On Saturday night, March 30th, Rolando “Laurie” Romero was stopped in eight rounds by Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz for the WBA super lightweight title as the chief support bout on the Tim Tzu vs. Sebastian Fundora card. Lost.
In the lead-up to the fight, Romero consistently followed his word, but on fight night he didn't walk the walk. Romero put up a valiant effort, but was overwhelmed by Pitbull Cruz's aggression.
Laurie Romero first made headlines in August 2020 after scoring a controversial unanimous decision victory over Jackson Marinez. After coming away with a win that most fans thought he didn't deserve, Romero fought twice in 2021 and recorded two seventh-round TKO wins.
Laurie Romero will get the chance to perform under the bright lights when he takes on superstar boxer Gervonta “Tank” Davis in May 2022. Romero got off to a good start, banking most of the early rounds, but unfortunately was stopped by a counter left hand shot in the sixth.
Romero lost the fight, but despite the loss, Laurie somehow gained more trust. A year after losing to Tank Davis, the outspoken Rolando Romero moved up to 140 to fight for the vacant WBA super lightweight world title.
While fighting Ismael Barroso in a WBA Championship match, Romero was caught by a left hand shot in the third round and fell to the canvas. Lowry survived the third round, and then in the ninth round, Romero landed a hard left hook, followed by a downward push that counted as a knockdown.
Barroso got back to his feet and as the fight continued, Romero pressed forward and forced Barroso into a corner. Even though Romero took rapid-fire shots and missed most of Romero's punches, referee Tony Weeks still tried to intervene and stop the fight.
After controversially winning the WBA super lightweight world title, Laurie Romero was scheduled to make his first defense against Isaac Cruz. The match will be the co-headline of the first-ever PBC pay-per-view event on Amazon Prime.
In the opening round, Pitbull Cruz immediately began to advance, throwing overhand rights and lefts. Cruz missed most of his shots, but landed a counter left hand near the end of the first round that buckled Romero's knees.
As former WBA champion Rolando Romero staggered backwards trying to survive the opening round, challenger Isaac Cruz continued to land heavy punches. Cruz kept the tempo under control from rounds two through six by applying constant pressure and landing well-timed counter shots.
In the final 30 seconds of the seventh round, Pitbull Cruz walked Laurie Romero and beat him with a flurry of punches. In the eighth round, Cruz landed several power shots on Romero, and the referee intervened to stop the fight.
Laurie Romero (15-2, 13 KOs) had a lot to show.
Unfortunately, he had no answers when it came to defending against Isaac Cruz's attack. Now the question is, what's next for Laurie Romero?
The 140-pound division is perhaps the most talented division in boxing, with boxers like Devin Haney, Teofimo Lopez, Sabriel Matias, and Ryan Garcia. Romero has the power, but does he have the skill and ring intelligence to stand up to a top 10 super lightweight contender?
An option for Romero could be to test his ability at 140 one last time against another boxer who is recovering from a loss. For example, Laurie Romero vs. Regis Prograis could be an interesting matchup. Another option for Romero could be to add seven pounds and move up to the less crowded welterweight division.
