Why Andy Cruz Will Still Become a World Champion Despite Loss to Raymond Muratalla

In just his seventh professional fight, Andy Cruz was favored to beat Raymond Muratalla and begin his reign as a lightweight world champion. He instead suffered his first professional loss, but it will only propel him further in his career.

While the 30-year-old Cruz is not a young prospect, he is still less than three years removed from his professional debut. Fans simply expected the legendary amateur fighter, who achieved mainstream prominence after winning a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, to dominate the lightweight division out of the gate.

Cruz did dominate his first six fights, which included wins over former IBO champion Jovanni Straffon and ranked IBF lightweight contender Hironori Mishiro. His win over Mishiro made him the mandatory challenger for Muratalla, who is easily the least-popular active lightweight champion.

Everything aligned for Cruz to win the belt on Saturday. He has been viewed as the future of the division since before his amateur career ended, and many saw Muratalla as a stand-in champion following his promotion due to Vasiliy Lomachenko's retirement.

Lomachenko's sudden retirement also played into the Cruz hype, given the frequent comparisons made between the two fighters. Both made their professional debuts later than most after constructing two of the best amateur careers in boxing history.

Lomachenko became a world champion almost immediately after turning pro, as everyone expected of Cruz, and his retirement paved the way for the next era to begin. Muratalla was simply supposed to be the man in the way.

Andy Cruz ran into an underrated Raymond Muratalla

Raymond Muratalla and Andy Cruz — IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla (left) and challenger Andy Cruz (right) | Raymond Muratalla on Instagram

With Matchroom Boxing winning the purse bid, the majority of the fight promotion was behind Cruz, building his hype even more. Muratalla was only making his first title defense, making him still a relatively unknown fighter to the general fan base.

Hardcore fans respected Muratalla as a champion, but he showed nothing in his title-clinching win over Zaur Abdullaev that suggested he would beat Cruz. While his defense was on point in that fight, absorbing just 87 punches across 12 rounds, Muratalla landed just 140 punches in return and remained in cruise control from bell to bell.

That fight made Cruz look like the slicker boxer with heavier hands and cleaner footwork. Yet Muratalla was a completely different fighter in his title defense, retaining his title with constant pressure and volume he had not displayed in his game before.

Congratulations, Raymond Muratalla 👏

Successful World Title defense with a MD win over Andy Cruz (114-114, 118-110, 116-112)

Tremendous fight from both men 👊 #MuratallaCruz @DAZNBoxing pic.twitter.com/6O9I7rbryQ
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) January 25, 2026

Cruz kept with him, but Muratalla was a half-step ahead for the majority of the fight, which ended up being much more entertaining than it initially seemed on paper. It was the type of performance that elevated the champion more than anything else.

Some argue that Cruz still won the fight, including the Cuban's team. But it was Muratalla who proved that he belongs among the elite and deserves to be in a big fight next.

Andy Cruz is still in a great position in his career

Perhaps Muratalla goes on to lose his next fight, and the loss looks worse on Cruz's record. However, if history is any indication, that was the type of performance that fighters have to launch themselves into the peak of their careers. In all likelihood, Cruz's loss to Muratalla will age like wine.

While boxing fans tend to write off prospects after a loss, particularly early in their careers, that has not been the reaction with Cruz. Everybody tuned in to see Cruz's crowning moment, but it became clear that the entire community had overlooked Muratalla.

Cruz has done everything right to this point, and he remains in position to reach the pinnacle within the next few years. He is still in the right camp with the right promoter to get over the hump.

It might not have happened as soon as everyone wanted, but Cruz will still be a world champion before his career is all said and done. He just ran into an elite fighter sooner than anyone expected.

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