Ryan Garcia says Lamont Roach made the mistake of not continuing to swing away with non-stop punches in the 11th and 12th rounds against Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz last Saturday night.
Garca believes Roach’s decision to stop throwing at times allowed Cruz (28-3-2, 18 KOs) to win rounds 11 and 12 to salvage a 12-round majority draw in their main event in San Antonio, Texas.
“I would say he (Roach) fought his style for most of the fight. But then Lamont did the right thing, which I thought was the smart thing to do. People tried to bastardize him, but walked to ‘Pitbull,'” said Ryan Garcia. Ring Magazinewhich analyzes last Saturday’s fight between Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and Lamont Roach.
Pitbull’s second wind in 11 and 12
What Ryan doesn’t understand is that Roach’s success in rounds 7 through 10 was due to Cruz’s fade. His high-pressure style caught up with him in those laps, causing him to take his foot off the accelerator.
However, when ‘Pitbull’ got his second wind in the 11th, he retook control of the fight, stalking Roach and pummeling him with shots. Those last two rounds looked like the first half of the fight with ‘Pitbull’ Cruz getting the better of Roach, who lacked the power and guts to stop him.
“‘Pitbull’ can’t fight (back) to save his life,” Garcia said. “So, once Lamont started doing that, he started tearing ‘Pitbull’ down a little bit. ‘Pitbull’ got uncomfortable and didn’t really know what to do with it. He decided to go on his bike, act like he was boxing. He can’t box.”
The controversial Low Blow Call
Ryan talks about the success Roach had knocking out Cruz in the middle rounds. Interestingly, he did not mention the controversial low blow, no warning call by umpire James Green in the seventh.
Replays showed the punch was on the tape line, not low, meaning the referee made a mistake in penalizing Cruz. That mistake cost Cruz the win and saved Roach from a loss.
“When the 10th or 11th round came around, I think ‘Pitbull’ caught him again and kind of shook him, it made the fight a draw because then ‘Pitbull’ stole the 11th and 12th, which is mind-boggling because Lamont had the momentum. But he didn’t go in on, ‘I’m making a statement now. He could keep hitting him, but he would stop,'” Ryan said.
Why Roach stopped letting go of his hands
Roach had to stop throwing because he was knocked back when throwing combinations. He was already knocked down by Cruz in the third and was hurt several times. He couldn’t just mindlessly swing away without worrying about the punches ‘Pitbull’ was throwing back. Ryan’s perception of the fight is off, suggesting that he wasn’t watching enough now to see what was really happening.
Last updated on 12/09/2025
