Andy Ruiz Jr.
By Miguel Maravilla
Former heavyweight world champion Andy Ruiz Jr. (34-2, 22 KO’s) of Imperial Valley, California returns to the ring in over year, this weekend as he takes on Luis “King Kong” Ortiz (33-2, 28 KO’s) of Cuba. Ruiz squares off against Ortiz this Sunday night at the Crypto Arena in Los Angeles headlining the FOX Sports Pay Per View.
In what will be Mexico vs. Cuba in the heavyweight division, Ruiz expects to bring it as this is the first time the respective nations will be going head-to-head in the heavyweight division in a fight of this magnitude.
Ruiz is coming off a unanimous decision over Chris Arreola last year in May in a fight that saw Ruiz get up from the canvas and pull of the decision. Not exactly the best of performances that night as he has been out of the ring for nearly a year. Prior to the Arreola fight, Ruiz had his period of inactivity dropping the unanimous decision to Anthony Joshua.
It has been over three years since Ruiz shocked the world by knocking out Joshua and winning the heavyweight titles at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
The journey continues as Ruiz held camp with his new trainer Rafael Osuna. Ruiz parted ways with Eddie Reynoso. Ruiz talked about the preparation under his new coach and how he has benefited in preparation for King Kong.
For his opponent, the Cuban heavyweight. Ortiz scored a knockout over former world champion Charles Martin early this year in a wild fight which saw Ortiz hit the canvas two times, before dropping Martin a pair of times in scoring the sixth-round knockout. Ortiz’s only two defeats came at the hands of Deontay Wilder for the heavyweight title.
What a wild ride it has been for the heavyweight division the last three years. From Ruiz’s knockout over Joshua, to Tyson Fury’s knockout wins over Deontay Wilder, and most recently Oleksandr Usyk’s wins over Anthony Joshua. With Fury’s semi-retirement, the WBC title is in limbo, as Usyk currently holds the WBO, WBA, and IBF titles. A win here, Ruiz will continue his run for a potential title shot as he understands the importance this fight represents.
With a win Sunday night against Ortiz, that will likely put Ruiz in contention for another world title shot down the line or a major fight. One thing is certain is that Ruiz will give and be in an action-packed fight and leave it all in the ring.
Follow Miguel on Twitter @MigMaravilla
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