There is nothing new under the sun: Loma, Cruz and the pursuit of fistic excellence

Ecclesiastes 1:9;

What has been will be again,

What has been done will be done again;

There is nothing new under the sun.

The above Biblical phrase grasps at the idea that history is cyclical and that all human experiences and events have precedents or echoes in the past. A bold notion that history tends to repeat itself in various forms.

And boxing is no different. Take the shoulder roll for example. Hall-of-Famer Floyd Mayweather Jr gets so much credit for this deft defensive manoeuvre one may reasonably assume that he invented it.

However, the shoulder roll has been around boxing for a long time. Long before Floyd Jr was a mere twinkle in Floyd Snr’s eye in fact.

 

And having watched Andy Cruz at the weekend, there is a feeling that history may be about to repeat itself in the lower weight divisions.

Cruz boxed a final eliminator against Hironori Mishiro at the weekend to decide the mandatory challenger for the IBF strap and put on an absolute masterclass. Watching him in full flow, it was impossible not to draw comparisons with Vasiliy Lomachenko.

OK Loma was a southpaw and Cruz fights orthodox, but both men were next level amateurs and due to their dominance in the amateur code both were fast tracked as professionals.

Lomachenko won a world title in his third professional fight, defeating Gary Russell Jr by majority decision to claim the vacant WBO featherweight title.

(Mikey Williams/Top Rank via Getty Images)

Cruz is 6-0 (3) and could be world champion in potentially seven fights, given his status with the IBF. Both Cruz and Loma are adept at standing in the pocket and avoiding shots with their reflexes. Both are also incredibly accurate fighters whose precision proves too much for a lot of opponents.

In less than two years the Olympic gold medallist and three-time world amateur champion has underlined his status as one of the very best at 135, and a fight against Raymond Muratalla could be next.

Muratalla was upgraded to full champion when 'Loma' announced his retirement, and the 23-0 (17) Californian is now firmly in Cruz’s sights.

Much like Lomachenko did in the embryonic stages of his pro career, the Cuban looks very much like a world champion waiting to be crowned. A surefire case of ‘when’ and not ‘if’ he becomes world champion. He has incredible speed and a jab so good that it can win fights on its own.

Lightweight division is where it is at

It's a shame that there wasn't more of an overlap between Lomachenko and Cruz at lightweight. That would have been something. A fight for the purists and casuals alike.

However, we can’t be too downhearted or dwell on things too much, with the lightweight division arguably the most stacked in terms of talent in the whole of boxing right now.

There is WBC boss Shakur Stevenson, enigma and WBA champ Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis, the prodigiously talented Keyshawn Davis and the underrated Lamont Roach.

Cruz and Keyshawn would be a riot, but it’s not a fight one can see happening anytime soon with both men on different paths (in the short term at least).  

Cruz, perhaps the finest amateur since the era of Lomachenko, has history with Davis of course. And in the amateur code, no matter how many times he tried, Keyshawn simply couldn’t figure the Cuban out.

If it’s not Muratalla next for Cruz then he could be out again in the autumn against a credible opponent who could give him rounds like Tevin Farmer, Frank Martin or Zaur Abdullaev.

Mishiro was incredibly brave on Saturday and fought his heart out but the gap in terms of skill - and defensive smarts - was so stark. Put simply, Cruz will face much bigger tests than Mishiro at 135, so we cannot get too carried away, but we also have to give credit where it is due.

(Geoffrey Knott/Matchroom Boxing)

Cruz was mesmerising at times in New York. Cuban skills are now being fused with Philadelphia power and that win showed he is more than ready for a world title shot. He is definitely improving under coach Derek 'Bozy' Ennis, father and trainer of IBF and WBA welterweight champ Jaron Ennis

Is Cruz better than Lomachenko? It’s probably an unfair question to pitch until both men are retired. Just because he is the latest doesn’t mean he is the greatest. And the revisionism that the Ukrainian gets because of how he moved up to lightweight to chase new challenges and new cheques is quite absurd.

Roughly a decade ago there was a five-year spell when Lomachenko was simply untouchable at super-featherweight, dominating with such violent ruthlessness against feared champions such as Guillermo Rigondeaux and Nicholas Walters fans began calling him 'No Mas Chenko' after four consecutive opponents quit on their stool during his absolute peak.

His 18-3 (12) record looks unremarkable, but there was nothing unremarkable about Lomachenko the fighter. He was a fistic game changer who influenced a generation of fighters coming through today in the same way Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard and Floyd Mayweather once did.

Loma was a generational talent in an era when the word 'elite' gets banded around so cheaply. Can Cruz match him? This writer is not so sure but it’s going to be a hell of a lot of fun finding out.

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