Keyshawn Davis TKO6 Jose Pedraza... Keyshawn Davis (10-0, 7 KOs), the 24-year old Olympic silver medalist earned his most important victory yet in Las Vegas on Thursday. Fightng in the chief supporting bout at Mandalay Bay, he vanquished former two-division champion Jose Pedraza (29-6-1, 14 KOs) via sixth-round TKO. After studying Pedraza for two rounds, Davis kicked his offense into high gear, using lead left hands to prepare vicious fusillades in the third and fourth rounds. Pedraza survived, so Davis boxed on the outside in the fifth. But he reinitiated his attack in the sixth, landing several combos before forcing referee Tom Taylor to stop the fight. Davis said, “Throughout this whole training camp, I’ve been saying that I’m the best at 135. Everyone kept saying, ‘You’ve got to get the stoppage. You’ve got to get the knockout.’ But I told everyone to not worry about it and just watch me work. And that’s exactly what happened. I got the stoppage.
“Teofimo has been doing a lot of talking lately. I’ll go up to 140 and fight Teofimo. What’s up?! Get this win tonight. You already know how I’m coming. You and your father. So, let’s set it up. I’l come straight to 140. Let’s go! And if you’re scared, Teofimo, then {Emanuel} Navarrete. He is a hell of a fighter. It would be an honor to get in the ring with you after you capture the WBO title. So let’s do it."
Rene Tellez Giron W8 George Acosta ... Lightweight Rene Tellez Giron (19-3, 12 KOs) of Mexico overcame height and reach disadvantages to upset George Acosta (17-2, 3 KOs) via eight-round unanimous decision. Acosta tried his best to keep Giron off him, but Giron closed the distance and landed several punches in the second and third rounds. Giron landed a right hook in the fifth that floored Acosta, who survived an onslaught to the body before the two went toe-to-toe in the final rounds. Official scores were: 79-72, 78-73 and 76-75.
ADDITIONAL RESULTS:
Middleweight Javier Martinez (10-0-1, 3 KOs) notched an eight-round unanimous decision win against Raul Salomon (12-3, 10 KOs). Martinez used a high guard to defend against Salomon as he pushed forward. Both found their rhythm in the center of the ring by the middle rounds, where Martinez landed power shots to the head and body with ease on an unrelenting Salomon. Official scores were: 79-73 and 78-74 (twice).
Lightweight Abdullah Mason (12-0, 10 KOs) had his first scheduled eight-rounder tonight, but he only needed two rounds to obliterate the previously unbeaten Benjamim Gurment (8-1-3, 5 KOs). After dropping him with a series of shots, Mason landed a counter left hand that immediately floored the Texas hopeful.
Lightweight Charlie Sheehy (9-0, 5 KOs) remained undefeated with an eight-round points verdict over rugged Mexican Abdel Sauceda (12-4, 8 KOs). Sheehy maintained distance with sharp jabs and quick footwork. Saucedo came on strong in the final two rounds, but it was not enough to win a single round. All three judges gave every round to Mason.
Lightweight Alan "Kid Kansas" Garcia (11-0, 9 KOs) dropped Tomas Ornelas (7-4, 5 KOs) with left hook to the temple before ending the fight with a left hook to the body at 51 seconds of the first round.
Heavyweight Lemir Isom-Riley (4-2, 2 KOs) upset hometown favorite Antonio Zepeda (6-2, 6 KOs) via third-round TKO. Zepeda took a pair of knees in the third after appearing to suffer an injury.
Junior welterweight Art Barrera Jr. (3-0, 3 KOs), the latest fistic prodigy to come out of the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy, scored a first-round KO win over Michael Portales (3-3-1, 1 KO).
