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On Friday night at The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Keyshawn Davis went from 135-pound contender to WBO 135-pound champion after dropping Denys Berinchyk two times, including a body shot in the fourth round to end the night in front a sold-out crowd.
In the fourth round, Davis hit Berinchyk with a left hook to the body, dropping the Ukrainian, who tried to get to his feet. However, referee Harvey Dock saw enough and waved it off at 1:45.
In only his 14th fight, Davis(13-0, 9 KOs), who is from Norfolk, Virginia, is now a champion.
“It was an amazing feeling,” Davis said after the fight. “Right before I knocked him out, I was hearing the crowd saying, ‘Norfolk! Norfolk! Norfolk!’ I was like, ‘I’ve got to knock him out now! Boom!”
The 25-year-old did a lot of damage to the body of Berinchyk, and before stopping the former champion in the fourth, Davis dropped Berinchyk with a body shot in Round 2. According to CompuBox, six of his 20 total punches landed were to the body, and five of those six were power shots.
Berinchyk (19-1, 9 KOs) has an awkward style, which did not bother the “Businessman.”
“I never really had problems with awkward fighters,” Davis said. “The only thing that was giving me trouble was how he kept jumping in and out. And he was a little faster than I expected. As the rounds went on, I got more comfortable in there and, in the fourth round, did it to him.”
Davis, who stayed composed during the fight despite all the controversy this week, made it clear after the win that he wants other belt-holders at 135. While he did not mention any names, he said there were two that he would want.
“I want anybody who has the balls to step in the ring and fight me,” he said. “There are two 135-pound champions that I would love to fight. If they have the guts to step in the ring with ‘The Businessman,’ tell them to send me a contract, or I can send them one.”
Davis won’t fight WBC 135-pound champion Shakur Stevenson because they are friends. That leaves only two: IBF champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, who is with Top Rank but could be on his way out of the sport, or WBA champion Gervonta Davis.
No matter what direction he goes in, Davis appears to have the talent to do big things in boxing, and according to his promoter, Bob Arum, he is the next big thing.
Photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank
“Keyshawn Davis is a sensational young fighter,” Arum said. “What a performance. You saw the future of boxing tonight here in New York City.”