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Christina Cruz has never been about the hype. For the native New Yorker, it’s the work that matters, and that hasn’t changed as she prepares for her first world title fight this Saturday in Phoenix against IBF flyweight champion Gabriela Fundora.
So when I asked Cruz, one of the most decorated female amateurs to lace up the gloves, only to miss out at a shot at Olympic gold, if this weekend is her Olympics, she doesn’t play into the storyline.
“No, this is my world championship,” Cruz said. “I set new goals for myself right after the Olympics, and now it’s time for me to get what I want and get what I feel I deserve. I feel like I’ve given back so much to the sport even before I even turned pro, and I deserve this moment for myself, and this is the moment I’ve been dreaming of since I was a little kid.”
It’s a testament to Cruz’ maturity and the correct mindset that a fighter can’t let the past dictate the present or future, but it’s key to note that when Cruz was chasing a spot on the Olympic team, she had no intention of ever turning pro. It just wasn’t part of her plan.
That may have been surprising to many, but, to Cruz, it made all the sense in the world, and she was right on target from the time she began winning a record ten New York Golden Gloves titles. Add in seven USA National titles, and it was seemingly inevitable that her dream would come true. But the politics of amateur boxing can often crush as many dreams as it makes a reality, and after Cruz earned an opportunity to qualify for Puerto Rico’s 2020 Olympic team, the COVID-19 pandemic interfered. When the dust settled, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided on a new qualifying process, leaving Cruz without a spot on Team Puerto Rico.
“I was just ready to retire,” said Cruz. “There was no way in hell I could wait around another four years, and I was just like, no, this is not meant for me. And I understood that right away. It wasn’t like months or a year later; it wasn’t for me at the moment when that went down and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. It was an unfair thing; we were the only continent that didn’t have a qualifier, and I tried to fight back with the IOC. I contacted lawyers, everything, and it was just too late. There was nothing I could do. They already made the new rules, so it was like, okay, I guess this is it.”
It wasn’t. She was advised to try the pro game, just to see if she liked it, and after defeating Indeya Smith in her hometown of New York City in August of 2021, she was all-in.
“I had my first pro fight in Madison Square Garden on a Triller card, and I absolutely loved it,” Cruz said. “I had so much fun. It was kind of nice being able to train for one thing rather than 10 tournaments a year. So it was very different than the amateurs.”
You could say Cruz traded one form of politics for another, but so far so good for the title challenger, who does have good people in her corner in the form of manager Peter Kahn and trainer Javiel Centeno.
“I’ve always known the politics of both sides, whether it’s the pros or the amateurs, just through teammates and friends that are pro, including Mikaela (Mayer) and Claressa (Shields). So I know how things are, but I’ve always been someone who’s been able to find my way around things, even if something was there that tried to get in the way. I’ve always been able to figure it out, so I never really worried about the politics of things.”
The pro game is a different animal, though, and after racing through her first four fights, Cruz got frustrated with her seeming lack of opportunities and she split with Kahn in the summer of last year.
“The term ‘fired’ sounds worse than it actually was because I understood her frustration, and the last thing I would ever do is hold a fighter back if they feel that way,” said Kahn. “She actually wrote me a really nice email. Probably the nicest ‘I’m firing you email’ ever.”
Cruz picked up two more wins in the second half of 2023, and when a fight between Fundora and Marlen Esparza fell through, Kahn was approached by Sampson Lewkowicz with an offer for Jasmine Artiga to step in. The timing and weight class wouldn’t work for Artiga, so Kahn, remembering his promise to get Cruz a title shot, as well as her being one of the fighters who showed up when his father passed away last Spring, threw her name in the hat. Next was a phone call to Cruz and Centeno.
“I reached out to see if they can be ready and I couldn’t even finish my sentence and Christina must have said ‘yes’ three times,” Kahn recalled. “That’s who she is. She will fight anyone at any time within two weight divisions of her weight class. So we made the deal with Sampson and Golden Boy, and Christina and I back working together.”
“There was no way in hell I’m turning something like this down, especially with my experience and especially with my team and the confidence that I have in my training and my ability,” adds Cruz.
It’s almost like everything has worked out the way it was supposed to for the 41-year-old, who began boxing at the same age (21 years old) the champion is now. That’s quite the experience edge for Cruz, a Willie Pep fan who plans on using every bit of it to secure her first world title.
“It (experience) plays a huge role,” she said. “I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen every style in front of me, and I’ve been doing it for longer. So I think it’s going to play a huge role in this fight, along with my skill. I think I’m an extremely skillful fighter, and that’s just going to all come together that night.”
If it does, I don’t care what Cruz says, this is her Olympics.
She laughs. As for the emotions of that night should she get her hand raised?
“To be honest, I wouldn’t be able to tell you until that moment when they say, ‘and the new.’ But I’m always moving forward and never looking back. I’m okay with what happened and not being able to go to the Olympics. My amateur career was great, I’ve accomplished so much, I’m so proud of myself for it, and I’m just really excited for my future goals and what I’ve set for myself. I know I can do it.”