Abraham Montoya vs Andy Cruz Preview July 18th, 2026
2021 Olympic Lightweight Gold Medalist Andy Cruz of Cuba returns to the ring this Saturday, July 18th after suffering his first pro defeat to IBF Champion Raymond Muratalla by majority decision in January. He’s set to face Mexico’s Abraham Montoya in Carson, City, California in a 10-round lightweight tilt which can be seen live in most nations on DAZN. Montoya was last in the ring in April when he beat Antonio Perez via a 10-round split decision for the vacant WBC USA Silver Lightweight Title.
Montoya vs Cruz Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Abraham Montoya +1600
- Andy Cruz -5000
My Pick
The 31-year-old Montoya climbs into the ring with a mark of 24-7-1 with 14 Ko’s and has 190 rounds of experience under his belt since making his pro debut in 2014. Montoya possesses decent power in his punches as 58.3 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. However he’s halted just one of his last dozen opponents with his last knockout coming in 2020 when he beat Reyes Lopez Escalante in the second round. In fact his record in those 12 bouts was just 6-6.
Montoya stands just over 5-feet-6-inches tall with a 68-inch reach. He may have seven losses on his record but on the bright side he’s never been stopped. He’s dropped decisions of various types and lengths to Fermin Alberto Canedo, Muhammad Yaqubov, Gabriel Flores Jr., Andres Cortes, Moussa Gholam, Marc Castro and Tsendbaatar Erdenebat. The defeat to Castro was for the vacant WBC Continental Americas Jr Lightweight Belt while the loss to Yaqubov was for the WBC International Jr Lightweight Belt.
The lone draw on Montoya’s record was a six-round affair with Jonathan Corrales in 2016. Montoya beat Luis Alberto Lopez by 10-round split decision in 2018 for the Mexican Pacific Coast Jr Lightweight Belt and added the full Mexican Title the same year when he stopped Ismael Urieta in the sixth round. In 2019 Montoya added the vacant NABF Jr Lightweight Belt when he stopped Julio Barraza in the ninth round. He also has wins over Joseph Diaz, Alejandro Guerrero and Ricardo Lara.
As for the 30-year-old Cruz, he reportedly went 140-9 as an amateur star with 10 Ko’s. He captured gold medals at the 2017 Pan American Championships; the 2015 and 2019 Pan American Games; the 2017, 2019 and 2021 World Championships and the Olympics. He’s been training with Derek Ennis and is based in Miami, Florida. Cruz measures 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 70-inch reach. He’s 2.5-inches taller than Montoya and has a two-inch edge in reach. Cruz possesses excellent speed, timing, ring IQ and jab but isn’t known to be the most powerful puncher out there.
Cruz steps into the ring with a mark of 6-1 with 3 Ko’s and 57 rounds of pro experience with 50 per cent of his wins coming by stoppage. He beat veteran Juan Carlos Burgos by a 10-round unanimous decision in his pro debut in July, 2023 and captured the vacant IBF International Lightweight Title. He then stopped Jovanni Straffon in his first defence five months later and shutout Brayan Rodriguez over 10 rounds in February, 2024 before stopping Antonio Moran in the seventh round later that year.
He then beat Omar Gamez by 10-round unanimous decision and halted Hironori Mishiro in the fifth round before losing to Muratalla in his last outing. Cruz beat Keyshawn Davis several times as an amateur, usually in gold-medal matches, and also beat Elvis Rodriguez several times. He also competed in the World Series of Boxing a few years ago. He’s now hoping to turn his amateur success into a pro world title but he fell just short against Muratalla.
Prediction…
Cruz is known for his silky smooth boxing skills while Montoya is more of a rugged customer at this stage. Cruz may not have devastating one-punch power but is certainly capable of stopping opponents with a combination of shots but Montoya has never been stopped in his seven defeats. I’m expecting Montoya to have his moments but I believe Cruz box his way to victory due to his superior skills.
Cruz is by far the better overall boxer.
Play Cruz -5000 @ BetOnline.ag
Check out my recent boxing betting picks to see my current form.
Abraham Montoya betting • Andy Cruz betting