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Add FightsATW on GoogleSAN DIEGO– Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz spoke all week about delivering an exciting fight on Saturday night at the Pechanga Arena, and he did so with just one punch.
The interim WBC super lightweight champion Cruz (29-3-2, 19 KOs) delivered the finishing blow, a left hook to the head of Nestor Bravo (24-2, 17 KOs), which sent Bravo crashing to the canvas in the sixth round of their fight. Bravo didn’t seem interested from the start and made it an ugly affair.
After the fight, Chris Mannix asked Cruz about rumors of a potential fight with Ryan Garcia, and Cruz said it’s up to his promoter, Manny Pacquiao Promotions, but that he is ready for any challenge.
In the opening round, Cruz came out firing, and in the middle of the round, he landed a left hook to Bravo’s ear, which led to the fight’s first knockdown. Bravo had nothing for Cruz as he tried his best to hold on the whole time.
In the second round, referee Thomas Taylor deducted a point from Bravo because the holding became excessive. There was more grappling throughout the round, and the referee issued Bravo a stern warning if he continued. Cruz would land hook after hook throughout the round.
There were more fouls in the third round, as Bravo landed two low blows, seemingly unwilling to be in there at this point in the fight. Cruz would land two huge overhand rights that rocked Bravo back to the ropes but was never able to capitalize on them.
In the fourth round, another point was deducted from Bravo by the referee for again throwing Cruz to the canvas. Cruz would get up and throw overhand rights and left hooks furiously for the rest of the round. Although Cruz was the busier of the two, he was missing many of his punches as he went for the homerun shot with every punch thrown.
Things settled down in the fifth as Cruz kept unleashing his offense while Bravo tried his best to defend against it. Cruz’s left hooks were consistently breaching Bravo’s defense.
In the early stages of the sixth round, Cruz threw the lunging left hook that led to the fight being stopped as Bravo could not get up to continue.
Although it was a sloppy fight from the start, with all the wrestling and point deductions, Cruz gave the fans what they were looking for, a spectacular knockout victory. Where Cruz goes from here will be what fans will be interested in before the year is out.
Isaac Cruz vs Nestor Bravo Undercard Result
Daniel Blancas (16-0, 8 KOs) earned a dominant seventh-round TKO over Sergio Jimenez (17-1-2, 15 KOs) in the co-main. Even though Blancas was winning every round, there were moments when Jimenez landed a huge shot that rocked Blancas, drawing a roar from the crowd. In the end, Jimenez was taking too much punishment, and the referee stepped in to put a halt to the action.
Marco Verde (7-0, 4 KOs) earned a fifth-round TKO victory over Guillermo Hernandez (7-1, 4 KOs) after the referee stopped the fight during a strange moment. Verde dominated the fight from the start, so maybe the referee felt he shouldn’t take any more punishment.
Eumir Marcial (8-0, 5 KOs) started slow, but he eventually warmed up and landed a huge right hook on the chin of Omar Ulises Huerta (15-2-1, 13 KOs) in the third round to score the knockout victory. After the fight, Marcial had this to say about his win: “I was waiting for that left hand to counter it. 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.“
Although Diego Luna (9-1-1, 6 KOs) was deducted a point in the last round for hitting after the break, he still secured a unanimous decision (59-52 x 3) over Viamonte Mastrapa (4-5-2, 2 KOs). Luna scored two early knockdowns and never lost control of the fight.
Lazaro Francisco Lorenzana (22-0, 13 KOs) had to earn it, winning an eight-round majority decision over Vazquez Rodriguez (22-3-1, 10 KOs). The judges scored it 76-76, 78-74, and 79-73 for Lorenzana. He was in a back-and-forth battle with Rodriguez throughout the fight.
Robert Guerrero Jr. (9-0, 4 KOs) started slow, but as the round went on, he got comfortable. The first left hook to the body hurt Shawn Rall (4-8, 3 KOs), who quickly tucked in his elbows. A few seconds later, Guerrero landed another left hook to the body, sending Rall down and out. It’s a first-round knockout for Guerrero Jr.
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