It’s not quite the same as being able to present live action, but Telemundo and All-Star Boxing refused to let four extra dates go to waste.

For the third of four consecutive weeks, the leading Spanish-language network will fill its Friday night boxing void with a modified telecast. Friday’s special edition of Boxeo Telemundo will focus on the career of Orlando Cruz, a member of the 2000 Puerto Rico Olympic boxing team and former two-time title challenger.

Among the fights that will be featured will be Cruz’s 12-round win over Mexico’s Jorge Pazos, live from the Kissimmee (Florida) Civic Center in October 2012. The fight itself was preceded by a wave of publicity, as the Puerto Rican southpaw served as the first openly gay active male boxer in the history of the sport with the story breaking earlier that month.

Cruz will join Boxeo Telemundo announcers Rene Giraldo and Edgar Lopez on Friday’s, reflecting on the pivotal moment in his career and life along with his favorite moments on the long-running network series. Along with his win over Pazos, the segment will also showcase Cruz’s very next fight, a 6th round knockout of Aalan Martinez in March 2013. The win was his fourth straight, all of which aired live on Telemundo and paved the way for his first career title fight. Cruz’s bid at becoming the first-ever gay boxer to win a major title came up well short, as he was stopped in seven rounds by then-featherweight titlist Orlando Salido in October 2013.

Five more wins followed, including another four on the Telemundo circuit in leading to his second bid at a major title, hoping to join Miguel Cotto and Ivan Caldeon as members of the 2000 P.R. Olympic team to hit paydirt in the pro ranks.

Cruz took the bout on short notice, with it coming seven weeks prior to what currently serves as his last career win, a 7th round stoppage of Gabino Cota in their October 2016 rematch. The risk resulted in his landing on the wrong side of a one-sided stoppage, as then-unbeaten lightweight titlist Terry Flanagan turned him away in eight rounds in their November 2016 lash in Cardiff, Wales.

The bout marked Cruz’s lone career fight in the United Kingdom and at lightweight, as well as the start of a four-fight winless streak. His aforementioned repeat win over Cota came at the tail end of a five-fight stretch which also included his emotionally-charged 7th round stoppage of Mexico’s Alejandro Valdez. Their July 2016 bout aired on Telemundo from the Kissimmee Civic Center, coming 33 days after the horrific terrorist attack at Pulse, a gay nightclub in neighboring Orlando, Florida. More than 100 people were shot with 49 people killed in what remains the deadliest incident in the history of violence against the LGBTQ community.

Cruz dedicated the fight to the families of the shooting victims and to all LGBTQ members.

All told, Cruz was 8-0 in Telemundo-televised appearances. His series success along with all that he continues to represent should provide plenty of cause for celebration on Friday’s show, which will air at 12:00am ET.

The show replaces what was originally slated as a live card to air May 15 from Mexico City. The date was among a four-fight block removed from the schedule due to the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Fight dates were set aside for May 1, 8, 15 and 22.

Telemundo was the last U.S.-based network to show a live boxing card with fans in attendance, which came on March 13. The show went on in Mexico City, allowing series content provider All Star Boxing, Inc. to complete its four-weekend block of fights in the 2020 early spring season.

The All-Star Boxing team–which is based in Miami—had the option of staging closed-doors events in Florida, per a state ruling which deemed combat sports as an essential business. The controversial order, declared by state governor Ron DeSantis paved the way for WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) to host this year’s offering of its long-running annual Wrestlemania shows live from a closed-doors venue in Winter Park, Florida.

While the brass at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have since followed suit—with a show last Saturday and two more coming Wednesday and this Saturday, respectively—there has yet to be any takers from the boxing community.

All-Star Boxing, Inc. was due to air a show on May 8 live from Osceola Heritage Park (OHP) in Kissimmee and could’ve seized the opportunity to host a card without fans in attendance. Instead, they chose to err on the side of health and safety.

“My elder father is vulnerable to this virus by even asymptomatic folks,” Felix ‘Tutico’ Zabala Jr., head of All-Star Boxing told BoxingScene.com of the decision. “I'm in the boxing business because of my father, I do not want to put anyone else in harm's way.”

The promotional company was founded by Felix ‘Tuto’ Zabala, Sr., who was instrumental in the launch of Boxeo Telemundo in 1989.

The hope is for the series to resume with live action in time for its summer season, which is currently slated to take place August 14 in Miami. Shows are also tentatively scheduled for August 21 and September 4 in Mexico, with a return to OHP wedged in between on August 28.

In the meantime, the network will continue to put its best foot forward with content such as what will air on Friday. The May 1 edition saw Telemundo showcase the series’ most memorable clashes in the longstanding ring rivalry between Puerto Rico and Mexico. Last week’s slot featured the career of Wilfredo Vazquez Jr., a second-generation boxer who graduated from the Boxeo Telemundo circuit to win a major title.

The four-week encore presentation block will conclude May 22, reflecting on the early years of Mexico’s boxing superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, who appeared on Telemundo in 2008 while under contract with All-Star Boxing, Inc. Alvarez has since gone on to capture legitimate titles in three weight divisions and currently serves as the sport’s biggest draw in North America.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox