AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas - In a lightweight clash, Isaac Cruz (23-2-1, 16 KOs) dropped former world champion Yuriorkis Gamboa (30-5, 18 KOs) four times for a stoppage win in the fifth round. (photos by Amanda Westcott)
Cruz went right after Gamboa in the first round and rocked him with a hard combination of punches. Gamboa was holding on for dear life to get out of trouble and managed to survive the round.
In the second, Gamboa was landing hard punches on an incoming Cruz and was also making the Mexican slugger miss a lot of his charges. But in the final twenty seconds, Cruz scored a knockdown with a combination of punches. At the start of the third, Cruz drops Gamboa with a combination to the head and body. Cruz went right after Gamboa, who once again was holding on for dear life to survive. Cruz was getting wild with his punches and Gamboa was able to hold him once he came inside.
Cruz rocked Gamboa at the start of the fourth. Gamboa was getting buzzed several times from Cruz's incoming bombs. A big left hand dropped Gamboa for the third time in the fight. Gamboa barely survived the round. In the fifth, Gamboa was trading with Cruz at close range. Cruz was connecting with the bigger punches. But then Cruz decked him another hard hook and the fight was waved off.