Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz electrified hisfans at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, flattening Nestor Bravo with a powerful lead left hook in the sixth round to defend his WBC interim junior welterweight 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.”
