Keyshawn Davis stopped Denys Berinchyk in round four to win the WBO Lightweight title at The Theatre at Madison Square Garden.

In round three, Davis landed a left to the body that put Berinchyk on a knee for a knockdown. In round four, it was another left to the body to liver as Berinchyk tried to come in and throw punches that put Berinchyk on the deck for the 10-count at

Davis, 134.2 lbs of Norfolk, VA is now 13-0 with 10 knockouts. Berinchyk, 134.6 lbs of Kyiv, UKR is 19-1.

Davis said, “It was an amazing feeling. 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!’”

“I never really had problems with awkward fighters. 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, I did it to him.”

“My son was here. I had to show up for my son, Keyshawn Jr. He was in the crowd watching me. It means a lot to me now. When he looks back at this day, he’s going to be proud of his father.”

“I want anybody who has the balls to step in the ring and fight me. 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.”

Xander Zayas Stops Slawa Spomer in 9

Xander Zayas remained undefeated with a ninth round stoppage of Slawa Spomer in a battled of undefeated junior middleweights.

In round one, Spomer began to bleed from his nose.

In round nine, Zayas hurt Spomer with a left hook to the body. Spomer retreated to the ropes and Zayas pounced on Spomer with a flurry of punches until Zayas doubled over Spomer again with a another left to the body, and the fight was stopped at 2:01.

Zayas, 153.2 lbs of San Juan, PR is 21-0 with 13 knockouts. Spomer, 153.2 lbs of Heilbromn, GER is 20-1.

Zayas said, “I knew from the first round that he would wear down little by little. In the third or fourth, I hurt him, and he got me with a good shot. But I went to my corner, and they told me to keep fighting intelligently because we had 10 rounds to wear him down. And by the eighth and ninth, they told me, let’s step it up with the combinations, and we started to land with more power to get the finish.”

“On paper, he was my toughest opponent to date, and I stopped him. I have passed every test that has been put in front of me, and I feel I’m ready to fight for a world title right now. I want that next.”

Mielnicki and Coyle Battle To Majority Draw

Vito Mielnicki Jr. and Connor Coyle battled to a 10-round majority draw in a middleweight fight.

In round four, Mielnicki was bleeding from his mouth. In the same round, Coyle was cut around his left eye.

Mielnicki landed 146 of 546 punches. Coyle was 98 of 520.

Mielnicki, 159.4 lbs of Roseland, NJ took a card by a 96-94 tally while two judges had it even at 95-95. Mielnicki is now 20-1-1. Coyle, 158.3 lbs of Derry, NI is 21-0-1.

Juanmita Lopez DeJesus needed just 59 seconds to win his pro debut over Bryan Santiago in a four-round junior bantamweight bout.

DeJesus landed a left uppercut that put Santiago down and out.

Dejesus, 113.8 lbs of Caguas, PR is the son of former world champion Juan Manuel Lopez. Santiago, 113.6 lbs of Weslaco, TX is 1-2-1.

Abdullah Mason remained undefeated by dropping Manuel Jaimes four-times enroute to a fourth round stoppage in a eight-round lightweight bout.

In round Mason dropped Jaimes with a step-back left uppercut. Mason scored another knockdown in round three from another left hand.. In round four, Mason dropped Jaimes with a right hook that was followed by a left. Mason finished off Jaimes when he dumped him agaion the canvas with a straight left hand that was followed by two right hooks at 1:55.

Mason, 136.2 lbs of Cleveland is 17-0 with 15 knockouts. Jaimes, 137 lbs of Stockton, CA is 16-3-1.

“I said the same thing {about no longer being called a prospect}. We say the same thing. We want the belts, world championship,” Mason said. “I gotta keep doing what I’m doing and making these guys look the way I’ve been doing since I turned pro.”

Rohan Polanco stopped Jean Carlos Torres in round two of their 10-round welterweight fight.

In round one, Polanco dropped Torres with a leaping left hook to the temple In round two, it was a left hook that d put Torres down again. Seconds later, it was a big right hand that rocked Torres and one punch later the fight was stopped at 1:48.

Polanco, 146.4 lbs of Santo Domingo, DR is now 15-0 with 10 knockouts. Torres, 147 lbs of Trujillo Alto, PR is 22-2.

Keon Davis stopped Ira Johnson in round two of their four-round welterweight fight.

In round two, Davis dropped Johnson with a left hook to the body. Then it was a flurry that was capped by a right over the top that put Johnson down for 10-count at 1:38.

Davis, 149.2 lbs of Norfolk, VA is 2-0 with one knockout. Johnson, 148.2l lbs of Kansas City is 3-3.

Jared Anderson won a 10-round unanimous decision over Marios Kollias in a heavyweight bout.

In round four, Kollias started to swell under his left eye.

ANerson, 256.8 lbs of Toledo won by scores of 99-91 twice and 98-92 and is now 18-1. Kollias, 235.4 lbs of Pares, GRE is 12-4-1.

Juan Carlos Guerra Jr. scored an upset six-round split decision over Nico Ali Walsh in a middleweight fight.

Guerra, 1578.8 lbs of Chicago won by scores of 58-56 twice and 58-56 for Walsh. Guerra is now 6-1-1. Waksh, 15.2 lbs of Las Vegas is 11-2.

NORFOLK, Va. (Sept. 4, 2024) — Keyshawn “The Businessman” Davis is closing in on a world title shot, but first, he must defend his home turf. The lightweight contender and U.S. Olympic silver medalist will face Argentina-born puncher Gustavo Lemos in the 10-round main event on Friday, Nov. 8, at Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.

In the world championship co-feature, WBO welterweight king Brian Norman Jr. will defend his crown against Puerto Rican puncher Derrieck Cuevas. 

The undercard will feature the other members of “DB3.” Keyshawn’s older brother, rising junior welterweight Kelvin “Night Night” Davis (13-0, 7 KOs), fights Yeis Solano (15-3, 10 KOs) in an eight-rounder. Keyshawn’s younger brother, U.S. Olympic Trials champion Keon Davis, will make his pro debut in a four-round welterweight contest.

The entire Davis-Lemos card will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+. 

Promoted by Top Rank, ticket information will be announced shortly.

“As a young kid growing up in Norfolk, I dreamed of accomplishing enough to headline a card at Scope Arena one day. My boxing idol is the legendary Pernell ‘Sweet Pea’ Whitaker, and I want to pack that arena like he used to. He’s the greatest from my city, and I’m honored to continue that legacy,” Keyshawn Davis said. “I can’t wait to put on a spectacular show against a tough opponent in Gustavo Lemos. Everyone from the 757 will be in my corner.”

“Norfolk has been waiting for Keyshawn Davis to come home for years. This is going to be a great night of fights headlined by a real competitive main event,” said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum. “Lemos is full of confidence, and Keyshawn will have to be in top form on November 8 at Scope Arena.”

Davis (11-0, 7 KOs) enters his homecoming celebration ranked No. 3 at lightweight by the WBO, IBF, and WBC. He earned those rankings with two devastating showings to begin the year, starting with February’s sixth-round TKO of former two-division world champion Jose Pedraza. Five months later, he thrilled the crowd at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, dominating Mexican puncher Miguel Madueño over 10 rounds. He now makes his headlining debut in the biggest boxing event Scope Arena has seen since Whitaker defended his welterweight crown against Buddy McGirt in October 1994.

Lemos (29-1, 19 KOs), from Buenos Aires, Argentina, returns to the lightweight ranks for the first time in over two years. He last fought at 135 pounds in March 2022, when he stopped British former world champion Lee Selby in five rounds in front of his hometown fans. Lemos returned to action in December 2023, starching Javier Jose Clavero in the opening round. That set the stage for his American debut in April. Lemos traveled to Las Vegas for an IBF junior welterweight world title eliminator and was on the short end of a 12-round decision to American standout Richardson Hitchins. While many experts believed Lemos deserved the nod, he now moves down five pounds to face another unbeaten American mega-talent.

Lemos said, “This is a big occasion for Keyshawn Davis, and I am coming to Norfolk to spoil the party. He picked the wrong guy. On November 8, he’ll find out the truth. He’s not on my level.”

Norman (26-0, 20 KOs) is boxing’s youngest male world champion, a native of Atlanta who turned pro in 2018 at the age of 17. The 23-year-old made his Top Rank debut in early 2023 and was unbeaten in four fights with the company before May’s showdown with Giovani Santillan. The heavily favored Santillan was fighting in front of his hometown fans in San Diego, and Norman pulled off the upset win via 10th-round knockout. He won the WBO interim world title with that stunner and was elevated to full champion in August.

Cuevas (27-1-1, 19 KOs), the WBO No. 7 contender, enters his first world title fight riding a four-fight knockout streak that began in December 2022 with a second-round blitzing of Esneiker Correa. He has punched his passport for his last three fights, which took place in Panama in 2023. Last December, Cuevas knocked down Marlon Aguas in the fifth round en route to a sixth-round TKO triumph.

The undercard is also scheduled to include the following young talents:

• Rising lightweight sensation Abdullah Mason (15-0, 13 KOs) looks to take the next step against Dominican-born puncher Yohan Vasquez (26-5, 21 KOs) in an eight-rounder. The 20-year-old Cleveland native is 4-0 with four knockouts this year, all in four rounds or less.
   
• Keyshawn’s Olympic teammate, middleweight contender, and Washington, D.C. native Troy “The Transformer” Isley (13-0, 5 KOs) returns to his home region roots in a 10-rounder against Tyler “Hercules” Howard (20-1, 11 KOs). Isley picked up the NABO title in June with a unanimous decision over then-unbeaten brawler Javier Martinez.
   
• Middleweight prospect Austin DeAnda (14-0, 10 KOs), who hails from Amherst, Virginia, will take on DeAundre Pettus (11-2, 6 KOs) in an eight-rounder.
                                                                       

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About SevenVenues
The City of Norfolk’s SevenVenues serves to link Norfolk’s residents, visitors and tourists to Norfolk’s rich cultural arts and entertainment community. Besides providing entertainment services, SevenVenues is also responsible for the maintenance, repair, management and operation of the City’s seven public assembly facilities which include: Scope Arena, Chrysler Hall, the Attucks Theatre, the Wells Theatre, Harrison Opera House, Harbor Park, and Open Air Events. To learn more, visit SevenVenues.com.