Keyshawn Davis says he showed today that Abdullah Mason doesn’t want to fight him when he confronted him during the final press conference by daring him to face him next. The unbeaten Mason (18-0, 16 KOs) did eventually agree to fight Keyshawn (13-0, 9 KOs), but he didn’t sound confident.
Keyshawn’s Fake Mason Challenge
Davis reveled in the way he’d made the 21-year-old Mason look, treating it as a minor victory. However, he likely knew Top Rank would never agree to this fight. So, it gave Keyshawn a safety net, allowing him to act courageously without worrying about going through with the risky fight. He could always tell the media afterward that Top Rank refused.
“I feel like he’s being put in a position where he has to say he wants to fight me. He doesn’t want to fight me because when I did ask him if he wanted to fight me face to face, he said, ‘Yo, isn’t Top Rank going to let you vacate the belt and you move up to 140?’” said Keyshawn Davis about his altercation with Abdullah Mason today during the final press conference.
Mason’s comment today about being #2 in the WBO’s rankings wasn’t a reflection of him trying to call out Keyshawn. He expects him to move up to 140 and vacate the WBO belt. It’s common knowledge that Davis doesn’t like killing himself to get down to 135, and he has no big names to fight in this weight class.
Gervonta Davis won’t fight him. Keyshawn says he won’t fight his ‘brother’ Shakur Stevenson. In this interview, Keyshawn said he won’t fight Raymond Muratalla now that he’s the IBF champion. He also doesn’t want to fight Andy Cruz either. So, why wouldn’t Abdullah expect him to vacate the WBO 135-lb belt? There’s no reason for Keyshawn to stay at lightweight unless he wants to milk his title by hand-picking challengers like he did with De Los Santos. That was his baby. He picked him, not Top Rank.
“Did he say that on the stage right then and there? Did I expose that right then and there on the stage? No. Cool. He’s not really ready to fight me, but he’s acting like he is. When I send that contract, I told him he’d better sign it,” said Keyshawn.
Mason doesn’t want the fight. He showed today that he’s not interested in facing Davis yet. But even if he did want to, his promoters at Top Rank wouldn’t give him the green light because they’re trying to develop him into a star. Mason has the potential to become a big star who doesn’t need to be protected with the strategic matchmaking that fans see being done with Keyshawn.
Keyshawn’s Cherry-Picking Fights
“I’m the champ. When I knock De Los Santos out, and if he [Mason] wins, I’m the champ. I picked De Los Santos. I picked Lemos. So, why can’t I pick Abdullah? Well, you it ain’t me then,” said Keyshawn when told that Mason would need to agree to the fight too. It’s not just about picking him.
It would be interesting to see whether Keyshawn would change his mind about fighting Mason if he showed the same eagerness to fight him as Andy Cruz. Today, Davis was on his hind legs, pressing Abdullah for a fight. But would he change his tune if Mason appeared motivated to fight him? Probably not. He’d get the Cruz treatment by being ignored by Davis.
Why Davis Skips Muratalla
“I’m not fighting Raymond Muratalla. I’m telling you that right now. Yeah, it’s not an interesting fight, and why would I want to pay for another belt? I’m already paying for this [WBO],” said Keyshawn. “Why would I want to go fight for another belt that I’ve got to pay for? If they’re going to give it to me for free, then I’ll go fight Raymond Muratalla.”
The reasons why Davis should want to fight Muratalla:
- Money
- Fame: Muratalla would be the biggest name on Keyshawn’s resume by far, and that would increase his popularity if he were victorious.
- Show courage: Davis has a reputation for selecting soft opponents. If he were to face Muratalla, he could show fans that he’s not the cherry-picking fighter that fans see him as.
Fans see Keyshawn turning down a fight against Muratalla, and it leaves them with one impression. He’s afraid. Davis admits that he chooses his opponents himself. He’s the one who wanted De Los Santos rather than Andy Cruz. He’s the one who selected Gustavo Lemos and Jose Pedraza. At least if he fought Muratalla, he would face someone good for a change. So, even if he never fights Andy Cruz, he will have shown that he dared to fight Muratalla.
“But if they’re not going to give me that belt [IBF] for free, then I’m not going to fight him. Also, he has the IBF belt. So, that means I got to worry about weight the day of [the fight]. I still won’t pay for that belt. So, it doesn’t matter. So, tell him [Muratalla] to do something about that, and we can probably fight,” said Keyshawn.
Would Keyshawn fight Muratalla if he didn’t have to pay the sanctioning fee? We know that he wasn’t interested in fighting Muratalla before he won the belt. So, why would he all of a sudden want to fight him if he were belt-less? Nothing would change. He would find another reason to ignore him.
Last Updated on 06/05/2025
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