Recap: Tank Davis wins decision, KO streak ends against Cruz
Gervonta Davis’ long stoppage streak came to an end, but he got the W against a tough Isaac Cruz.
Gervonta Davis lost his knockout streak, but kept his unbeaten record with a narrow and very competitive decision win over Isaac Cruz tonight in front of 15,850 fans in Los Angeles on Showtime pay-per-view.
Davis (26-0, 24 KO) won the fight on scores of 115-113, 115-113, and 116-112, with Bad Left Hook also scoring the fight 115-113 in his favor. It was a gritty win in the end, as Davis suffered a clear left hand injury that had an obvious affect on him late in the bout, and “Tank” was forced to fight the 12th round with just his right hand, jabbing and moving and, admirably, winning the round.
It would be tough to find a way to actually score the fight in favor of Cruz (22-2-1, 15 KO), but tougher still to not come away from it knowing that this is a legitimate contender in the 135 lb division, and not someone who should be taken lightly by anybody. He marched forward, didn’t show any fear of Davis, but did show respect, especially early, and did not fight recklessly with his pressure, which also enabled him to catch Davis in some lulls and land good shots throughout the fight.
At times, when Davis opened up and flashed his speed, it looked like a mismatch. But he also never had Cruz in any danger, never seemed to truly hurt him, and maybe fell in love a bit too much with his counter uppercuts, hoping for a highlight reel KO like we saw against Leo Santa Cruz in 2020.
Still, Davis got the win, and it was a fair decision — and, to give credit to Carla Caiz, Max DeLuca, and Zachary Young, it was fairly scored by the judges.
“I hurt my left hand in probably the sixth round, but I got through. I don’t know if it’s broken,” he said. “It is what it is. It comes with the sport. He’s a shorter fighter so I was throwing down and hit him on top of the head.”
“He’s a definite warrior. I think even though he didn’t get the win, a star was born here tonight,” Davis said of Cruz.
When asked if Cruz should get a rematch, Davis replied, “Hell, no!” with a smile. There was friendly chatter between both camps during the post-fight interview.
Davis said he’d fight at whatever weight presents the best opportunity next, be it 135 or 140.
Cruz, who had real support in Los Angeles, said, “They saw a star born today, and the fans are speaking on who won this fight.”