May continues to roll on as one of the busiest months on the boxing calendar, and this coming weekend features three major cards spread across the United States, England, and Germany that look especially intriguing. From the rematch between Keyshawn Davis and Nahir Albright in Norfolk, to heavyweight Filip Hrgovic’s return on British soil and an IBF world eliminator in Europe, here’s a look at the most important storylines from each event.
The main attraction on U.S. soil will take place at Norfolk Scope Arena in Virginia, where former WBO lightweight world champion Keyshawn Davis will return to fight in front of his hometown crowd when he faces the always tricky Nahir Albright in a rematch this Saturday, May 16.
Their first meeting, held in October 2023, initially ended with a victory for Davis, although the Commission later changed the result to a “No Contest” following Keyshawn’s positive cocaine test days after the fight, leaving a sense of unfinished business surrounding the matchup.
Davis (14-0, 10 KOs), one of the most heavily promoted names of the new American generation, will look to maintain his momentum following a 12th-round TKO victory over Jamaine Ortiz this past January in New York. Now moving back up to super lightweight, the U.S. Olympic silver medalist will try to erase any doubts against an opponent who already gave him serious problems once before.
On the other side will be Albright (17-2-1, 7 KOs), the Philadelphia fighter who is coming off a draw with Frank Martin this past February in Las Vegas, and who also owns a victory over Kelvin Davis, Keyshawn’s brother, last year in this same venue — an incident that sparked chaos backstage inside the locker rooms.
The co-main event will feature former champion Brian Norman Jr. taking on Canada’s Josh Wagner at welterweight. Norman will look to bounce back after losing his world title to Devin Haney.
The card will also include:
- Kelvin Davis vs. Peter Dobson
- Yan Santana vs. Cristian Cruz
- Keon Davis vs. Edwine Humaine Junior
- Dedrick Crocklem vs. Eric Howard
The event will be streamed on DAZN beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET, with prelims starting at 6:30 p.m. ET.
Meanwhile, in England, battle-tested heavyweight Dave Allen will attempt to upset Croatian contender Filip Hrgovic for the vacant IBF Intercontinental heavyweight title at the Eco-Power Stadium in Doncaster.
Allen (25-8-2, 20 KOs), who is coming off a first-round knockout over Karim Berredjem, will fight practically at home against Hrgovic (19-1, 14 KOs), who is trying to rebuild his road back to the heavyweight elite after returning to winning ways against David Adeleye and Joe Joyce.
Although Hrgovic appears to be the clear favorite on paper due to his experience and technical ability, Allen has built a strong connection with the British fans thanks to his aggressive style and ability to turn every fight into an uncomfortable war.
Undercard bouts:
- Louie O’Doherty (11-0, 3 KOs) vs. Ahmed Hatim (12-0, 3 KOs), 12 rounds, with O’Doherty defending his British and Commonwealth lightweight titles
- Michael Gomez Jnr (22-2, 7 KOs) vs. Lee McGregor (16-2-1, 11 KOs), 10 rounds, lightweight
- Carl Fail (11-0, 4 KOs) vs. Dean Sutherland (21-2, 7 KOs), 10 rounds, super welterweight
- Maxi Hughes (29-9-2, 5 KOs) vs. Lewis Sylvester (18-1, 4 KOs), 10 rounds, lightweight
- Joe Hayden (22-0, 3 KOs) vs. Ryan Frost (3-15), 6 rounds, welterweight
- Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev (1-0, 1 KO) vs. TBA, 6 rounds, welterweight
The show will also be streamed on DAZN beginning at 1:00 p.m. ET in the United States and 6:00 p.m. UK time.
Elsewhere, Germany will host an interesting IBF welterweight eliminator between Ukrainian contender Karen Chukhadzhian and Ireland’s Paddy Donovan on Friday, May 15.
Chukhadzhian (26-3, 14 KOs), remembered for his two fights against Jaron “Boots” Ennis, enters the bout looking for his third straight victory after falling short in the rematch against the American in 2024.
Donovan (14-2, 11 KOs), considered for years one of Irish boxing’s biggest prospects, needs to regain momentum following an inconsistent stretch marked by the cancellation of his fight against Liam Paro and a previous defeat to Lewis Crocker.
Other bouts:
- Peter Kadiru (22-1, 13 KOs) vs. Senad Gashi (34-4, 32 KOs), 10 rounds, heavyweight
- Devrim Goekduman (13-0, 8 KOs) vs. Franklyn Dwomoh (9-0, 2 KOs), 10 rounds, lightweight
- Emanuel Odiase (10-0, 8 KOs) vs. Nick Webb (19-3, 15 KOs), 10 rounds, for the vacant WBO European heavyweight title
- Aleksander Okafor (3-0, 2 KOs) vs. Elija Ulkuseven (8-0, 6 KOs), 10 rounds, for the German cruiserweight title
- Viktor Jurk (13-0, 11 KOs) vs. Edwin Castillo (13-2, 8 KOs), 8 rounds, heavyweight
The event will take place at the SAP Arena in Mannheim and will be broadcast in Germany on ARD. The card begins at 6:00 p.m. CEST local time (12:00 p.m. ET / 9:00 a.m. PT in the U.S. and 5:00 p.m. BST in the UK).
