Andy Cruz faces Abraham Montoya on July 18 after Albert Bell out

Andy Cruz will face Abraham Montoya on Matchroom's Diego Pacheco–Immanuwel Aleem card July 18 after his original opponent took a late substitute bout.

Cruz, the two-time Olympic gold medalist, was scheduled to meet Albert Bell in an IBF lightweight final eliminator, according to Bad Left Hook. Bell instead replaced Joe Cordina last Saturday against Abdullah Mason after Cordina failed to secure a visa for the TNT co-feature. Bell turned in a strong early showing before Mason stopped him in the twelfth.

Montoya steps up after Bell withdrawal

Montoya brings a 24-7-1 record with 14 knockouts into the bout. The 31-year-old has never been stopped and owns losses to Gabe Flores Jr and Tsendbaatar Erdenebat, though he notched a split decision over Antonio Perez in his most recent outing. Rick Glaser reports that Cruz, who suffered a surprise loss to Raymond Muratalla in January, plans to drop to 130 pounds after this fight.

Cruz's record stands at 6-1 with three knockouts. The bout takes place July 18 on the Pacheco–Aleem undercard, with no title shot reportedly at stake for the winner.

Reported via:

• Bad Left Hook — Abraham Montoya steps in to face Andy Cruz on July 18th