made a triumphant ring return, dominating Derlyn Hernandez (12-3-1, 10 KOs) over 10 rounds after a nearly 18-month layoff. Ring rust was no issue, as Aleem scored a knockdown in round five and prevailed by scores of 100-89 3x.
