Davis vs Ortiz Predictions: A new career in a new town for Keyshawn

Former WBO lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis makes his super lightweight debut this Saturday, January 31 against Jamaine Ortiz. The fight takes place on the undercard of Davis’ close friend Shakur Stevenson’s WBO, The Ring and lineal 140lbs title challenge against Teofimo Lopez. The card takes place live on DAZN at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Read on for my Davis vs Ortiz predictions.

Davis vs Ortiz Odds

Davis is a big favourite at 1/5 while his former world title challenger foe is priced at 4/1. The draw is marketed at 18/1.

Davis vs Ortiz Fight Preview

Davis was a can’t-miss prospect destined for big things. An Olympic silver medalist at Tokyo 2020, he came up in the pro ranks on the undercards of close pal Stevenson. A tantalising aperitif before the huddled masses watched Shakur go to work. A treat before the main course. 

Davis was a fine fit for the role. Buzzy performances against the likes of former contender Juan Carlos Burgos, two-time European champion Francesco Patera and ex-world title challenger Anthony Yigit opened eyes and clapped hands. This kid was going places.

The first crack threatened to chasm when a points win over Nahir Albright two years ago mutated into a No Contest, when Davis tested positive for marijuana. The stylish prospect showed contrition and basically carried on like nothing had happened, beating well-travelled contender Jose Pedraza on points just over three months later. Boxing, eh?

A points nod over Miguel Madeno and a career-best, two-round KO of Gustavo David Lemos teed up a title shot for Davis. It was a chance the World Amateur Championships silver medalist took with aplomb, hammering WBO lightweight champion Denys Berinchyk in four rounds last Valentine’s Day. Appropriately, it was the sort of performance that can make you fall in love with a fighter.

But what followed was enough to make you pull out the Adele albums and sob into your half-melted Milk Tray. A title defence against former Stevenson foe Edwin De Los Santos crumbled at the 11th hour, when Davis failed to make weight. Negotiations were had, but the challenger quite rightly withdrew, not wanting to compete at a physical disadvantage.

Davis has wisely eschewed the 135lbs class and moved up. He has listened to his body, albeit belatedly. One hopes that ‘The Businessman’ can show a bit more professionalism going forward.

His early stumbles with weed and weight can perhaps be put down to the folly of youth. But another high-profile failure could see Davis consigned to the boxing backwaters. One need only look at Adrien Broner, the ‘next Mayweather’ who allowed outside-the-ring misdemeanours to blight his ascent. ‘The Problem’ proved to be exactly that. 

But the early signs are that those unsavoury moments are behind Davis. Ortiz is a good litmus test for his ambitions at a higher weight. ‘The Technician’ is 20-2-1, with both defeats coming at the elite level. Pound-for-pound legend Vasiliy Lomachenko and the evening’s headliner, Teofimo Lopez, are the only two men to beat him. 

Ortiz burst onto the world scene with a win over former world champion Jamel Herring. He has also out-pointed perennial contender Antonio Moran and Nahir Albright, as well as knocking out the teak-tough Sulaiman Segawa. Ortiz is riding a three-fight winning streak coming in and sits in the rankings for all four world bodies.

A perfect foil for a super lightweight debut? Or the wrong opponent at the wrong time for the troubled Davis? Time will tell, but this is a real fight at a pivotal time. Davis looked to have done the hard bit when he trounced Berinchyk to reign supreme. But perhaps his revival will be more taxing than his revolution.

Davis vs Ortiz Full Card

Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson

Carlos Adames vs Austin Williams

Keyshawn Davis vs Jamaine Ortiz

Bruce Carrington vs Carlos Castro

Ziyad Almaayouf vs Kevin Castillo

Jarrell Miller vs Kingsley Ibeh

Davis vs Ortiz Prediction

If Davis turns up fit and firing, this should be a procession. Ortiz is capable but does not have the breadth to his game that Davis does. I think the Olympian knows too much and can have this one wrapped up, possibly inside the distance. The Davis victory is 1/5.

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