Andy Cruz Gómez vs. Juan Carlos Burgos Castillo

Saturday the fifteenth of July at the Masonic Temple in Detroit, co-featuring on the Alycia M. "The Bomb" Baumgardner vs. Christina "Medusa" Linardatou Durán undercard on DAZN.

This marks the pro debut of Cruz- Cuban amateur ATG royalty with a 140-9 record and an Olympic gold medal to go along with three AIBA world championship gold medals to his name. If you have been living under a rock, and don't follow the amateurs (or the Summer Games in general) or slept on him for any other reason - this is a big deal™. He's clearly borrowing a page from the Lomachenko playbook of coming in hot:

His opponent, MiniBurgos (whose moniker signifies that he's nephew of former IBF light flyweight champion José Víctor Flores "Acorozado" Burgos) was a very capable and dangerous super featherweight contender...a decade ago, that is. Even now, though, more than halfway shot and on a 2-5-1 slump over the last five years, the Mexican is still a pretty big name to be taking on in one's professional maiden voyage.

There's also, tantalizingly, opportunity here to draw a direct contrast between Cruz's performance and that of his old nemesis Keyshawn Davis (whom the Cuban defeated for half of his major gold medals - the Olympic plus one AIBA). In his own sixth pro bout last December, the American pitched an eight round shutout against Burgos. Gamesmanship ahoy, if Cruz manages to drop or stop him. It would also be the first time anyone had, ever.

The vacant IBF lightweight international title (last belonging to Billy Dib) will be on the line.

 

Cruz is very good, btw:

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Here's my writeup of his finals match vs. Keyshawn Davis two years ago in the Olympics:
https://www.boxingforum24.com/threa...i-olympiad-tokyo.671157/page-58#post-21200838

And I stand by this statement, regarding Gervonta Brown Davis vs. Isaac Jonathan Cruz González:

 

There's always the risk he becomes another Gamboa, but I think Cruz has better fundamentals and hopefully will not be as reliant on his reflexes. I was encouraged by the third round against Davis in the Olympics. He buckled down and did what he needed to do.

 

It seems wrong somehow, that being said in such a pejorative tone...although I do get what you mean. Gamboa had a fine career in all honesty; it only seems otherwise because of the insane amount of hype surrounding him (spearheading as he did that first wave of high-profile Cuban defectors reaching sanctuary in the USA en masse). I think with better managed expectations now, and Cruz being as if not more skilled than (if maybe not the same level of athletic freak) and having a much better chin than Gamboa, there's little risk of him going down as quite as much of a "bust". Thankfully also he's signed with Matchroom and not... you know, 50 Cent.

 

I agree and think Gamboa did fine as well, just did not meet those insane expectations. And he went from potential star to punching bag really fast. Could not take a shot at 135, that's for sure.

I had forgotten about 50 Cent promotions!!

 

Oof.

Cruz -3000
Burgos +1100
Draw +2000


Not that I feel the bookmakers are necessarily wrong, but what a slap in the face of a 19-year-veteran to say "yeah, we're installing this chap in his debut as 1/30 favorite (or ~97% probability of winning) over you".

 

All due respect to Alycia, grace of my heart, but THIS is the main attraction Saturday night.

 

If doesn't Cruz doesn't come out to this song, I will never forgive him.

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The debiut opposition was specifically targeted because of the Davis comparison I reckon.

Been waiting for Cruz turning pro for a long time now. Shame Sanchez won't fight on the card, but I guess they'd have to have Fury v Usyk on as the main event to even out two Cubans fighting the same night.

 

If Gamboa was Mexican or Puerto Rican, he would have gotten all of the matchups he deserved.

 

Same, and unlike with many such "long-awaited" cases he still has plenty of time at 27 for a serious run. Especially if the matchmaking doesn't regress from here.

 

A fighter for boxing hipsters at the moment. But he will be taking over. Hopefully we see another fight with Keyshawn down the track.

 

What does that even mean?

Dude won an Olympic gold.

1) More random mainstream civilians globally watched him do so than can match a name to a face of four of the current top five heavyweights in the world, I promise.

2) He beat a strong field, including Keyshawn in the finals, and has three AIBA world golds to back that up. He also passes eye test. Not sure there's anything remotely "hipster" about being excited for his pro debut, except maybe that he wasn't on your radar and now you have some kind of weird FOMO sour grapes attitude?

 

He's obviously talented, but if he thinks he can come into pro boxing and pot shot and dance around the ring all night he is in for a bad career. Nobody wants to see that. Nobody even wanted to watch rigo. This is half sport half entertainment, people want action fights.

 

There shouldn't be any problem with what I said. It means the purists actually following the sport and appreciating the sweet science will be the same folk anticipating a great career. He is not a well known fighter outside of amateur boxing fans and Cruz will not be a well known for years yet. We see a trend of these high calibre fighters starting their pro careers and it can agitate a few along the way that have other factors determining their chosen fighters. Olympics means **** all to many fight fans and that's just being realistic.He's of the same kind as your early Loma, Usyk, Inoue. Yeah he was on my radar for a long time, the guy was my in avvy until early this morning until I changed it to Jai Opetaia.

I call b.s on you thinking he's mainstream, simply not true. As for the HW division that is a strange argument to make since it is weak division right now and strongly UK based.