NORFOLK, Virginia — Nahir Albright has wanted a rematch with Keyshawn Davis since he edged him by majority decision in October 2023.
Albright believes he did enough to upset Davis that night, though he admits their 10-round lightweight bout was very competitive. Almost 20 months later, Albright plans to leave no doubt whatsoever about the outcome of his fight Saturday night with Davis’ older brother, Kelvin Davis, at Scope Arena.
The 10-round junior welterweight fight between Kelvin Davis (15-0, 8 KOs) and Albright (16-2, 7 KOs, 1 NC) was elevated to the co-feature of ESPN’s two-bout broadcast Friday night because Keyshawn Davis’ WBO lightweight title defense against Edwin De Los Santos was canceled.
Keyshawn was 4.3 pounds overweight for their 12-round, 135-pound championship match, which led Sampson Lewkowicz, De Los Santos’ promoter, to pull him out of a main event ESPN was set to televise from Davis’ hometown.
Keyshawn's difficulty making weight will make him move up to the junior welterweight division. Albright hopes he gives the former champion even more motivation to fight him in Davis’ debut at 140 pounds.
“Hopefully, after I beat his brother,” Albright told
The Ring, “it’ll spark something in him and we’ll run it back.”
Albright, of Sicklerville, New Jersey, hasn’t competed in a sanctioned boxing match since he fought Keyshawn Davis. He senses Kelvin Davis agreed to fight him only because Albright has been so inactive.
“They’re thinking [the layoff] is gonna play a part,” Albright said. “That’s what boosted them up. Why didn’t [Kelvin Davis] call me to fight right away, after we fought? He had a lotta fights since then. They think this is the perfect time, but nah.”
Keyshawn touted Kelvin's improvement during their recently completed training camp. The 6-foot-1 southpaw remains unbeaten, but Albright, 29, represents a step up in opposition for the fifth-year pro.
Keyshawn (13-0, 9 KOs, 1 NC), an Olympic silver medalist in 2021, beat Albright on the scorecards of judges Robert Hoyle (96-94) and David Sutherland (97-93) when they fought at Fort Bend Epicenter in Rosenberg, Texas. Judge John Basile scored it 95-95.
Davis’ victory was officially changed to a no-contest because he tested positive for marijuana, a substance banned by the Texas Department of Licensing & Regulation.
“It was like a gift and a curse,” Albright said of his performance. “It put my name out there, but then promoters didn’t wanna put their guys in there against me. Or I would have fights scheduled and they would pull out last minute. It was disappointing, but I stayed positive, kept working and I was in training camps with Shakur Stevenson and Jeremy Hill, and I fought in the Team Combat League to keep me active in the meantime. I’m better than I was in the Keyshawn fight.”
ESPN’s doubleheader, which will start at 10 p.m. ET (3 a.m. GMT), will begin with Kelvin Davis-Albright. The new main event will feature lightweight contender Abdullah Mason (18-0, 16 KOs), a 21-year-old southpaw from Cleveland, Ohio, in a 10-round bout against Namibia’s Jeremia Nakathila (26-4, 21 KOs).
Keith Idec is a senior writer and columnist for The Ring. He can be reached on X @idecboxing