Boxing
Isaac 'Pitbull' Cruz 'ready for whatever' against Lamont Roach Jr., calls fight 'perfect opportunity'
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In battling Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis to a controversial draw in March, Lamont Roach Jr. demonstrated that he could be a ring general with sweet science skills and get nasty in the pocket when necessary, too.
Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz noted both abilities, though he believes Roach Jr. will not be able to keep him on a leash Saturday night when they meet at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, and live on Prime Video pay-per-view, with the former’s WBC interim super lightweight title on the line. That said, Cruz, especially given his recent experience, vows to be equipped for whatever Roach throws at him.
“We’re going to be ready for whatever kind of style, whatever kind of fight that Roach wants to put on the table,” Cruz told DAZN News recently over a Zoom conference.
“I personally think that he may be more of a runner and present a tactical fight where things aren’t as clear as they will be in the center of the ring but me and my team are very confident because we are focusing on each possible scenario that he may present. We feel like we’re ready for Roach.”
That feeling might be aided by Cruz’s experience at 140 pounds to reach this point. After his fan-pleasing, forward-fighting pressure overwhelmed Rolando Romero via an electric eighth-round TKO in March 2024, he wasn’t able to overcome a seven-inch reach deficit against a taller, rangier Jose Valenzuela that August. The bout saw the latter outpoint 'Pitbull' via split decision to snatch Cruz’s WBA super lightweight championship.
Cruz (28-3-1, 18 KOs) has since used 2025 to rebuild — first claiming a unanimous decision over Angel Fierro in February fireworks before notching the same result by punishing Omar Salcido just over five months later.
Now, an exterminating win over a gritty Roach Jr. would punctuate Cruz’s year, launching him through an avenue of opportunity for a prosperous New Year in a division that touts Teofimo Lopez, Richardson Hitchins, Gary Antuanne Russell and Subriel Matias as champions.
Perhaps the winner of Cruz-Roach Jr. could even spark the interest of Davis for a heated rematch. (Cruz dropped a closely-contested unanimous decision to ‘Tank’ in December 2021). For the record, Cruz believes Roach Jr. did enough to defeat Davis, though he said "the judges saw another kind of fight."
Cruz and Roach Jr. engaged in a tense faceoff following Thursday’s press conference. Roach Jr. (25-1-2, 10 KOs), the current WBA super featherweight champion, has made himself a viable threat at 130 pounds and lightweight (after fighting Davis to a draw), but ‘Pitbull’ wants to make sure the same cannot be said for super lightweight.
“My team and I, we love a challenge and we want to give the fans a show — this is the perfect opportunity to do so,” Cruz said.
“We’re confident in our own skills to prevent our opponents to do what they want to do and allow us to do what we want to do.”
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