An impressive rookie performance against what many considered an uphill battle and a real threat against the battle-tested Gustavo Lemos, Keyshawn Davis passed the test with flying colors. Addressing the title for the first time in his hometown, he embraced the moment instead of letting the pressure of ten thousand home fans get to him. By doing this, he showed that he has what it takes to handle the pressure outside of the ring.
His performance has shown that he can handle pressure inside the ring. His game plan to not match the pressure Lemos brought to the table from the first bell made sense. He stood up, operated with precision, and finished the fight in two rounds, doing an amazing job in the process. And his stock rose instantly: young, talented, and amazing, not to mention selling 10 thousand tickets to his first major title. It is relevant and workable and should serve as a launching pad for future impressive work.
In his post-fight interview in the ring, he was audibly happy, working the crowd and passionate. However, he called out Gervonta Davis in a way that left this writer confused. Before we get into it, let’s make one thing clear: Keyshawn has to call big names. Being shy gets you nowhere, as a closed mouth is not fed in a boxing match.
That being said, there was something about the way Keyshawn called Tank that came off as silly, maybe even reckless. I fully understand that a fighter should have confidence, especially following an important win, but sometimes, arrogance and indifference can disguise as self-righteous confidence within a person’s mind.
Keyshawn may be able to beat Gervonta, but his technique could end up being a problem. He must not let his important victory against Lemos affect his long-term vision. Tank is not Lemos—far from it.
Gervonta hasn’t always fought the best competition and we can agree that we can be the one to refuse to take those fights or it’s the politics of boxing that prevent them from happening.
But that doesn’t mean Keyshawn has to call him with the foregone conclusion that he’s going to hit him. There’s a fine line between being confident and letting the heat of the moment cloud your judgment, especially if that cloud lingers.
Criticizing the Bugatti because you haven’t seen it race other powerful cars doesn’t take away from the fact that under bright lights, it can easily reach 300 miles per hour.
And the Tank is a Bugatti-beast. His biggest quality, which some fans often overlook or don’t even notice, is his very high ring IQ.
He is also patient and the main goal of that patience is to allow that ring IQ to blossom round after round with deadly results.
He takes steps in the ring and is very careful of his opponent and immediately begins to collect the necessary data that will show him how to win on the ground. And when that time comes, he goes for the kill. Avoiding being finished by a Tank when he damages you is almost impossible. No one from 130 to 140 and maybe even higher can take on Tank’s power or predict how he will deliver that power.
I didn’t feel like Keyshawn had that in mind when he talked to him after the fight. The way he called Tank gave me the image of a hitman who has no idea that what happened to his predecessors could happen to him. If I’m right in my opinion, Keyshawn has already lost the fight, if that’s the case.
If I were in Keyshawn’s corner, I would sit with him and tell him to see the following situation:
“It’s the seventh round, and you’ve had your moments, but Tank took your shot, and he’s starting to step up. You’re here, you realize that the war isn’t playing out the way you thought it would in your mind, and you’ve just started the process of increasing the pressure on yourself. Now, you hesitate to let your hands go as you did in the previous rounds because any opportunity you see, any opening you think you should use, is probably a setup at this time of the fight. He thinks twice about throwing because he can catch you naked with a shot that is impossible to predict, and he knows that if the first one hits the target, the second one will end the fight. Then you start to see what’s at stake, how this fight can make you a star overnight, but also how a bad loss will stop a once-promising career. The crowd is going crazy, and the lights are getting brighter, and it’s only the seventh round…”
If such a scenario were to happen, would Keyshawn be able to keep his cool, or would he crack under the pressure?
Teddy Atlas, who knows a thing or two about boxing, said Tank is the perfect fighter. That’s probably the best compliment you can give a fighter.
I don’t hate Keyshawn Davis at all. I’m just worried that his boosted confidence will be his downfall. As the great Khabib Nurmagemedov once said: “I take people to deep water, and they find themselves!”
When it comes down to it, we will find out who Keyshawn Davis really is. You will, for better or for worse.
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