Valenzuela delivered an almost flawless performance, landing more and better punches than Cruz, who struggled to counter Valenzuela’s jab. According to Compubox, Valenzuela landed 171 total punches to Cruz’s 118, with a power punch count of 138-112. Valenzuela also landed his jab 33 times compared to just 6 for Cruz. Cruz only out-punched Valenzuela in the second round, with an 18-8 edge. After 12 rounds of intense action, the judges awarded Valenzuela two cards of 116-112, while Cruz received a 115-113 score from the third judge, resulting in a split decision victory for the new champion.
With this win, Valenzuela improved his record to 14-2 with 9 knockouts, marking his second consecutive victory after a brief losing streak.
For Cruz, the loss halted his record at 26-3-1 (18 knockouts) and ended a four-fight winning streak, three of which were knockouts. This defeat also complicates his chances of a potential rematch with Gervonta Davis.
Cruz was aiming to defend the title he won last March by knocking out Rolando Romero in eight rounds. "I never got too confident; I came here to have the best fight. I don’t know what the judges saw," Cruz said after the fight, calling for a rematch with Valenzuela.
Cruz becomes the third consecutive champion unable to defend the WBA Super Lightweight title, following Alberto Puello and Romero.