Saturday Night Boxing: Opinions and Observations: Muratalla-Cruz

Let's start with the trainers: After Andy Cruz had a solid first round, landing hard jabs and a couple of sneaky power punches, Robert Garcia explained to his fighter, Raymond Muratalla, what he needed to do. He was blunt. He said that Muratalla could not beat Cruz by throwing one shot at a time; twos and threes would be the path to victory. Muratalla had to throw combinations to overcome Cruz's skill as a counterpuncher.

Flash forward to after the eighth round. The fight was close on the scorecards. Muratalla was having a lot of success on his front foot applying pressure and flurrying with combinations. Bozy Ennis told Cruz that he needed to back Muratalla up, that Muratalla wasn't as good at fighting in reverse. Furthermore, he noticed that whenever Cruz would come forward behind multiple shots, Muratalla would temporarily freeze, stopping his offense. In Bozy's estimation, Cruz was giving up too much real estate. He believed that Muratalla's pressure could play well with the judges. And he reminded Cruz that they were fighting for Muratalla's title belt. Despite Cruz's pedigree, he was the challenger.

And this was essentially the fight. Muratalla and Cruz took turns throughout the first ten rounds attempting to execute their gameplan while often being thwarted by what the other was doing. Cruz won rounds with pinpoint punching, either as a lead or counter. Muratalla had success applying pressure and flurrying with combinations. The fight featured a constant ebb and flow. In my estimation no fighter was able to win more than two rounds in a row throughout the first ten rounds.

Muratalla (left) having success backing Cruz up
Photo courtesy of Cris Esqueda/Matchroom Boxing

To me the fight turned in the championship rounds. Muratalla kept advancing with pressure and combinations while Cruz either couldn't or wouldn't come forward behind punches. Perhaps this being Cruz's first 12-round fight, he didn't have enough left in the tank to give more. Or maybe, in a fight as competitive and grueling as this one was, Cruz essentially reverted to form: He was more comfortable as a counterpuncher and an outside fighter. When the going got tough, there was a hint of self-preservation from him instead of selling out to get the win.

Muratalla won the fight by a majority decision, with scores of 114-114, 116-112 and 118-110 (judge Tim Cheatham saw a different fight than I did). Muratalla retained his lightweight title. (I had him winning 115-113.)

Much credit must go to Robert Garcia for his vision on how the fight could be won and Muratalla for executing the gameplan (remember that Cruz was a more than two-to-one favorite coming into the bout). Muratalla fought almost exclusively as a pressure fighter on Saturday. He wound up junking most of his mid-range and center-ring skills against Cruz because that's what the gameplan required. Cruz may have had superior hand speed and timing, but Muratalla was far more comfortable throwing in combination and letting his hands go with more regularity.

After the fight, Garcia was interviewed by BoxingScene, and he acknowledged that his experience working with pressure fighters such as Marco Maidana and Brandon Rios helped give him confidence in creating Saturday's gameplan. As a student of the sport, both as a trainer and a former world champion, Garcia understood that one of the proven ways to trouble a natural counterpuncher is to throw combinations.

But Garcia also had to get Muratalla's buy in, that even if Muratalla had other skills that were formidable, they wouldn't be helpful for this fight. It's a heavy lift for a trainer and fighter to admit certain disadvantages, but this is where fights are won and lost. Muratalla wasn't too proud; he didn't insist on trying to win a boxing match. He listened; he believed; he won.

Muratalla during his ring walk
Photo courtesy of Cris Esqueda/Matchroom Boxing

Despite the defeat, I don't think that Ennis was bad in Cruz's corner. He understood what the fight was looking like and how it needed to change. But ultimately, he had a fighter who didn't do what was required to win. And maybe that shows Ennis and Cruz aren't exactly on the same page, and that is a factor worth considering for the future.

Although Cruz had been a terrific amateur, winning at the Olympics and at other major international tournaments, Saturday was only his seventh pro fight, and it was clear that he was lacking experience in the championship rounds. Cruz didn't fight the final two rounds to win them. Either he was gassed or he lacked the will to do what was necessary for victory; either answer wasn't sufficient to have his hand raised at the end.

Cruz didn't turn in a bad performance by any means, but what Saturday showed is that he's still a "Plan A" fighter. Sometimes Plan B is required. Cruz needed to be a hunter at the end to win the fight and couldn't execute that in the ring. Consider how Raymond Ford morphed into a pressure fighter to take out Otabek Kholmatov to win his title. Cruz needed a similar level of determination and the commensurate skill set to beat Muratalla on Saturday, but in the end, Cruz came up short.

It's been a slow build for Raymond Muratalla. He's now 29 and has been a professional for 10 years. He was a solid but not spectacular prospect who did a lot of things well but didn't seem to possess any A-level skills. He had good power, strong balance, and solutions at different ranges. However, rarely was there a wow factor associated with him.

But Muratalla's intangibles have been a separator. He can take instruction well. He has belief in his team and his own capabilities. He fights with a lot of desire and determination. Even when Cruz had solid passages in the fight, Muratalla quickly regrouped and turned the fight back in his favor. Top Rank's lead matchmaker, Brad Goodman, has long been a fan of Muratalla's, and Saturday's performance showed why.

Muratalla's skills may not necessarily lead to oohs and aahs from the crowd, but he's a capable, high-level fighter. He's skilled, determined and won't beat himself. He fully deserves this moment in the sun.