On Thursday, Feb. 8th, at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, the ten-round lightweight co-feature will see U.S. Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn Davis against former two-division champion Jose “Sniper” Pedraza of Puerto Rico. The main event has Teofimo Lopez defending the world junior welterweight championship, and WBO belt, against Jamaine Ortiz. Lopez-Ortiz and Davis-Pedraza will be broadcast live on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ at 10:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. PT.
Davis (9-0, 6 KOs), from Norfolk, Virginia, is inching closer to a world title opportunity. After going 3-0 as a pro, he captured a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics. In November 2021, he signed a long-term promotional contract with Top Rank and has since tallied six more victories. He had an active 2023 in which he stopped Anthony Yigit via ninth-round TKO in April and shut out Francesco Patera by ten-round decision in July. In October, he fought to a no contest against Philadelphia's Nahir Albright. It was originally scored a majority decision win for Davis but later ruled a no contest by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation due to Davis' positive marijuana test.
“I have all the respect in the world for Jose Pedraza and what he’s accomplished in the pro game,” Davis said. “This is type of step up I need to get to the next level, and I know Pedraza will bring his A-game. It’s his last chance to get back to title contention, but I won’t let that happen. I will show out for the fans in Las Vegas and everyone watching on ESPN.”
Pedraza (29-5-1, 14 KOs), from Cidra, Puerto Rico, won the IBF junior lightweight title against Andrey Klimov in June 2015 and made title defenses against Edner Cherry and Stephen Smith. He captured the WBO lightweight title against Rey Beltran in August 2018. After losing in a unification showdown against Vasiliy Lomachenko, he moved up to 140 pounds, where he a faced the likes of Jose Zepeda, Jose Ramirez, Richard Commey, Lindolfo Delgado and Arnold Barboza Jr. Pedraza returns to the lightweight division in hopes of another world title run.
Pedraza said, “Keyshawn Davis is going to experience what it's like to face a two-division world champion. He’s never faced a boxer of my caliber, nor has he faced anyone even close to the caliber of my toughest opponents. He wants to continue climbing up the ranks, but on February 8, he’ll be falling off the ladder.”
ADDITIONAL BOUTS
The ESPN+-streamed undercard features nineteen year-old lightweight Emiliano Fernando Vargas (8-0, 7 KOs), son of former junior middleweight world champion Fernando Vargas, in action over six rounds against Tomas Ornelas (7-3, 5 KOs). Vargas went 6-0 with five knockouts in his sophomore year as a pro and is coming off a second-round destruction of Brandon Mendoza in November at T-Mobile Arena.
Lightweight Abdullah Mason (11-0, 9 KOs) will fight Benjamin Gurment (8-0-3, 5 KOs) in his first scheduled eight-rounder. Mason will look to capitalize on his 5-0 2023 campaign, which included a second-round TKO versus Jose Cardenas in November.
Middleweight Javier "Milwaukee Made" Martinez (9-0-1, 3 KOs) will take on Raul Salomon (12-2, 10 KOs) in an eight-rounder. Martinez dropped Isaiah Wise three times en route to a first-round knockout in November.
Former Team USA amateur standout Charlie Sheehy (8-0, 5 KOs) will step up to the eight-round distance for the first time. Sheehy vanquished Jesus Vasquez Jr. by unanimous decision in November.
Lightweight Alan “Kid Kansas” Garcia (10-0, 8 KOs), the power-punching dynamo from Ulysses, Kansas, sees action in a six-rounder.
Former national amateur champion Art Barrera Jr. (2-0, 2 KOs) returns to the ring in a four-round junior welterweight fight.
Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Takeover Promotions and CES Boxing, tickets go on sale Friday, Jan. 5 at 10 a.m. PT and can be purchased at AXS.com.
