Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz is all bite, no bark.
Cruz electrified a raucous crowd at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, flattening Nestor Bravo with a powerful lead left hook in the sixth round to defend his WBC Interim Super Lightweight Title in the Premier Boxing Champions main event on DAZN.
As his calling card, Cruz (29-3-2, 19 KOs) attacked as soon as the opening bell rang. Both fighters jockeyed for position early on, leading to them wrestling to the canvas several times. Referee Thomas Taylor had none of it, issuing warnings to both fighters.
“This was a boxing match,” said Cruz. “We fought with intelligence. The mental aspect of it really helped me navigate the fight when Bravo was trying to get me out of my comfort zone. I stayed calm, collected and that made the difference in the end.”
“We were planning to make it a physical fight in the later rounds,” said Bravo. “He caught me in the back of the head in the first round and that hurt me. I feel like I started getting back in rounds three or four. But no excuse, he was the better man. It was his night, God bless him.”
Two low blows from Bravo (24-2, 17 KOs) earned more stern comments from Taylor. Cruz did his talking with his fists. After Bravo was deducted a point for throwing Cruz down in the fourth, the latter responded by staggering Bravo with a left hook.
“I felt the point deduction was because we were in his house,” said Bravo. “He was the champion. Like if we fought in Puerto Rico, they would most likely favor me. He was being physical and dirty.”
“I was smartly aggressive and I never let Bravo rattle me,” said Cruz. “I knew the knockout was going to come by itself, eventually.”
Bravo found his footing in the fifth, but his pockets of success didn’t last long. A picture-perfect hook in the sixth caused his knees to dip before he sank to the canvas. Taylor immediately waved the fight off at 1:30 as the dazed Bravo was in no condition to continue.
“We worked on that punch in camp,” said Cruz. “That specific shot. We took our time and it worked out perfectly.”
“I don’t feel the stoppage was appropriate,” said Bravo. “He caught me, yes, but like I said, the back of the head of the punch is what hurt me. I just fought one of the biggest names in the sport and I felt like a couple rounds were going my way. This is boxing. You live and you learn.”
Final punch stat numbers underscored Cruz’s dominance. He landed 68 of his 253 punches (26.9%) to Bravo’s 40 of 212 (18.9%).
Afterwards, “Pitbull” set his sights on another big dog in boxing. “Hey Ryan [Garcia], I’m here. My next fight is with you. Come on Ryan, come on!
“December, May or September. If Ryan wants to fight me, it doesn’t matter when. I’ll be ready.”
In the co-main event, rising super middleweight Daniel “Iceman” Blancas remained unbeaten, improving to 16-0 (8 KOs) with a seventh-round TKO win over veteran Sergio Jimenez (17-2-1, 15 KOs).
Sergio is a veteran,” said Blancas. “We knew that coming into the fight. He’s never been stopped and has 15 knockouts out of 17 fights so he can punch. I feel like me being a prospect, I was able to bank those rounds in with a good veteran like him. That’s only going to help me grow. I gained a lot in there. He was able to take so many punches, especially those body shots. So, I had to make adjustments, listen to my corner and I just kept breaking him down as the fight went on.”
While one could argue that the stoppage was premature, there was no doubting Blancas’ dominance. Trained by respected coach Jose Benavidez Sr., Blancas dictated the action from the opening bell, focusing his attack on Jimenez’s body. Blancas’ pressure kept Jimenez from launching any sustained attack. Every now and then, the underdog would land his right hand upstairs, eliciting cheers from the boisterous Pechanga Arena crowd who appreciated his bravery.
“I may not have won the fight, but I did feel like I won the fans over,” said Jimenez. “And that’s what it’s all about. Taking something positive from a fight, win or lose.
Jimenez was eating a lot of shots by the midway point of the fight. The ringside doctor examined him after the end of the sixth but allowed the action to continue a bit longer. Blancas never took his foot off the gas. When Blancas’ sustained assault didn’t get a response from his opponent, referee Ray Corona waved it off at 1:38 of the seventh round.
It’s a sour defeat,” said Jimenez. “I should have let my hands go earlier, but I felt like I did the best I could considering that I had two week’s notice for this fight.”
“He wasn’t going down and I didn’t want to punch myself out,” said Blancas. “We saw that with Moses Itauma. Watching that fight, I learned off his mistakes. Much respect to him, he’s a great fighter but I don’t want anything like that to ever happen to me.
“With this win, I’m just gaining more experience and going from prospect to contender. I need to keep delivering these kinds of wins, keep learning, keep having great training camps. I’m going fight by fight so whatever my team thinks is next, I’ll be ready.”
2024 Mexican Olympic silver medalist Marco Verde (7-0, 4 KOs) needed only five rounds to put away fellow unbeaten Guillermo Hernandez (7-1, 4 KOs) in their middleweight bout. Verde displayed the full arsenal, working behind an educated right jab and unloading punishing combinations to the head and body with speed and precision.
“I felt better as the fight progressed,” said Verde. “The fight was stopped in the fifth, but I wanted to keep going the full eight rounds. I plan to return in December and I’ll be ready. No names. I prepare for everyone. I train every day and I’m ready.”
Hernandez’s face began to swell from the methodical attack in the second round. He enjoyed a moment in the third when a right hand caught an off-balance Verde and sent him to the canvas for the first knockdown of his pro career. Verde quickly rose and resumed pummeling his foe. By the middle of the fifth, the referee had seen enough, stopping the action at 1:46 of the round.
“I felt good. I was just getting warmed up, to be honest. I couldn’t let my hands go tonight. I needed a few more rounds. I knocked him down. The second time, he wasn’t going to get up. All I know is that when I saw him at the end of the fight, he was missing his front tooth.
“I understand the doctors are trying to keep me safe,” said Hernandez. “But they don’t know me. I’m a warrior. I was okay, I could have finished the fight. If I had those other rounds, I could have got my knockout. You never know, anything is possible. But it is what it is. God’s plan is perfect. I wasn’t supposed to be here tonight. I’m just a guy with six amateur fights.”
“Thank you to all the people in Mexico and everyone who supported me,” said Verde. “I felt weird because it was the first time someone knocked me down. But it’s part of the process. It was important for me to keep my mind focused during the fight.
Filipino Olympic bronze medalist Eumir Marcial delivered the most impressive win of his young career, improving to 8-0 (5 KOs) with a one-punch knockout of veteran contender Omar Ulises Huerta (15-2-1, 13 KOs) at 1:08 of the third round in the opening bout live on DAZN.
“Thank God for giving me strength,” Marcial said. “Of course, I want to thank my team. To my family, to all the Filipino people, thank you for your prayers. This victory not only belongs to me but to my country. I’m going to keep working hard and keep going until I get a world title.”
Marcial controlled the action in the battle of southpaws before ending matters emphatically in the third. After Huerta connected with a left cross, Marcial countered with a perfectly timed right hook that sent Huerta crashing to the canvas and bringing an end to the fight.
“I was waiting for that left hand to counter it,” Marcial said. “In the second round, he landed a couple of them. So, I watched for that punch, and you saw the outcome. My corner told me that you’ve already warmed up, just let your hands go. I saw the punch and we got the knockout.”
The event was promoted by TGB Promotions.
