Lightweight contender Keyshawn Davis expects his 10-round bout against Miguel Madueño on Saturday night, July 6th at the Prudential Center in New Jersey to be “action-packed.”
Davis (10-0, KOs), who is fresh off a sixth-round knockout win over 35-year-old veteran Jose Pedraza on February 8th at the Ultra Arena in Las Vegas, is hoping to make his presence felt against Madueño (31-2, 28 KOs).
Could this be a stepping stone for Davis?
Keyshawn vs. Madueño will take place on the undercard of Shakur Stevenson vs. Artem Harutyunyan, and the event will be broadcast live on ESPN at 8:30PM ET/5:30PM PT.
Madueño lost a 10-round decision to Steve Claggett in a bout that took place in Montreal, Canada on November 14, 2023. The bout was not close, with Claggett winning nearly every round.
That gives us a sense of what Saturday's bout between Keyshawn and Madueño might be like: another ranking-boosting bout for Keyshawn, but one that won't prepare him to dethrone 135-pound champions Shakur, Gervonta Davis, Vasiliy Lomachenko or Dennis Belincik.
Keyshawn looks like a serious 140 pounder, but it's unclear why he's stuck at 135 when he's too big for that weight class. He probably won't fight Shakur because he's friends with him, and he may never get a chance to face Tank Davis or Lomachenko. Those are bad combinations for Keyshawn. Lomachenko could retire without fighting Keyshawn, and Tank could move up to 140 for a couple of fights.
Andy Cruz is highly ranked in the 135 pound division and Keyshawn has already lost to Cruz four times at the amateur level. Whatever title Keyshawn wants to win at lightweight, he won't hold it for long if Cruz becomes mandatory.
Top Rank obviously knows Keyshawn's limitations, so they'll likely delay the bout with Andy Cruz for as long as humanly possible to avoid the inevitable.
The only person Keyshawn has a shot at beating is Belinchik, but it's a tough fight for him and one he may lose. If Top Rank holds off on the 36-year-old Belinchik until he's more developed, Keyshawn might have a shot at beating him, but not now.
“I always knew I'd be in this position, so it's not that big of a deal for me,” Davis said in an interview with Top Rank Boxing about being a top lightweight contender but yet to beat anyone.
Keyshawn didn't say what he meant by “being in this position.” As far as I can tell, Keyshawn is one of many contenders ranked below #1 William Cepeda and #2 Raymond Muratala. He won't beat them and it would be a bad idea for Top Rank to put Keyshawn in the same category as them.
“I knew I was a talented kid, I knew I was a talented teenager. Right now I'm just trying to become a world champion. I'm not really worried about being a rising star,” Keyshawn said.
Keyshawn has a lot of work to do to keep up with talented fighters like Abdullah Mason, Andy Cruz, William Cepeda, Muratala and Skolfield. Keyshawn is a good fighter, but his biggest attraction in the 135-pound division is his massive size.
He weighs over 140 pounds and fights below his weight class. In other words, Keyshawn is a weight-conscious guy, and it helps him, but unless you're willing to die worrying about your weight for the next 10 years, you can't make a career out of it.
Nahir Albright already proved Keyshawn what he could do back in October, which is why I think Top Rank slowed his development by putting him against Pedraza instead of facing top contenders like Andy Cruz, Muratala, William Cepeda or Floyd Schofield.
They know what Keyshawn is like and they're not going to screw him up by putting him in a fight he can't win. Again, Keyshawn should step up and take on WBO light welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez because Lopez is showing signs of slowing down. If Keyshawn can hang in there, he has a good chance of beating Teofimo.
The Power of Madunyo
“He's a very aggressive fighter and he's relentless,” Keyshawn said of Miguel Madueño, who he will face on the 10-round undercard this Saturday night at the Prudential Center in Newark.
The 25-year-old Madueño has the power to knock Keyshawn out if he lands a big punch. Albright has been hurting Keyshawn and doesn't have the punching power that Madueño has.
“I can throw some good punches and I know my opponent is going to come in to get punched or try to throw a punch. I think this fight is going to be action-packed. I'll call the shots,” Keyshawn said.
