Cristóbal Cruz
Encyclopedia
Cristóbal Cruz Rivera, also known as Lacandón (born May 19, 1977 in Chiapas, Mexico) is a Mexican
professional boxer
and former IBF
Featherweight
Champion.
debutant Manuel Morales with a second round knockout
on the undercard of a bill headed by Tomas Valdez in Monterrey, Mexico.
After racking up 24 fights with 21 wins and 11 knockouts in just over tens years, Cruz faced Francisco Dianzo for the WBC Continental Americas featherweight title. Cruz overcame Dianzo in the eleventh round about would beat him again in 2005 with a 6th round knockout.
including two losses to Francisco Lorenzo
.
In August 2007, Cruz started back on the comeback trail when he defeated Alberto Garza with a tenth round knockout to capture the WBC FECOMBOX featherweight title. This victory lead to a shot at the IBO featherweight title against South African champion Thomas Mashaba
who had only one loss in a ten year 25 fight career. The clash took place in March 2008 at the Foxwoods Casino, Connecticut
. The pair fought twelve tough rounds with Cruz having blood running from his nose from the eighth round onwards. In a major upset Cruz finished strongly breaking CompuBox record for punches thrown in a 12-round fight to take the victory by majority decision
with one judge calling the fight even and two giving it to Cruz by one solitary round.
In October 2008, Cruz would vacate his new found IBO title and aim for a bigger prize - the IBF featherweight title - which had been recently vacated by Robert Guerrero
who moved up to super featherweight. He faced fellow Mexican Orlando Salido
who had won an eliminator less than a year previous and had fought for the title previously, losing to Juan Manuel Márquez
in 2004, his only loss since 2001 and a no contest
again Guerrero in 2006. Once again Cruz overcame the odds to defeat the bookies favourite to take one of the most prestigious titles in boxing by beating a battered and swollen Salido on points.
He followed this up with a defeat of once-beaten Jorge Solís, avenging a loss earlier in his career.
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
professional boxer
Professional Boxing
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, emerged in the early twentieth century as boxing gradually attained legitimacy and became a regulated, sanctioned sport. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse which is divided among the fighters and promoters as determined by contract...
and former IBF
International Boxing Federation
The International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...
Featherweight
Featherweight
Featherweight is a weight class division in the sport of boxing. There are similarly named divisions under several Mixed Martial Arts organizations and in Greco-Roman wrestling.-Professional boxing:...
Champion.
Career
On January 17, 1992, Cruz began his professional career, beating fellow MexicanMexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
debutant Manuel Morales with a second round knockout
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
on the undercard of a bill headed by Tomas Valdez in Monterrey, Mexico.
After racking up 24 fights with 21 wins and 11 knockouts in just over tens years, Cruz faced Francisco Dianzo for the WBC Continental Americas featherweight title. Cruz overcame Dianzo in the eleventh round about would beat him again in 2005 with a 6th round knockout.
Road to the IBF title
Between October 2005 and May 2007 Cruz's career looked to be coming to an end when he had seven fights with four losses and a no contestNo contest (boxing)
No contest is a technical term used in some combat sports to describe a fight that ends for reasons outside the fighters' hands.-Boxing:...
including two losses to Francisco Lorenzo
Francisco Lorenzo
Francisco Lorenzo is a professional Dominican boxer in the Light Welterweight division...
.
In August 2007, Cruz started back on the comeback trail when he defeated Alberto Garza with a tenth round knockout to capture the WBC FECOMBOX featherweight title. This victory lead to a shot at the IBO featherweight title against South African champion Thomas Mashaba
Thomas Mashaba
Thomas Mashaba is a professional boxer in the featherweight division holding the lightly regarded IBO title....
who had only one loss in a ten year 25 fight career. The clash took place in March 2008 at the Foxwoods Casino, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. The pair fought twelve tough rounds with Cruz having blood running from his nose from the eighth round onwards. In a major upset Cruz finished strongly breaking CompuBox record for punches thrown in a 12-round fight to take the victory by majority decision
Majority decision
A majority decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking...
with one judge calling the fight even and two giving it to Cruz by one solitary round.
In October 2008, Cruz would vacate his new found IBO title and aim for a bigger prize - the IBF featherweight title - which had been recently vacated by Robert Guerrero
Robert Guerrero
Robert Joseph Guerrero is a professional American boxer of Mexican descent. He is the former IBF Super Featherweight champion and a former two-time IBF featherweight champion of the world. Nicknamed The Ghost, Guerrero's record is 29 wins, 1 loss, and 1 draw, and 2 no contest, with 18 of his wins...
who moved up to super featherweight. He faced fellow Mexican Orlando Salido
Orlando Salido
Orlando Salido Rivera is a Mexican professional boxer. Salido is the current WBO Featherweight Champion and the former IBF Featherweight Champion. Eight of his losses happened between the ages of 15 and 21....
who had won an eliminator less than a year previous and had fought for the title previously, losing to Juan Manuel Márquez
Juan Manuel Márquez
Juan Manuel Márquez Méndez , is a Mexican professional boxer. He is the fourth Mexican-born boxer to become a three-division world champion, where he won eight world titles in three different boxing weight classes.Currently, Marquez is the WBA Super, WBO and The Ring lightweight champion...
in 2004, his only loss since 2001 and a no contest
No contest (boxing)
No contest is a technical term used in some combat sports to describe a fight that ends for reasons outside the fighters' hands.-Boxing:...
again Guerrero in 2006. Once again Cruz overcame the odds to defeat the bookies favourite to take one of the most prestigious titles in boxing by beating a battered and swollen Salido on points.
He followed this up with a defeat of once-beaten Jorge Solís, avenging a loss earlier in his career.