Somewhat surprisingly, Mike Coppinger reports that Gervonta Davis may have a rematch with Isaac Cruz following his 2021 fall. For those who don’t know, Davis is currently accused of abusing his ex-girlfriend. Given the seriousness of the charges against him, it was understandable to believe that Davis would be out of the ring for an extended period of time. However, recent reports indicate that this may not be the case. Of course, the rematch may take place this summer.

Although Cruz won their 2021 battle by decision, he put up quite a fight with Davis, perhaps proving to be the Baltimore native’s toughest opponent at the time. Davis’ last fight was against Lamont Roach. This fight, which took place a year ago this month, was much closer than expected. Some believed Davis’ decision victory was a gift from the judges. Roach wanted a rematch, but it didn’t happen. Instead, Davis was scheduled to face Jake Paul in a novelty fight slow last year. Davis’s legal troubles put an end to the scheduled fight, and Anthony Joshua replaced Davis and then defeated Paul. While Davis would undoubtedly be the favorite to sign a rematch with Cruz, fans and analysts would undoubtedly wonder whether Davis is the fighter he once was.

First there was the Roach fight, then there was the fact that Roach was unwilling or unable to face Roach in a legitimate rematch. Add in the legal issues and a reported lack of interest in the build-up to Paul’s later crushing fight, and it’s no wonder people have questions. Things got to the point where even before his January arrest, people were questioning Davis’s interest in sports. Reports about talks about a second fight with Cruz, however, at least to some extent refute the thesis that Davis is not interested in fighting professionally.

This is obviously good news for Cruz as he now has a second chance to defeat the still undefeated Davis. The invigorating fighter most recently fought Lamont Roach to a draw in their December bout. Time will tell whether the fight with Davis will actually take place. This fight would definitely be fascinating to watch, even if it wasn’t exactly a great fight. If the fight becomes a reality, Davis will have the opportunity to re-establish himself as one of the biggest vigorous names in the sport.

“I won the third fight,” Fury told Gareth A. Davies. “But the thing is, I know if he gets up at the end of the fight, I’m not going to make a decision. For me, it’s like, I might as well give him the fight before we even start boxing. Give him a W and I’ll give him an L.”

Usyk defeated Fury twice in 2024 in hard-fought championship fights that decided the undisputed heavyweight title. The Ukrainian’s victories transformed the division and left Fury trying to rebuild momentum in the final stage of his career.

When the discussion turned to the scoring of these fights, Fury made it clear that he still viewed the outcome differently from the official verdicts.

“And like I said, I thought I won that fight,” Fury said. “But you know what he did? That’s someone else’s opinion again.”

Fury’s comments suggest that from his perspective the debate surrounding these fights remains unresolved. Instead of treating the defeats as decisive setbacks, the former champion still doubts whether a third meeting would have produced a different outcome on the scorecards.

This lingering doubt keeps the trilogy discussion alive even as the heavyweight landscape moves forward with other matchups. Fury has talked about returning to winning form and then fighting main fights again, but his comments show that the controversy surrounding Usyk’s decision has not abated.

For Fury, the conclusion remains the same: if he doesn’t stop Usyk, he doubts the judges would award him the victory.

World Boxing News first reported on Dominican fighter Alexis Rafael Castillo Sanchez after he set one of the most remarkable records in current boxing by losing his first 40 professional fights, 36 of them by knockout.

At that point, it seemed like the story was over. Castillo Sanchez’s career appeared to be over in 2018 after a long string of losses that spanned over a decade in the sport.

However, official fight records show that the boxer later returned to the ring under a completely different name in his 40s.

Since then, Castillo Sanchez has competed as Alexis de la Cruz Shephard, adding three more attacks to improve a record that was 0-40 when the case was first reviewed by WBN.

All three bouts ended in consecutive stoppage defeats, bringing the overall score to 0-43, with 39 losses by knockout.

For two of these latter defeats, there are no confirmed match stoppage details in the official records, meaning the exact moment or method of the knockout was never formally documented.

Name change

The change makes the situation even more unusual.

The boxer, previously known as Alexis Rafael Castillo Sanchez, has appeared on recent fight lists as Alexis de la Cruz Shephard, which is a significant change from the name under which he was recorded earlier in his career.

World Boxing News determined the career continued after reviewing opponents’ recent records, where matching biographical details ultimately revealed the same fighter was competing again years after the original report.

Latest fights

The three additional fights occurred between 2022 and 2024, during which time Shephard was competing between the ages of 45 and 47, according to records.

In April 2022, Shephard lost by TKO to Dario Duran Gonzalez in Moncion. Four months later, he returned to Monte Plata, where he suffered another defeat in the second round against Emille Gonzalez Lopez.

His last appearance was on December 18, 2024 in Santo Domingo, where Shephard was stopped in the opening round by Omar Alexander Rivera Cerda after suffering a shoulder injury.

Each fight followed a familiar pattern from the earlier part of his career, which had already seen dozens of early finals.

An extraordinary record

When WBN first considered the case, Castillo Sanchez’s record was already distinguished by the huge number of losses due to stoppages and the length of the series.

The fighter started his career in 2007 and competed in many weight classes before finally moving up to heavyweight.

During this period, he faced a wide range of opponents, from first-time prospects to seasoned professionals, rarely lasting beyond the early rounds.

Additional fights recorded under the pseudonym Alexis de la Cruz Shephard extended this streak even further, creating one of current boxing’s strangest records.

Time will tell if his career will last beyond 0-43.

About the author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.