IBF eliminator puts Andy Cruz back in front of familiar problem

Cruz meets another tall lightweight after Raymond Muratalla defeat

Andy Cruz has been invited to face Albert Bell in an IBF lightweight final eliminator. The matchup puts him against another unusually tall opponent just weeks after his first professional loss. Bell accepted immediately. Cruz’s side has expressed interest, though the offer arrives at a sensitive moment after his first professional loss in January.

Bell’s size recreates the same questions Cruz could not solve

Bell stands a full six feet, unusual size for a lightweight, and he knows how to fight tall. He works behind the jab, keeps his lead shoulder high, and makes shorter men reach before they can set their feet. That length gives him room to see shots coming and fire straight down the middle.

Cruz ran into that kind of frame against Muratalla. Muratalla kept edging forward behind his jab, stepping into Cruz’s chest and walking him toward the ropes over twelve rounds. Cruz had moments when he planted his feet and let his hands go, snapping the cleaner shots in spots, though he could not keep that pressure rolling. Too many rounds slipped by with Muratalla dictating ring position, taking ground, and making Cruz fight off the back foot.

Cruz entered his title fight unbeaten and carrying Olympic gold credentials, but the Muratalla loss showed how difficult it can be to impose his style against naturally larger fighters. His promoter, Eddie Hearn, acknowledged afterward that moving down to junior lightweight could become part of the conversation, though no decision has been finalized.

Bell, unbeaten through 28 professional fights, has been waiting for an opportunity at this level and accepted the eliminator without delay. The IBF’s order places both fighters on a direct path toward contention.

For Cruz, the offer arrives quickly after a fight where size and positioning worked against him. Accepting the eliminator would give him a way back toward a title, but it also means confronting the same physical questions that surfaced when the decision stayed with Muratalla.