By Vince D’Writer: In the co-feature bout of the Alycia Baumgardner vs. Christina Linardatou 2 event, the Cuban 2020 Olympic lightweight gold medalist Andy Cruz made his professional boxing debut as he beat Juan Carlos Burgos (35-8-3, 21 KOs) by unanimous decision and won the vacant IBF International title.
The Andy Cruz hype is based on him being a three-time world amateur champion, and it is also linked to his amateur success against Keyshawn Davis, as he defeated Davis four times which, includes their Olympic Gold medal match in August 2021.
Due to all of his impressive amateur accolades, Cruz’s professional debut was a highly anticipated event. The 27-year-old is expected to move on the fast track, and that was made evident by his first professional bout being scheduled for ten rounds against a tough, seasoned veteran.
In the first round of the bout, Andy Cruz looked very poised as he calmly worked behind the jab. Cruz increased his offensive output in the second round as he continued to use the jab and the right hand to the body.
He decided to establish his inside game in the third and fourth rounds as he stood in the pocket, and was able to effectively land the right hand to the head and body of Burgos on multiple occasions. Cruz did a masterful job in regards to unleashing his offense and then moving out of range.
He was very aggressive in round 7 as he continued his impressive offensive display by pressing forward and hitting Burgos with multiple combinations. Later in the same round, he landed a big right hand, and then he proceeded to connect with a solid counter uppercut.
In the eighth round of the bout, Cruz remained sharp and accurate on offense while his opponent Juan Carlos Burgos seemed to be hesitant in regards to throwing his shots due to the fear of being countered.
Throughout the entire ten rounds, Cruz displayed extraordinary poise, elusiveness, lateral movement, stamina, offensive and defensive skills.
At the conclusion of the bout, Andy Cruz (1-0) earned his first pro victory by the scores of (100-90), (100-90) and (98-92).
During his post-fight interview, Cruz verbalized his excitement in regards to finally participating in his first pro bout, and he also spoke about how pleased he was with his debut performance.
“I’m absolutely delighted. It’s the very best that could happen to me. This was my first step in the pro game. Everybody knew that I was facing a really experienced boxer. A boxer who had more than 35 fights, so it wasn’t going to be easy. It was about using my experience and my good preparation, and my talent, and that’s what got me through tonight.”
When asked about the difference between the amateur and pro game, Cruz pointed out how demanding it is to fight for so many rounds, and he also pointed out the smaller-sized gloves. Cruz also spoke on the next step in his journey as a professional boxer.
“So now it’s about continuing to grow, continuing to prepare well. I want to box the best, and now it’s about continuing and learning and facing the best in this sport.”
