Two championship bouts have been added to the undercard of the upcoming Ring 6 card featuring Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevenson in the main event on Saturday, January 31, at Madison Square Garden. Lopez and Stevenson will fight for Lopez’s WBO and the RING Magazine junior welterweight titles.
Joining them is the return of “The Businessman,” former lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis. Davis will face veteran opponent Jamaine Ortiz in the co-main event.
Davis of Norfolk, Virginia (13-0, 9 KOs) returns after nearly a year out of the ring since defeating Denys Berinchyk at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden on February 14. Davis was scheduled to defend his WBO title against Edwin De Los Santos in the main event of a homecoming card in Norfolk on June 7.
Keyshawn Davis Looks For Redemption in the Ring
But Davis missed weight by 4.3 pounds over the 135-pound limit. De Los Santos and his promoter, Sampson Lewkowitz, turned down offers to let the fight continue and decided it was too dangerous. Davis was stripped of his title, and his title defense was canceled. Davis took a lot of heat for his unprofessional approach to the fight.
Davis and younger brother Keon watched Kelvin “Nite Nite” Davis (15-1, 8 KOs) lose his fight against a determined Nahir Albright of Philadelphia (17-2, 7 KOs), losing a majority decision to the underdog by scores of 97-93, 96-94, and 95-95.
After the fight, in an interview with ESPN’s Mark Kriegel, Albright said Keyshawn and Keon Davis roughed him up in the dressing room after their brother’s loss. Albright was sporting a nasty knot on his forehead. It wasn’t present before he left the ring.
“They started walking up to me all tough, putting his head against mine, and I was about to swing, but my team grabbed Keyshawn. It was crazy,” said Albright. “It adds fuel to the flame. Keyshawn, you gotta run it back with me in the ring. Not outside of the ring. Approaching me on my best night, feel me? We got to settle it.”
It didn’t end there. Norfolk Police officers had to break up another brawl between the camps, with Keyshawn Davis at the heart of the melee. Video of the episode was shown on ESPN after the fight card ended. It’s a horrible mess for all involved. Both Davis brothers need to be suspended and fined.
The Technician Takes On The Businessman
Ortiz of Worcester, Massachusetts (20-2-1, 10 KOs) is considered a tricky opponent and a tough out for anyone. His only career defeats came against Lopez in 2024 and Hall of Fame lock Vasyl Lomachenko in 2022. Ortiz will do whatever he can to upset his American opponent and hope to earn a shot at the winner between Lopez and Stevenson.
Middleweight Title Fight Added: Adames vs Williams
WBC World Middleweight champion Carlos Adames of the Dominican Republic (24-1-1, 16 KOs) puts his title on the line against American challenger in Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida (19-1, 13 KOs).
Adames successfully retained his title fighting to a draw against Hamzah Sheeraz of Great Britain a year to the day of his upcoming fight with Williams. Williams has also faced Sheeraz, suffering his only loss in an 11th round stoppage in Riyadh in June 2024.
Williams had since won three consecutive fights against Ivan Vazquez, Patrice Volny, and Gian Garrido, and has earned his second-career world title fight coming up in New York.
New York Talent on Undercard: Carrington and Miller
Bruce ‘Shu Shu’ Carrington of Brownsville, Brooklyn (16-0, 9 KOs) expects a tough test on home turf as he defends his WBC World Featherweight championship against veteran Carlos Castro of Phoenix (30-3-0, 14 KOs), who lost a split decision to Stephen Fulton in Las Vegas in his last fight in 2024.
Joining Carrington is another Brooklyn fighter, heavyweight Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller. The 37-year-old Miller (26-1-2, 22 KOs) takes on the ‘Black Lion’ Kingsley Ibeh, a native of Nigeria fighting out of Phoenix (16-2-1, 14 KOs). Ibeh has won his last 11 fights, including a third-round knockout over veteran Gerald Washington in September.
Saudi undefeated welterweight prospect Ziyad ‘Zizo’ Almaayouf (7-0-1, 1 KO) returns to the USA for a fight with Kevin Castillo of Miami (5-2-1).
Loepz vs Stevenson Delivers First Big Matchup of 2025
The main event matchup features the fourth title defense for ‘The Takeover’ Teofimo Lopez. He will look to extend his six-fight winning streak following a unanimous decision win over the previously undefeated Arnold Barboza Jr on the Fatal Fury Times Square card last May.
Stevenson, who will be fighting just a few miles from his hometown of Newark, New Jersey, will become a four-division champion with a win over Lopez.
Stevenson is coming off an impressive decision win against tough mandatory challenger William Zepeda of Mexico to retain his WBC lightweight belt during the Ring III event at Louis Armstrong Stadium in New York in July
Tickets are officially on sale now via ticketmaster.com.
The Full Ring 6 Card Lineup
Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson
12 x 3-minute rounds, WBO and The Ring Junior Welterweight Titles
Keyshawn Davis vs Jamaine Ortiz
12 x 3-minute rounds, Junior Welterweight
Bruce Carrington vs Carlos Castro
12 x 3-minute rounds, WBC World Featherweight Title
Carlos Adames vs Austin Williams
12 x 3-minute rounds, WBC World Middleweight Title
Jarrell Miller vs Kingsley Ibeh
10 x 3-minute rounds, Heavyweight
Ziyad Almayouf vs Kevin Castillo
8 x 3-minute rounds, Welterweight
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist and the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). She is the Managing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.