Isaac Pitbull Cruz vs Lamont Roach

 

Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz is one of my favorite fighters. He's a fan favorite, actually. He offers us all he has. He is relentless, strong, sturdy, and aggressive in a way that his movements almost seem robotic. He embodies the quintessential Mexican fighter, characterized by his toughness, relentlessness, and unwavering determination.

Pitbull has only lost 3 times in his career. His first loss was against Luis Alvarez in his sixth bout, a relatively unknown fighter outside boxing circles. His second loss was against Gervonta "Tank" Davis and then to Jose Velenzuela. His overall record is 28-3.

Lamont Roach doesn't get any love at all. He practically defeated Tank Davis, despite the official ruling in favor of a draw. Many observers would agree with that. Now, that's not a question. Even so, he never got any credit for that. He won the fight but got a draw, as critics found a way to discredit him by saying Tank was not as motivated as he was in the past. He lost only once and is criticized for lacking excellence and being weak due to his 40% knockout ratio.

Both fighters are great fighters, but different. Lamont Roach is the smaller fighter, despite him being taller than Cruz. Cruz is just shorter. In this fight, height and reach would not make as much of a difference as people think they would. Lamont, though he can have a powerful jab, likes to attack on the inside, which is not the way to fight somebody like Cruz; however, he does so very systematically, keeping his hands up on defense. He's difficult to hit. 

Roach is pretty sure that he will knock out Cruz, but I don't think so. That would be very surprising if he does, considering Pitbull has a chin like granite.

Pitbull will try to bait Roach into a punch-fest, but that would be very difficult to do. Roach is more strategic in his approach. He actually cares about not getting hit on the face. While Cruz has underrated defensive skills, he sometimes becomes careless and exposes himself to counters. 

The result is a tough fight to predict since Cruz and Roach have contrasting styles that can either be very efficient against the other or be catastrophic.

Lamont Roach is likely to win by decision; however, this outcome may be controversial, as many observers might disagree on the actual winner. 

The crowd will be pro-Cruz, adding a home-ring advantage for him. This will be difficult for Roach to navigate as he faces a crowd disproportionately rooting for his opponent.

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