Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz reacted to Lamont Roach claiming he fought a dirty fight, stating that he wasn’t fighting a clean one either in their clash last Saturday night. In an interview, Cruz showed marks on the back of his head where Roach had hit him during their fight.
Cruz says he hasn’t decided if he’ll give Roach a rematch. He states that he’s going to sit down with his promoter, Sean Gibbons, and discuss the plans for his next fight in April or May 2026.
“Taste of His Medicine”
‘Pitbull’ says that he merely gave Roach a “taste of his own medicine” by roughing him up in return during points in their fight.
Roach (25-1-3, 10 KOs) complained at the post-fight press conference that Cruz (28-3-2, 18 KOs) had hit him with punches below the belt and had held him frequently. He believed that the point deduction of ‘Pitbull’ in round seven by referee James Green was proper.
WBC interim light welterweight champion Cruz and Roach fought to a 12-round majority draw last Saturday, December 6th, at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. The scores were 113-113, 113-113, and 115-111 for Cruz.
Rabbit Punch Claims
“It’s not like Lamont fought a clean fight. He hit me with a lot of blows that I shouldn’t have been hit with,” said Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz to Fight Hub TV, reacting to Lamont Roach complaining about him fighting dirty.
Lamont played the victim during the press conference, sounding like he was giving excuses to the fans for his failure to secure the victory.
“That’s from the blows Lamont hit me with in the back of the head,” said Cruz about Roach hitting him with rabbit punches. “I feel like the referee’s performance should be reviewed with the type of fight that he allowed.
Roach’s 0-0-2 Run
Fans note that Lamont is now 0-0-2 in his two fights since moving up from 130, making it clear that he cannot fight at a high enough level at 135 and 140 to be considered worthy of the big fights that he’s asking for.
Lamont was given the fights against Cruz at light welterweight and Gervonta Davis at lightweight without earning them by fighting the top contenders. Would he have gotten these fights if he had been tested against Andy Cruz, Alberto Puello, and Floyd Schofield?
After two failures since leaving super featherweight, Roach should have to get in line with the other contenders and work his way into a title fight. He’s received special treatment by jumping ahead of contenders like Andy Cruz, Schofield, and Puello to receive title shots. At some point, it’s forlorn when a fighter comes up empty repeatedly.
How many free title shots is Roach going to get? What about the merit system of earning a spot? Would this be happening if it were the NFL and NBA with a team going to the championship game without winning one game? It’s already a joke.
Rematch or Move On?
“I gave Roach a taste of his own medicine,” said Cruz about the roughhouse tactics. “When it comes to any fights in 2026, I’m going to speak to my promoter Sean Gibbons, and I know they’re going to make the right decisions and right fights for me,” said ‘Pitbull’ when asked if he’s going to fight a rematch with Roach. “I’d like to return in April or May next year.”
If Cruz chooses not to give Roach a rematch, that’s going to leave him high and dry. Unless PBC can arrange a third straight title fight for Roach, which would look bad, he would have to settle for fighting a contender. At this point, he doesn’t deserve to fight for a world title after two consecutive draws.
Last Updated on 12/07/2025
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