Carrying his new title belt, Andy Cruz hugged his friends and saluted his followers on Instagram Live. Head trainer Derek Ennis draped his right arm over one of Cruz’s shoulders as he and his team gathered for the photo. Everyone else was staring at the camera. Mr. Cruz’s attention was elsewhere.
He was focused on the phone to Ennis’ left hand. It was broadcasting a live stream of the match featuring a possible future opponent, the lightweight Frank Martin.
For Cruz, who won an Olympic gold medal and three world titles as an amateur, it was another welcome moment to professional boxing.
Cruz, widely regarded as Cuba’s greatest amateur boxer of his generation, made his professional debut Saturday night at a Masonic temple in Detroit, 14 months after breaking up with the country’s boxing federation, in an unusually high profile. Victory.
While most novices fight four or six rounds, Cruz fought ten rounds. After many mismatches in his professional debut, Cruz faced former world champion Juan Carlos Burgos for the minor title.
And in a lightweight division full of big-fight potential, attention quickly shifts from the boxer’s recent wins to his next challenge.
“I’m finally back to doing what I love most, boxing,” Cruz said in Spanish. “I’m on the road. Great things await me in the future.”
In amateur boxing, victory is determined strictly by landing punches, and Cruz has mastered the hit-and-not-get-hit style that characterizes the Cuban program. In addition to his Olympic and world titles, he also won the Pan American Games twice.
But before Saturday’s game, Burgos promised Cruz a scathing introduction to the professional ranks, where judges will assess aggression, punching power and technical skill.
“If Andy Cruz wants to show that what is said about him is true, he has to come out and fight,” Burgos said Thursday. “All the pressure is on him.”
The boxers evaluated each other’s opening rounds, with Burgos trying to exploit his physical advantage and Cruz trying to establish distance and rhythm.
Cruz quickly found them both and popped Burgos with two jabs and a mighty right in the third round. Just before the bell, Cruz leaned back to avoid a left hook and thrashed Burgos with a right counter. In the fourth round Cruz began to land uppercuts, and by the fifth round the slicker boxer Cruz had Burgos cornered. He held his right hand to his chin, and misty sweat erupted from Burgos’ head.
“I thought I almost knocked him out so many times, but he always bounced back,” Cruz said. “I have learned a lot, and I still have a lot to learn.”
The Philadelphia native, who took over as Cruise’s trainer in May, was impressed, but not surprised, by the quick turnaround. He has educated Cruz on the subtle but important differences between his two versions of the sport, training him to punch with power on offense and hold on defensively.
“He’s only been with me for two months, but he’s learned defense and everything,” Ennis said. “And he did it under the lights.”
Cruz was originally scheduled to turn professional in Mexico in May 2022 in partnership with the Cuban Boxing Federation and a promoter based in Aguascalientes. However, Cuban authorities canceled his match, leaving him behind while the rest of the team headed to Mexico. At the time, officials accused him of poor practice habits. Cruz suspects the decision was intended to prevent his defection.
In June 2022, Mr. Cruz was arrested after failing to leave Cuba on a boat and subsequently banned from boxing gyms in the country. By November, he had a passport and then legally left the country and emigrated to the Dominican Republic, where he began the six-month process of obtaining a US visa and professional contract.
“Last year he went through hell,” said Jesse Rodriguez, one of Cruise’s managers. “But nothing threatens him.”
A three-year deal (seven-figure pay) with Matchroom Boxing was announced in May, according to promoters, and since then he has visited two American cities rich in boxing history.
Cruz trains in Philadelphia, where boxing greats like Joe Frazier and Bernard Hopkins have made their mark in the world of boxing. The city now boasts some of the most modern talent in the world, including welterweight Jaron Ennis, Cruz’s stablemate and son of Derek Ennis, and 122-pound champion Stephen Fulton, who will face Japanese standout Naoya Inoue on July 25. has a star player.
And Cruise’s debut will be in Detroit, home of Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Robinson, and Cronk’s Gym, where most famous world champion Thomas Hearns watched Saturday’s bout ringside. was broken
The upper floors of the Masonic Temple were dotted with empty seats, but the rest of the venue was packed with spectators with a deep knowledge of boxing and a keen interest in local fighters.
Some supported heavyweight contender Jermaine Franklin from Saginaw, Michigan, about 160 miles north of Detroit. A 122-pound prospect from Detroit, Jarico O’Quinn had other players. And many were in favor of headliner Alicia Baumgardner. Based in Detroit, she defeated Christina Rinaldatu to retain the undisputed championship at £130.
Mr. Cruz’s force occupied several seats in the front row of the lower bowl. The group also included his fiancé Melissa Broughton. Heavyweight contender Renier Perrot. and the rapper known as El Misha, who accompanied Cruise to the ring.
Halfway through the match, one of the Cruz supporters unfurled the Cuban flag and held it high.
Cruz appreciated the cheers, even if he couldn’t hear them.
“I don’t pay much attention to the audience. I listen to my corner,” he said.
Beyond Cruz, the lightweight division has talent and is in transition.
Undisputed champion Devin Haney is considering a move up to the 140-pound junior welterweight division. He has also been charged with possession of a weapon in California. His father and trainer Bill Haney told ESPN He “was confident that things would work out.”
Garbonta Davis, popular power puncher from Baltimore, just recently finished prison He pleaded guilty to a hit-and-run incident and plans to resume training.
Hypothetically, Cruise could end up facing either of them, as well as former 130-pound champion Shakur Stevenson, or the likes of Martin and Keyshawn Davis, whom Cruise defeated in the finals of the Tokyo Olympics. There is a possibility that he will play against promising players in the future.
Before working on those decisions, Cruz will spend the week savoring Saturday’s victory.
As an amateur, big wins brought trophies and medals. It was Cruz’s first professional win, and he earned a title belt made of red leather and gold plates.
“I never held it in my hand,” he said. “Now I can feel the difference.”
