Is Keyshawn Davis Running A Hustle? Analyzing The Edwin De Los Santos Gimme Fight

An amped up WBO lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis is predicting a knockout of hand-picked opponent Edwin De Los Santos this Saturday, June 7th. Davis (13-0, 9 KOs) makes his first defense of his WBO belt against #14 ranked De Los Santos (16-2, 14 KOs) on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN+. The event starts at 10:00 p.m. ET /7:00 p.m. PT.

Another Gimme for Keyshawn?

This is another carefully selected gimme for Keyshawn, but De Los Santos has the power to win if he can land one of his left hands. Ring rust could play a part in the outcome. Also, Keyshawn’s huge size advantage. After he rehydrates on Saturday, he’ll resemble a junior middleweight inside the ring.

De Los Santos’ inactivity makes him a poor option for a world title fight against Davis. He’s been selected by Keyshawn and Top Rank due to his name recognition from his fight against Shakur Stevenson.

Fans aren’t as excited about this fight as Keyshawn, viewing it as a sustained effort to keep him unbeaten and artificially preserve his marketability. They view De Los Santos as not deserving a world title shot, given that he’s coming off a 19-month layoff and a defeat to Shakur Stevenson in 2023.

The 2020 Olympic Silver medalist Keyshawn’s personality is reminiscent of Adrien Broner, and the way he’s being matched is similar to how he was maneuvered early in his career. De Los Santos has the power to expose him if he can land.

The opponents’ fans want Keyshawn to fight:

1. Andy Cruz
2. Ernesto Mercado
3. Raymond Muratalla
4. Shakur Stevenson: His ‘Brother’
5. Gary Antuanne Russell
6. Abdullah Mason
7. Jaron Ennis
8. Brian Norman Jr.

Keyshawn says the opponent that he wanted, a “Mexican fighter, priced himself out by asking for $8 million. It was revealed that the fighter was Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz. He wanted that guy instead of one of the highly ranked contenders, like Andy Cruz.

“June 7th, it’s going down. I’m knocking him out. Put those in your parlay—a knockout,” said Keyshawn Davis to Fighthype, predicting a KO of challenger Edwin De Los Santos this Saturday night on June 7th.

The Davis Hustle: An Artificial Rise

Not surprisingly, Saturday’s Davis-De Los Santos event hasn’t created a lot of buzz, because fans feel that ‘The Businessman’ Keyshawn is running a hustle, avoiding top-tier opposition to make money fighting.

Fans want to see Keyshawn fighting these talented opposition instead of feasting on inactive, lowly ranked fighters coming off a loss, or tiny ones like Pitbull Cruz. Davis has shown a vulturistic method for picking his opponents since he turned pro after his fourth loss to Cuba’s Andy Cruz. Keyshawn is like a bird of prey when it comes to selecting his opponents. He’s shown a keen eye in choosing the lame.