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Mostly unknown in the public eye, Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz burst onto the scene after a positive showing against Gervonta Davis in December of 2021. On the night, despite being a heavy underdog and relatively late replacement for Rolando “Rolly” Romero, Cruz stepped into the spotlight against Davis and performed well.
Forced to go the distance for the first in over half a decade, Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) wiped the sweat from his brow as he was awarded a close but clear unanimous decision victory. Since then, Cruz (24-2-1, 17 KOs) has done his best to lure Davis back into the ring. Following his recent showing, a second-round bludgeoning of journeymen Eduardo Ramirez, Cruz quickly turned his attention to Davis.
If, by chance, the powerful southpaw opts to go in another direction, Cruz has shown a willingness to take on undisputed lightweight champion, Devin Haney. Although there appears to be no indication that the two will face off anytime soon, if the pair were to hammer out a deal and meet in the center of the ring, Robert Garcia believes that Cruz’s physicality and brute strength could be too much.
“I think so, I think so,” said Garcia to 210BoxingTv when asked if Cruz could defeat Haney. “I don’t think he can hold him back with his power. I don’t think he’s got that crazy power to hold him back so I think Pitbull Cruz could beat Haney.”
Currently, while Haney would seemingly love to prove Garcia wrong, the 23-year-old ostensibly has bigger fish to fry.
A confident Haney strolled through the hometown of George Kambosos Jr. on June 5th, and soundly defeated the Australian native via unanimous decision. Though he admitted that Haney got the better of him, a surly Kambosos enacted his immediate rematch clause, forcing Haney into a prompt sequel which will take place on October 16th.
If successful once more, Haney could find himself standing across the ring from Vasiliy Lomachenko, provided, of course, he defeats Jamaine Ortiz on October 29th.
In spite of Haney’s jam-packed schedule, Cruz, having won the WBC interim crown, has positioned himself perfectly for a shot at the undisputed champion. In any event, Garcia has spewed profuse superlatives in the direction of Haney over the years. Still, even with the renowned longtime trainer singing his praises, he maintains that Haney would meet his demise against the rough and rugged up-and-coming contender.
“Pitbull’s like a street fighter. He takes a really good punch, he’s very strong and he’s so aggressive. He throws punches from everywhere. It’s going to be hard for Devin Haney to hold him back. It’s going to be a tough 12 rounds for Haney.”