By Graham Ilford: The 2020 Olympic gold medalist is now free to continue his career under promoter Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing after a US federal judge in the Northern District of California ruled that a promotional agreement between the undefeated Cruz and New Champion Promotions (NCP) was invalid.
Hearn’s golden lightweight
Carlos Linares reported the news today on his Substack website on the case of the undefeated Andy Cruz. This is perfect for the Cuban talent as it now allows Matchroom to set him up. He is pure 24k gold and could be the best fighter in the lightweight division. 135-9 as an amateur in Cuba, Andy defeated American Keyshawn Davis four times, including in the finals of the 2020 Olympics.
No Keyshawn, No Shakur
To name him “My son,” Cruz tried to lure Keyshawn to fight him in 2024 and 2025 without any success. He had the same problem with Shakur Stevenson.
Although Hearn spent a lot of time promoting Shakur Stevenson when he was at Matchroom, he may have overlooked the golden one in his stable, Andy Cruz. The two-year pro has been held back until now, and he’s ready to jump.
Cruz has been the invisible man since coming out of the Olympics as none of the top lightweights have shown an eagerness to fight him. He eventually forced the issue by defeating Hironori Mishiro with a fifth-round knockout in an IBF lightweight title eliminator on June 14, 2025.
From courtroom to title shot
What this means is that Matchroom will promote the Cuban talent and guide him to his first world title fight in two months against IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla (23-0, 17 KOs) on January 24, 2026 at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas, Nevada. Matchroom has yet to confirm the date.
Last month, on October 23, 2025, Matchroom won the purse bid for the Muratalla-Cruz fight with a winning bid of $888,888 to Top Rank’s $550,000. This means that Hearn’s company, Matchroom, will be in charge of the event, where and when it will be staged. As already reported, January 24 at the Fontainebleau is the location.
Veteran boxing columnist Graham Ilford brings dry humor and long-deserved perspective to the sport.
Last updated on 11/06/2025
