Norfolk, Virginia has exported great boxers before, such as welterweight Pernell Whittaker. Considered one of the greatest defensive boxers of all time, Whittaker was an Olympic gold medalist, and the longest reigning light heavyweight champion in the sport’s history. Now, another Olympian from the state of Virginia is on the path to boxing greatness: Keyshawn “The Businessman” Davis.
While Davis did not make his professional debut until 2021, he had quite the resume leading to his debut. Davis won Silver Medals in the light welterweight division at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, the 2019 World Championships in Yekaterinburg, and a Silver Medal for the lightweight division at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020. Davis debuted professionally on February 27th, 2021 with a TKO win over Lester Brown.
Since then, Davis has been undefeated since his professional debut with an 11-0 streak, seven of those wins being by knockout. However, one of Davis’ bouts has been ruled a no contest (NC) due to a positive test for marijuana which was criticized by many. Davis also currently holds three championships: the WBO Inter-Continental Championship, the WBC–USNBC Lightweight Championship, and the IBF–USBA Lightweight Championship. The Sporting News recently ranked him the sixth best lightweight in the world right now and many other groups have similarly put “The Businessman” in the top ten for his division.
Davis has garnered more and more traction as he continues on. Last February, he achieved a major TKO win over former World Champion Jose Pedraza to win the vacant IBF–USBA Lightweight Championship. The six round fight saw Davis deliver devastating blows to Pedraza. Davis has made it clear that big money fights are on his mind. In the post fight interview, Davis called out fellow rising boxing stars Emanuel Navarrete and Teofimo Lopez. Davis and Lopez exchanged words following Lopez’s own fight at the same event.
Many in Virginia and specifically from the Hampton Roads region have been happy to see local athletes exceed. With Davis’ determination to be a top boxer, it is very likely that he could join Whittaker in being one of the best boxers to be from the Commonwealth.
