Ishmael Davis isn't worried about Serhii Bohachuk's skills. The late replacement fighter will step in the ring with the junior middleweight contender this Saturday in Riyadh.
Davis got the call to face Bohachuk just a couple of weeks ago. The fight will happen on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury II. Despite the short notice, Davis feels confident about his chances.
"He's a pressure fighter, aggressive. But he's not the best IQ," Davis said about Bohachuk. "He's a straight, come forward, bang in your face, try to get you out of there sort of guy."
Davis has done his homework. He watched Bohachuk's fight against Vergil Ortiz in August and a few other bouts. This research has given him a clear plan.
"I know what he's good at and I know what he's not good at. My IQ beats him, and I get the win."
Davis brings recent experience against top competition. In September, he stepped in for an ill Liam Smith and lost a very close majority decision to Josh Kelly.
For this fight, Davis plans to outthink Bohachuk. He'll avoid being there to get hit and won't give his opponent too much respect.
"I'm going to use my brain. I'm not giving him no respect. I'll make him think about what he's doing."
Davis prefers Bohachuk's forward-moving style to Kelly's negative approach. He pointed to Brian Mendoza's mistakes against Bohachuk in March as an example of what not to do.
"Mendoza kept going back, running from corner to corner, giving him too much respect. It was terrible for Mendoza."
Drawing from his sparring experience, Davis added, "When they give me that much respect, it gives you extra energy. You can just keep throwing and keep going."
