If Gary Antuanne Russell was rusty after spending a year out of the ring, it didn’t show. The District Heights, Maryland overwhelmed the previously unbeaten Kent Cruz with combinations en route to a first-round knockout. Improving his record to 17-0 with 17 knockouts, Russell is looking to take the next step in his young career and challenge for a world title.
“This is obviously good. I saw the opening and I took it, and I was trying to remain disciplined defensively at the same time. More than anything, I was trying to make sure I could end it in the first round,” Russell said after the fight with Cruz.
“If I can fight Regis Prograis next, that would be beautiful. But I want them all. I want all the titles in my division.”
At the moment, Regis Prograis is the WBC Super Lightweight Champion. After a homecoming bout of his own with Danielito Zorilla, Prograis is seemingly on track for a showdown with undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney. While many expect the fight to take place in late October at a location to be determined, the WBC champion has expressed a bit of frustration with the way the fight is coming together. Specifically, Prograis has accused Haney of attempting to change the date of the fight.
“Man, they got some p*ssy in this fight game right now,” Prograis wrote in a social media post.
“So you know me and Haney [are] supposed to fight, right? We agreed on date, we agreed on everything, and now they’re trying to move the date and stuff like that.”
Despite the champion’s frustrations, Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn has repeatedly insisted that he believes the fight will take place later this year. With that said, Russell is waiting if things were to fall apart.
