Upon seeing the news, he called his promoter to get an explanation. After finding out the champion he signed to face passed on Bravo in favor of another opponent, the Arecibo, Puerto Rico, native said he was offered two other fights with world title implications.

That call has culminated in Bravo’s bout with Isaac Cruz for the rugged Mexican’s WBC interim 140-pound title in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions card on Saturday at Pechanga Arena in San Diego. Their 12-round bout will headline a four-fight main card on DAZN (8 p.m. ET; 5 p.m. PT).

“I’m here to fight,” Bravo told The Ring. “It’s everybody’s dream to fight for a world championship. I was just really waiting on somebody to give me the opportunity.”

The Ring’s Mike Coppinger reported that Bravo was the frontrunner to face Rolando “Rolly” Romero before he pivoted to a bout against Teofimo Lopez on August 22 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Romero lost his WBA welterweight title to Lopez by majority decision.

Bravo (24-1, 17 KOs) positioned himself for a bout with Cruz after notching a second-round knockout of Pedro Campa on January 10 in New York. With Campa pressing forward, Bravo, 32, connected with a left uppercut, then followed up with a devastating left hook that sent Campa (37-5-1, 25 KOs) face-first to the canvas 1:23 into the second round.

Bravo’s victory, a top candidate for “Knockout of the Year,” came one fight after suffering the lone loss of his career, a split-decision defeat to Xolisani Ndongeni in March 2025.

Mexico City’s Cruz (28-3-2, 18 KOs) will fight for the first time since his 12-round majority draw against Lamont Roach Jr. on December 6 in San Antonio. He won the WBC interim super lightweight crown when he beat late replacement Omar Salcido Gamez in a 10-round bout in July 2025.

Cruz, 28, was originally scheduled to rematch Angel Fierro after their “Fight of the Year” contender five months earlier, but he withdrew the day before the fight due to complications from his weight cut. Cruz defeated Fierro by unanimous decision in their 10-round, fan-friendly slugfest in February 2025.

Cruz won the WBA 140-pound title when he scored a dominant eighth-round stoppage of Romero in March 2024. The durable and relentless pressure fighter lost that title four months later, when he dropped a split decision to Jose Valenzuela.

“He’s a great fighter,” Bravo said of Cruz. “He comes forward. He likes to fight, you know? He’s a world champion because he can fight. … Everybody knows when a Mexican fights the way Isaac Cruz fights, and a [when] Puerto Rican fights [with] my style – I love to fight as well. It’s gonna be a tremendous fight.”