CELEB NEWS

A win this weekend for Isaac Cruz could prove huge for the “Pitbull”.

It hasn’t been too long since Gervonta Davis‘ last fight, but the boxing world wants to know what “Tank” is going to do next. Another show-stopping knockout victory, this time against Frank Martin, once again proved that Davis is arguably the most dangerous fighter on the planet.

That would generally make it difficult to find him a willing opponent, although Shakur Stevenson continues to claim that he’s fully ready to negotiate and get the possible mega-fight done. There are still plenty of obstacles to clear for that to happen, which could pave way for others to enter the fray.

Isaac Cruz vs Tank Davis rematch coming in November?

According to the VP of Communications at Haymon Sports, who lead Davis’ promotion company PBC, Isaac Cruz could find himself in a rematch with Davis later this year.

I think Tank’s date is November. I guess that’s a possibility if Pitbull comes through his fight unscathed. The timing works out… I would like to see him in a rematch. I would really like to see him and Pitbull go at it again, with Tank not having a hand injury or anything like that. I thought it was one of his toughest fights. Just to see how that would be with him at full strength.

Tim Smith, who was speaking with Kurt Emhoff from The Ring Magazine, conceded that Cruz gave Davis “probably one of his toughest fights“, although he believes it was squarely due to a hand injury.

Since that fight in 2021, Cruz has won all four of his bouts, with three coming by stoppage. He’s currently fighting at super lightweight, where he’ll defend his WBA belt against Jose Valenzuela this Saturday.

BOXING

‘This is fake’ – Shakur Stevenson denies stunning rumour about Gervonta Davis fight

Shakur Stevenson has shut down claims that a fight between him and Gervonta Davis is already set for November 23.

The American lightweight rivals are being heavily linked with a unification clash later this year after Tank’s planned next bout fell through.

We've got to be honest' - Shakur Stevenson brands Gervonta Davis a 'casual' and says he lacks boxing knowledge | talkSPORT

BOXING

Floyd Mayweather wins $34,500 betting against ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and predicting the draw of Andy Ruiz Jr.

The American boxer once again demonstrated his great boxing knowledge

The bout that took place this Saturday, August 3 in Los Angeles during the so-called Riyadh Season Card allowed Floyd Mayweather to increase his bank balance by $34,500 after predicting two of the results of the fights.

The five-time world champion’s business acumen earned him that haul when he predicted the loss of ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, who was the heavy favorite against Jose Valenzuela, and the draw between Andy Ruiz Jr. and Jarrell Miller.

As soon as the night’s main bout was over, Floyd Mayweather used Instagram to boast about his successes and show the results of his bets, which he accompanied with the caption: “If you know, you know.”

In the central fight of the night, Valenzuela was a clear underdog in the betting, which he was given a +455 odds, which Mayweather took advantage of to bet $5,000 on his victory, which determined a profit of $22,750.

That bet just goes to show how risky Mayweather is when it comes to betting and how much knowledge he has of boxing. But his ‘adventure’ in betting did not stop there, he decided to put another $5,000 predicting that Andy Ruiz Jr. vs. Jarrell Miller would end in a draw, as it was, in a bet that had odds of +235. That draw brought him $11,750 in profit.

BOXING

Top Trainer Robert Garcia Has No Doubt Who Has The Better Legacy Between Pacquiao And Mayweather

Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will go down as two of the greatest fighters to have ever laced up the gloves.

Mayweather last fought professionally in 2015 when he defeated UFC star but boxing novice Conor McGregor. Over his 21 years as a professional ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd won 15 world titles over four different weight classes and retired with a perfect record of 50 fights with 50 wins.

Pacquiao is the only man to ever become an eight division world champion and captured 12 major world titles during his 72 fight career. Although not officially retired he was last in the ring against Yordenis Ugás in 2021 when he suffered a unanimous points defeat.

Asked what is the harder feat to achieve in boxing, retire at 50 and 0 or becoming an eight weight world champion, top trainer Robert Garcia, who coaches the likes of Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez and Jose Valenzuela, had no doubt that Pacquiao’s achievement will never be repeated again.

What’s harder, to be 50 an 0 or to be eight division champion. Eight division champion. You can be 50 and 0 if you have the right promoter and pick the right opponents. It’s almost impossible to be an eight division champion, honestly I think it’s impossible now. Pacquiao did it but it’s impossible to be an eight division world champion.”

Of course people on Mayweather’s side will point to the 8 losses suffered by PacMan including the one where the two finally met in a clash billed as ‘The Fight of the Century’. Many fans feel the fight came too late in the career of both men with the action failing to live up to the hype before Mayweather cruised to a unanimous points victory.

BOXING

Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz loses WBA Lightweight championship in major upset v Jose Valenzuela

Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz was unhappy with the split decision and asked for an immediate rematch

Mexican lightweight boxing talent Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz had been hyped up to be the man who takes the win against Jose Valenzuela in an all-Mexican affair at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. He was defending the WBA Super Lightweght title he had won against Rolando Romero in his previous fight. It was a raw battle between both Mexican boxers, so equal that the judges needed to go to the cards and deliver the winner’s name via a split decision. Cruz is considered one of the hardest punchers in Mexican boxing right now but he was bested by Valenzuela, according to the judges. At 26 years old, Cruz still has a long road ahead of him and he’s already been fighting for belts over the last three years. He’s not going anywhere.

Mike Tyson was watching the fight from the stands

A boxing legend who previously said Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz was the fighter who reminds him of himself the most was in the building. Mike Tyson made a public appearance and he was looking good sitting ringside to watch Cruz lose his title. Tyson attended the fight alongside his wife, Lakiha Spicer. As ‘Iron Mike’ watched, the judges scored the fight 116-112, 116-112, and 113-115 to give Valenzuela the split decision. But after the fight, Cruz was fuming and speaking directly to the WBA leaders to ask them if they could get a rematch ASAP. Clearly, Cruz thought he won that fight and the fans seemed to be on his side.

As soon as the decision was given, Cruz seemed bemused by not hearing his name while Valenzuela celebrated dethroning the ‘Pitbull’. Everybody was rooting for him to win, there were many who wagered a lot of money in his favor and he couldn’t deliver. Speaking to the reporter onside the ring, Cruz said: “I want to ask Al Haymon and the WBA to please order a direct rematch against Valenzuela, I want a rematch. The public is the best judge and they know exactly who won the fight tonight.” A large part of the public cheered when Cruz spoke those words.

BOXING

‘It’s a waste of time’ – Eddie Hearn slams Terence Crawford vs Israil Madrimov scorecards

Eddie Hearn was furious with the judging on the Terence Crawford vs Israil Madrimov fight.

Crawford became a four-weight world champion on Saturday night when he snatched the WBA super welterweight title away from Madrimov at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.

All three judges scored the fight in Crawford’s favour with scorecards of 116-112, 115-113, and 115-113 to declare ‘Bud’ the winner via unanimous decision.

The fight was extremely close with members of the boxing fraternity split on who they felt won the contest.

Madrimov’s promoter, Hearn, felt Crawford needed to do more than he did to take the title for the champion and was gobsmacked by judge Jack Reiss’ 116-112 scorecard.

“It’s a waste of time,” said Hearn in his post-fight interview with DAZN.

“It’s not a 116-112 fight. He’s coming into the fight as a champion but because he’s fighting Terence Crawford he doesn’t get a shake.

“All of the effective punches were coming from Israil Madrimov. Crawford had a good flurry in the last round.

“It was a super close fight I believe you have to come in and take that belt of the champion, Terence Crawford didn’t do that and I love him he is brilliant.

“But for me, he [Madrimov] deserves to be champion tonight. It was a fight that could have gone either way and then you hear the scorecards and it’s why do you bother kind of thing.

“You lose by four rounds on two of the scorecards, it wasn’t that kind of fight.

“I was sitting in the corner, they were so quiet all fight. They knew: ‘The twelfth round, we need this’.

BOXING

Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov fight results, highlights: ‘Bud’ outpoints foe to claim WBA title

Crawford is now a four-division champion after taking the WBA 154-pound crown on Saturday night

If anyone expected Israil Madrimov to be a soft touch to get Terence Crawford acclimated to the junior middleweight division, they walked away from Saturday’s fight with their eyes opened to Madrimov’s skills. ‘Bud’ claimed the WBA junior middleweight title inside BMO Stadium in Los Angeles with a close, but unanimous decision over his opponent from Uzbekistan.

It was clear from the early rounds that Madrimov was going to present an intriguing challenge to Crawford, arguably the sport’s best pound-for-pound fighter. Madrimov showcased fast hands and good footwork, feinting and moving to keep Crawford from getting comfortable and letting his hands go in the way he has against so many other great fighters.

Crawford worked a hard jab, maintaining a southpaw stance throughout the fight and not doing his usual stance switching, and used that jab to open up straight lefts and hard uppercuts. But Madrimov continued to make things tough, especially when he realized that Crawford was open to straight right hands.

The momentum shifted back and forth several times, with one fighter seeming to establish a flow for a few rounds before the other man would suddenly impose his own gameplan.

Ultimately, Crawford was just a little bit better than his younger opponent and took the fight on scorecards of 116-112, 115-113 and 115-113, meaning if Crawford hadn’t taken the 12th round, the fight would have ended as a majority draw.

Crawford landed 95 of 433 punches to 84 of 273 for Madrimov, according to CompuBox, showcasing how close the bout was overall. Madrimov was also able to snap an 11-fight knockout streak for Crawford.

“Israil was a tough competitor,” Crawford said after the fight. “I knew he was going to be tough like I said. He’s real strong, he’s durable, he took a lot of good shots. Like everybody knew coming into the fight, he had fast feet and good rhythm upstairs and was strong. He was waiting to counter me just like I was waiting to counter him. He fought a good fight.”

Madrimov said he felt he had done enough to win and asked for a rematch. His promoter, Eddie Hearn, was more upset than Madrimov after the fight, claiming the scoring felt like the scorecards were “filled out in advance.”

Crawford had been angling to continue moving up in weight, claiming he wanted a shot at Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, the superstar who is unified super middleweight champion.

After the fight, Crawford slowed down on the talk, suggesting he was still interested but not pushing hard for the bout, which Turki Alalshikh said he’d already sent an offer to Alvarez for.

“You know what I say, if the money’s right, we’ve got to fight,” Crawford said. “At the same time, he has a fight he’s focused on. … [Getting the fight is] not so important to me. It’s just another milestone to greatness, I suppose. And financially-wise.”

CBS Sports was with you throughout the entire way on Saturday with live results and highlights below.

BOXING

Latest News Andy Ruiz Jr Shows Off Horror Hand Injury After Controversial Jarrell Miller Draw

Andy Ruiz Jr and Jarrell Miller fought to a draw in their heavyweight contest with Ruiz starting off better but gassing to let ‘Big Baby’ back through the door.

The fight was extremely important for both men, the winner moving a step closer to the top table and the loser moving further away with not much time for the journey back.

Neither has to face those consequences. After twelve hard-fought rounds, the scores of 116-112 Miller, 114-114 and 114-114 made it a majority draw, much to the displeasure of the crowd who clearly felt ‘Big Baby’ had done enough.

Post-fight, Miller was clear in the fact that he thought the result was unfair.

“We gotta get different judges out in California. We got a California judge, a Nevada judge, you know… And we knew we were coming to his hometown. One judge had it for me, two had it a draw, so that tells all my story. Outside of boxing, Andy’s my brother, but I know I worked my ass off, I know I had this in the bag. There were some moments where my feet were a little stuck in the sand but I kept the pressure on and let my hands go as much as I could.”

At that moment, Ruiz stepped into the interview sporting a broken hand.

“Look at this s**t, In the fifth round this is how it was. Man, like I said, you’re a warrior. I punched through as much as I can, but my f***ing hand. Oh my gosh. So hard.”

Miller replied with little sympathy, saying that it was ‘part of boxing.’ Fans wouldn’t mind to see them run it back with Ruiz now having shaken off his ring rust and Miller settled in with his new training team, but the latter said he would like to face Jared Anderson despite him losing in sore fashion earlier in the card.

BOXING

Update ‘Doesn’t look real’ – Andy Ruiz Jr shows off nasty broken hand after contentious draw with Anthony Joshua’s bitter rival Jarrell Miller

Andy Ruiz Jr suffered a nasty broken hand in a contentious draw with Jarrell Miller.

Ruiz Jr was taken to the ring for the first time since beating Luis Ortiz in 2022, as he battled Anthony Joshua’s bitter rival Miller in Los Angeles.

But it was a nightmare return to the ring for Ruiz Jr, who was only able to draw with Miller as the fight went the distance.

Many believed his rival had done enough to get the job done, but the judges scored the contest as a majority draw with Ruiz taking one scorecard while the other two read 114-114.

Ruiz Jr complained of a hand injury which he received in the fifth round, claiming it hampered his fight overall.

It was a horrible shape as he showed it to the camera and his rival, as he will now likely face a lay-off having only just made his comeback.

He said in the ring: “I hurt my hand and you can see the bone right here. It bothered me a lot from that fifth round where I kept hitting him in the head.

“He’s a strong m***********, he keeps coming forward and forward. Let’s run it again.”

Fans were stunned, with one even claiming: “Wow that’s horrendous, it doesn’t even look real.”

BOXING

Terence Crawford vs Israil Madrimov fight live updates, round-by-round analysis

Terence Crawford is back in the ring tonight, looking to take over a new weight class.

Arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Crawford is a three-division world champion and has twice been undisputed. In his most recent fight, Crawford dominated former unified world champion Errol Spence to become undisputed at welterweight.

After a rematch failed to materialize, Crawford turned to the 154-pound division and its WBA champion, Israil Madrimov. Madrimov is undefeated and will be defending the title for the first time, after winning it in March with a fifth round TKO of undefeated contender Magomed Kurbanov.

“The challenge of moving to 154 and fighting Madrimov is a hill that you have to climb,” Brian McIntyre, Crawford’s trainer, said. “I know that the team and everybody around the team want(s) challenges like that so you can say we are the best out there. We have solidified that over the years.”

Check below for live updates throughout the Crawford vs. Madrimov fight card.