Isaac Cruz will fight Saturday night with a corner he has never worked from. The Mexico City star replaced his father and longtime trainer, Isaac Cruz Sr., with Eddy Reynoso earlier this year, and his interim WBC Super Lightweight Title defense against Nestor Bravo at Pechanga Arena in San Diego is the first time anyone gets to see what that change bought him.
“This is the start of a new era for Pitbull Cruz,” he said Wednesday at Escuela De Boxeo, Reynoso’s San Diego gym, where the card’s fighters held their media workout. “I’m always glad to work with good people, and my camp is about preparation and good vibes.”
Cruz Has Not Won A Fight Since July 2025
Cruz (28-3-2, 18 KOs) took the interim belt with a unanimous decision over Omar Salcido in July 2025 and has not had his hand raised since. He kept the title in December against Lamont Roach Jr. in San Antonio, though only just. One judge saw it 115-111 for Cruz. The other two turned in 113-113 for a majority draw, and most observers scored it for Roach.
Bravo (24-1, 17 KOs) is the physical problem Reynoso has to solve. The 32-year-old from Arecibo, Puerto Rico stands 5-foot-9 to Cruz’s 5-foot-4 and carries a 70-inch reach against 63.5. His only defeat is a split decision to Xolisani Ndongeni in March 2025, and he answered it in January by flattening Pedro Campa in two rounds at Barclays Center, on the same card where Dalton Smith ripped the full WBC belt off Subriel Matias.
“I’m ready to do whatever it takes so that we hear ‘and the new’ on Saturday night,” Bravo said. “This is the opportunity I’ve worked my whole career for. I’m a real 140-pounder that he’s going up against.”
The Belt Cruz Actually Wants
Smith is the man holding the real WBC title at 140 pounds, and he defends it against Alberto Puello on October 24. Cruz has been blunt about where Saturday fits into that.
“I want to make a statement and leave no doubt that I deserve to face the winner of Smith vs. Puello,” Cruz said. “And why not think about facing Teofimo Lopez, Ryan Garcia or any 140-pound champion, such as Gary Antuanne Russell, in the not-too-distant future?”
Hiring Reynoso, the trainer behind Canelo Alvarez’s long run at super middleweight, closed a different door. When Fights Around The World reported the switch in May, the same sources said Cruz would not fight Gervonta Davis next, which shelved a rematch that had been in advanced talks for a summer date at 140 pounds. Davis is now pointed toward a return in early 2027, and his coach expects him to stay at lightweight rather than move up for Cruz.
A Second Interim Title In The Co-Main
Jesus Ramos Jr. (24-1, 19 KOs) makes the first defense of his interim WBC Middleweight Title against Meiirim Nursultanov (20-0, 11 KOs). WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has already confirmed the winner will be ordered to face full champion Carlos Adames.
Ramos, 25, took that belt from Shane Mosley Jr. by unanimous decision last December and says he did it hurt. “I went into that fight injured and I didn’t care,” the Casa Grande, Arizona native said. “I fought my heart out for 12 rounds against Shane Mosley Jr. I learned that I can dig deep and overcome obstacles.”
Nursultanov is the bigger unknown on the card. The 33-year-old Kazakh is the WBC’s top-ranked contender at 160 and has not boxed since a 12-round decision over Julio Alamos in November 2023, which puts him nearly three years cold against a pressure fighter. “I’m going to show the Kazakh style and the will we have to win,” he said.
Cruz vs. Bravo Full Card
The DAZN stream begins at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. TGB Promotions promotes the event, presented by Premier Boxing Champions, with the official weigh-in Friday afternoon in San Diego.
- Isaac Cruz vs. Nestor Bravo, 12 rounds, interim WBC Super Lightweight Title
- Jesus Ramos Jr. vs. Meiirim Nursultanov, 12 rounds, interim WBC Middleweight Title
- Daniel Blancas vs. Sergio Jimenez, 10 rounds, super middleweight
- Marco Verde vs. Guillermo Hernandez, 8 rounds, middleweight
Verde, Mexico’s Olympic silver medalist from the 2024 Games, also trains under Reynoso and opens the televised card. Filipino Olympic bronze medalist Eumir Marcial (7-0, 4 KOs) tops the non-televised undercard against San Ysidro’s Omar Ulisses Huerta (15-1-1, 13 KOs) in an eight-round middleweight bout.
