Leo Santa Cruz is less concerned these days about when his career—and the sport as a whole—can resume than he is about the health and well-being of his loved ones.

At the top of that list is his father and head trainer, Jose Santa Cruz who overcame Stage 3 multiple myeloma— a rare form of cancer which overtakes the plasma cells in bone marrow— but still struggles physically at times.

“My dad is healthy, he’s doing good right now these days,” Santa Cruz (37-1-1, 19KOs) confirmed about his father while hosting a live chat on the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) Facebook page. “He’s been staying at home. He’s been good. The only thing is he has a lot of pain in his body. He’s been quarantined and everything but the pain doesn’t goes away.

“But, he is staying home and is healthy, thank God. We’ve been going to the gym. He’s there with me to train and getting me ready for Tank Davis.”

The elder Santa Cruz was diagnosed with cancer in 2016, conquering the disease in 2018. A metal plate which was placed into his back still causes him daily discomfort, having to miss portion of his son’s training camp but doing his best to remain by his side every step of the way.

That tradition has continued even during the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

The younger Santa Cruz— a four-division and reigning 130-pound titlist—continues to put in work for a planned showdown versus unbeaten former two-time 130-pound titlist Gervonta Davis (23-0, 22KOs). The pairing was once budgeted to headline a Pay-Per-View event in late spring or early summer but remains on hold as does every other event in the world that qualifies as large gatherings.

While the fight date remains unknown, the work cannot afford to cease. It’s literally all that father and son do during the small window they are able to leave home each day.    

“During quarantine, we’ve still been training (alone). Me and my Dad, we go to the gym. Thank God my dad has been healthy. I meet him at the gym. I go to the gym and train, then go straight home. I’m trying to be as safe as possible because this is really dangerous. Our lives can end at any moment so we have to be responsible.

“But I still have a job, I still have to train and get ready for Tank. Hopefully when all this is over we can come back as soon as possible.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox