Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz has responded to Lamont Roach claiming he fought a dirty fight and said he didn’t fight a clean one either in their clash last Saturday night. In an interview, Cruz showed marks on the back of his head where Roach hit him during their fight.
Cruz says he hasn’t decided if he will give Roach a rematch. He states that he will 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 simply gave Roach a “taste of its own medicine” by uprooting him in exchange for points in their battle.
Roach (25-1-3, 10 KOs) complained at the post-fight press conference that Cruz (28-3-2, 18 KOs) was hitting him with punches below the belt and holding him down frequently. He believed that the points 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 6, 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 punches that I shouldn’t have been hit with,” said Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz. Fight Hub TVResponding to Lamont Roach complaining about fighting dirty.
Lamont played the victim during the press conference, sounding like he was making excuses to the fans for his failure to secure the win.
“That’s one of the blows Lamont hit me in the back of the head with,” Cruz said of Roach hitting him with rabbit punches. “I feel that the referee’s performance should be reviewed with the type of fight he allowed.
Roach’s 0-0-2 run
Fans notice that Lamont is now 0-0-2 in his two fights since moving up from 130, making it clear that he can’t fight at a high enough level at 135 and 140 to be considered worthy of the big fights he’s asking for.
Lamont got the fights against Cruz at light welterweight and Gervonta Davis at lightweight without earning it by fighting the top contenders. Would he have gotten these fights if he was tested against Andy Cruz, Alberto Puello and Floyd Schofield?
After two failures since leaving super featherweight, Roach should align with the other contenders and work his way into a title fight. He received special treatment by jumping ahead of contenders like Andy Cruz, Schofield and Puello to receive title shots. At some point, it’s over when a fighter repeatedly comes up empty.
How many free title shots is Roach going to get? What about the merit system to earn a place? Would this happen if it was the NFL and NBA with a team going to the championship game without winning a single game? It’s a joke.
Rematch or move on?
“I gave Roach a taste of his own medicine,” Cruz said of the roughhouse tactic. “When it comes to any fights in 2026, I’m going to talk to my promoter Sean Gibbons, and I know they’re going to make the right decisions and the right fights for me,” ‘Pitbull’ said when asked if he would fight a rematch with Roach. “I would 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 will have to settle for 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
