Lamont Roach Jnr once again failed to score favor on a single scorecard, this time in a fight where he boasted a strong case for victory.
In his first fight at 140lbs, Roach overcame a third-round knockdown to outbox Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz for much of the night. The judges disagreed, as their secondary WBC junior welterweight title fight ended in a majority draw.
Cruz won by an absurd 115-111 on one card, overruled by matching tallies of 113-113 in the PBC on Prime Video pay-per-view main event Saturday evening at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio.
“All I want is a fair shake,” Roach told Prime Video’s Brian Campbell in his reaction to the decision. “This is some bullshit.”
Roach was moving up in weight for the second straight time. He challenged WBA 135lbs titlist Gervonta “Tank” Davis on March 1 and held the unbeaten knockout artist to a draw in Brooklyn, New York. Saturday marked his second consecutive fight above 130lbs – where he held the WBA title until the opening bell sounded, at which point he was relieved of his two-year title reign.
Despite moving up, Roach was very clearly the bigger man.
Cruz is always at a height and reach deficit, no matter the opponent at 135lbs or 140lbs. The squat former WBA junior welterweight titlist learned long ago how to overcome that deficit, and did so on Saturday as he immediately raced across the ring at the sound of the opening bell.
Roach, the superior technician on paper, lived up to his pre-fight promise to stand his ground and exchange with his heavier-handed foe. It was admirable, though also unnecessarily risky, as Cruz found an inviting target for his left hook.
A far more competitive second round saw Roach make better use of his counterpunching skills. Cruz continued to come straight forward in a no-nonsense approach, but Roach was prepared for those moments, as his right hands would catch Cruz coming in.
Cruz put separation between the two with a dominant third round.
The frame came complete with the bout’s (first) knockdown. A left hook by Cruz slammed home on Roach’s chin, causing the now former WBA 130lbs titlist to stumble across the ring. Cruz made a beeline across the ring in an effort to follow up, but referee James Green intervened and correctly ruled a knockdown after Roach’s glove touched the canvas.
Cruz made a conscious effort to work Roach’s midsection. He was credited with 14 body shots landed in the fourth, though he was also warned for one that landed well below the beltline.
Despite the ability to work behind his jab and create separation, Roach relied on the strength of his jab to set up power shots at the center of the ring.
Cruz’s attack was slowed by frequent clinches – ironically, often of his own doing. The popular Mexico City native was also warned for another low blow. Roach landed a sweeping left hook with less than a minute to go in the sixth, arguably his best punch of the fight.
Boos began to spatter throughout the venue in the seventh round. The crowd was distraught over a fight that devolved into a clinch-fest and became further irate when Cruz was deducted a point for holding and hitting. Roach maintained a level head for the balance of the frame, as he landed the cleaner shots in between the tie-ups at close quarters.
With the fight very much there for the taking, Roach began to box more in the eighth round. He used subtle movement to set up his combinations, which forced Cruz to go to his jab in a bid to work his way inside. Uncharacteristically, Cruz became the mover but clearly had no real response. His decision to squat at the knees and stick his tongue out at Roach played to the crowd but also illustrated the frustration of dealing with a superiorly skilled boxer.
Roach offered more movement in the ninth and 10th rounds. There was little in the way of sustained action in either round, primarily because Cruz struggled to adjust to Roach’s versatile style.
The confidence of Roach was brimming, though he was brought back down to earth by his father and head trainer, Lamont Snr, who urged his son to not take any foolish risks. Roach listened (for the most part) throughout a clean 11th round. Cruz offered a major scare when he hurt Roach late in the frame, though he ran out of time to follow up.
A sense of urgency overcame the Cruz corner heading into the final round, one they urged their charge to take without question. Roach was given similar advice, though to a less intense degree.
Cruz immediately got in Roach’s chest to start the 12th, but Roach was prepared for the tactic. A clinch at the one-minute mark was followed by a Cruz left hook, which drew a rise of out the crowd. Chants of “Pitbull” filled the air, but it was Roach who followed with a looping right and a left hook around Cruz’s guard.
The final minute saw Cruz attempt lateral movement as Roach shut down any incoming attack at close quarters. Cruz touched Roach’s body with right hands during a clinch, but with little effect.
Both fighters raised their arms in victory once the bell sounded. Roach mounted a corner post, which was met with boos, while Cruz drew cheers as he was paraded around the ring by his corner.
In what was a déjà vu moment, Roach was then forced to hear the scorecards read without any landing in his favor.
Understandably, given a boxer’s nature, Cruz was equally irked by the draw verdict – as well as the officiating.
“I did my job, I did my work,” said Cruz in comments translated by Prime Video’s Abner Mares, a former three-division champ. “The referee was on his side; the judges were, too. I thought I won this fight.”
Outside of the venue, Cruz will get little support in that claim.
As for Roach? “It’s back to the drawing board,” he said as he left the ring belt-less and without any real leverage, even if he once again gained a moral victory and public support.
A draw verdict was not terrible in the Davis fight when taking the scored rounds at face value. However, Roach was cheated out of a ninth-round knockdown in that fight, which ultimately cost him what would have been a deserved decision.
This fight left considerably less room for error, yet the judges still found a way to send him home empty-handed.
“I thought I won this fight,” insisted Roach. “I’m tired of this shit.”
