Mexican Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz defeated Cuban-American Rollie Romero and took the WBA super lightweight title from him.
Mexican Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz stunned a talkative Rollie Romero in the eighth round and fulfilled his dream of becoming world boxing champion by snatching the World Boxing Association (WBA) super lightweight belt from the Cuban-born American. T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The definition came in the eighth round, exactly at 56 seconds, but the fight up to that moment was a monologue where ‘Pitbull’ hunted down a Rollie Romero who limited himself to a kind of punching bag on skates.
‘Pitbull’ completely fell in love with Romero, who talked a lot outside the ring and did nothing on the tarmac.
‘Pitbull’ Cruz said at the end of the fight, “I came not only to win, but I came to massacre him and swallow all the trash he spoke.” “Today I spoke in the ring.”
It was the second title opportunity for the 25-year-old Mexican who improved his record to 26-2-1, 18 KOs. Earlier, in December 2021, he lost to Gervonta Davis by a narrow margin for the WBA lightweight title.
Gervonta was one of the names that Pitbull mentioned when he was asked what was next in his career. ‘Pitbull’ insisted, “Hanny, Gervonta, let whoever comes come.” “I’m no longer a dangerous man. Now I’m a champion and I have a championship belt to back me up.”
“I really don’t have anything to say to Gervonta. Let him say whatever he wants, I’ll do the talking in the ring. Today we silenced those who doubted us. If he doesn’t run away or get scared, I I am ready for it.” A second chance,” he added. “Let Ryan Garcia say whatever he wants. I’m going to make him swallow the garbage out of his mouth just like I did with Rollie.”
‘Pitbull’ The taller Romero (1.73 m to Cruz’s 1.63 m), who trains in Las Vegas, felt no advantage at all fighting at home with a pro-Mexico crowd. Rollie drops his record to 15-2-0, 13 KOs and has now lost two of his last three fights. Click here
He lost by sixth-round TKO against Davis in Brooklyn on May 28, 2022 for the WBA lightweight title before stopping Ismael Barroso for the WBA junior welterweight title on May 13, 2023 in Las Vegas. Cruz never looked comfortable as he took a number of power shots in the ring on Saturday night.
Lara made quick work of Zefara; retains the middle belt
At first, the crowd rioted over the relative lack of action. He whistled jokingly.
Then he shouted thanks.
Such was the reaction when Erislandy Lara knocked out Michael Zerafa by 1-2 combined at 2:59 of the second round in defense of his WBA middleweight title.
As the clock slowly ticked down, southpaw Lara connected with a right hand to Zerafa’s jaw and then followed it up with a straight left hand to the same spot, disarming the Australian.
Zerafa’s head bounced off the bottom rope of the ring, and as he stood before the count of 10, he shook his head at referee Alan Huggins, who ended the fight with one second remaining in the round.
Lara (30-3-3, 18 KOs), of Guantanamo, Cuba, makes the second defense of his title and now has four knockout wins in his last five fights. Melbourne’s Zerafa (31-5, 19 KOs) suffered his first defeat since December 2019.
Lara said after the fight, “War? What war? I’ve worked hard in training because I know all these fighters are coming for my title.” “By keeping myself prepared, I won’t have to be in a situation like this.
“I’ve always said I only need one or two rounds to get the upper hand on my opponent, and I knew I had that from the first round. That left hand was just a matter of time.” Click Here