NEW YORK – When they stood face to face Friday night, Keyshawn Davis pushed back harder than Denys Berinchyk could handle.

The emerging star battered Berinchyk on his way to a fourth-round technical knockout that won him the WBO lightweight title in a main event ESPN televised from The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Davis dropped Berinchyk once apiece with left hooks to the body in the third and fourth rounds.

Referee Harvey Dock counted out a bloodied, obliterated Berinchyk at 1:45 of the fourth round in this 12-round, 135-pound battle of Olympic silver medalists.

“I never really had problems with awkward fighters,” Davis told ESPN’s Mark Kriegel in the ring. “The only thing that was giving me trouble was how he kept jumping in and out. And he was a little faster than I expected. As the rounds went on, I got more comfortable in there, and in the fourth round did it to him.”

Davis, 25, became a lightweight world champion in just his 14th professional appearance, 3½ years after the Norfolk, Virginia native won a silver medal at the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

The razor-sharp Davis’ dominant victory also punctuated a tense promotion.

Davis (14-0, 9 KOs, 1 NC) accused Berinchyk (19-1, 9 KOs) of being a “racist” during their press conference Wednesday because a box of bananas and watermelons were delivered to his hotel room Tuesday. Berinchyk then pushed Davis in the back, off of a slightly elevated stage, after they made weight Friday afternoon.

Ukraine’s Berinchyk, 36, lost the WBO 135-pound championship he won by beating Mexico’s Emanuel Navarrete (39-2-1, 32 KOs) by split decision in his last fight, a 12-rounder May 18 at Pechanga Arena in San Diego. The Kyiv native entered their fight as The Ring’s No. 6 lightweight contender, one spot below the fifth-rated Davis.

Berinchyk bled from his nose early in the fourth round and an aggressive Davis pushed to finish his reluctant opponent, who tried to clinch and make their fight as physical as possible.

Davis’ left hook to the body sent Berinchyk to his gloves and knees just after the midway mark of the fourth round. Dock counted to 10 before Berinchyk could even attempt to get up.

Davis previously landed a left hook to Berinchyk’s body that sent him to the canvas a little less than 30 seconds into the third round. Even though Berinchyk beat Dock’s count relatively easily, that knockdown signaled the beginning of the end for the former champion, who couldn’t handle Davis’ speed, power, movement or IQ.

Davis tried to land right uppercuts during the second round, but Berinchyk tied him up several times. Berinchyk wasn’t aggressive, either, which led to a second straight uneventful round.

Berinchyk moved away from Davis throughout the first round, which drew boos from many in a disapproving crowd of nearly 5,000. Davis predicted a first-round knockout, but Berinchyk barely engaged with Davis during the first three minutes of their fight.

Davis nevertheless produced a second straight tremendous performance. He knocked out Argentina’s Gustavo Lemos (29-2, 19 KOs) in the second round of his last fight, which headlined another ESPN telecast November 8 from Scope Arena in Norfolk.

“It was an amazing feeling,” Davis said of beating Berinchyk. “Right before I knocked him out, I was hearing the crowd saying, ‘Norfolk! Norfolk! Norfolk!’ I was like, ‘I’ve got to knock him out now.’ Boom!’”