NEW YORK, NY (WTKR)- As he prepares to climb inside the ring to fight for the first time since February, Keyshawn Davis is getting fans ready for an extraordinary performance Saturday night.
"Y'all gonna have to see," Davis said Thursday when asked what will be different about him this time around. "The amazing Keyshawn Davis, he's back."
The Norfolk native took part in the pre-fight press conference ahead of his showdown with Jamaine Ortiz at Madison Square Garden this weekend. Davis called himself happy and excited and responded to his opponent's remark that he doesn't want to leave anything up to the judges.
"I don't want to leave it in the judges' hands either, sir, so let's do it," Davis said. "Let's fight. I like fighting. Let's do it, bro."
The Businessman enters with a 13-0 record, including nine knockouts, but is coming off some adversity. His scheduled June WBO Lightweight Title defense in Norfolk was cancelled after he missed weight and the weekend was marred by an alleged altercation following older brother Kelvin's first professional defeat. Davis stepped away from the sport to regroup and reset and told News 3 earlier this month that he's learned more about accountability and faith since the controversy.
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Back to business: Davis gears up for return to ring
Now he gets the chance to fight at Madison Square Garden, known as the World's Most Famous Arena.
"When I came back from the Olympics, my first fight back from the Olympics was in the mecca of MSG," Davis recalled. "I also got another chance to fight in the mecca of MSG, but I never fought here with a sold-out crowd. That's crazy. It's definitely going to be, probably the biggest event I was ever a part of."
This will mark the Norfolk native's debut as a junior welterweight, which has a 140 lbs. limit. Standing in his way of staying undefeated is Ortiz, who is 20-2-1 with 10 knockouts to his name. One of his losses came to Teofimo Lopez, who is part of Saturday's main event. Davis's last fight came at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, when he took down Denys Berinchyk to claim his lightweight championship. He's hoping for a similar result in his first bout in the new weight class.
The bout will be the co-feature on the undercard leading up to the main event between Lopez and Shakur Stevenson. Fights begin at 6:05 p.m. Saturday evening and can be seen on DAZN pay-per-view. Walk-outs for the main event are expected around 10:50 p.m., with Davis and Ortiz scheduled as the penultimate bout of the night.
