Gervonta Davis escapes Isaac Cruz with UD nod

WBA interim lightweight champion Gervonta Davis retained his title following a close unanimous decision nod over Isaac Cruz this Monday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, USA.

Cruz went to work early, bobbing and weaving to get on the inside and throw heavy punches to the head and body. Davis, meanwhile, timed Cruz's aggression with his left uppercut that finally found its mark in round two.

Both fighters threw with bad intentions in round three. Cruz kept pressing forward as Davis seemingly got into his groove and found his timing. Cruz landed left and right hooks to the body in round 4 as Davis circled the ring looking to land a big counter-punch.

Davis came alive in round 6 as Cruz offered the same output from the start allowing the champion to land his punches at will in the middle rounds. By round 8, Davis seemingly had his foe figured out until Cruz landed a few hard shots to remind the crowd that he is still in the fight.

Davis and Cruz traded power punches at the start of round 9 that drew cheers from the crowd. In round 10, Cruz landed a hard left hook on top that was able to hurt his foe then proceeded to pick up the pace in rounds 11 and 12.

After three 12 rounds of action, all three judges saw the fight for Davis. The scorecards were 116-112, 115-113 and 115-113. The win improved Davis’ unblemished record to 26-0 with 24 knockouts while Cruz fell to 22-2-1 with 15 knockouts.

—JMB, GMA News