ANDY Ruiz Jr vs Anthony Joshua
The long anticipated epic rematch between Anthony Joshua (AJ) and Andy Ruiz Jr is finally at hand and we are counting down to the ‘D Day’. The match which will undoubtedly be a historical and a crucial one as both parties have something at stake. Anthony Joshua in his their first match in June at Madison Square Garden, lost to Ruiz by TKO in the seventh round. AJ, in the first fight was put down four times and eventually stunned by Andy Ruiz. After the fight, AJ has been talking tough about a rematch, hence making it a revenge mission for him.
Prior to the fight, boxing fans around the world wanted AJ to fight Deontay Wilder or possibly Tyson Fury next. But after Andy Ruiz Jr pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport, it has really distended the showpiece division.
For now, both fighters will be going into the fight with the records below:
| NAMES | ANTHONY JOSHUA | ANDY RUIZ JR |
| NICKNAME | AJ | THE DESTROYER |
| AGE | 30 | 30 |
| HEIGHT | 6FT 6in | 6FT 2in |
| FIGHTS | 23 | 34 |
| WINS | 22 | 33 |
| LOSSES | 1 | 1 |
| KOs | 21 | 22 |
| LAST MATCH WEIGHT | 17ST 7lb | 19ST 1lb |
| WORLD TITLES | 0 | 3 |
| NET WORTH | $66.2M | $15M |
Although it was initially difficult to get a venue for the match. But with Cardiff’s Principality stadium of about 80,000 capacities as a favored venue, Andy Ruiz Jr opted out and insisted that he would not come to UK for the rematch. After a long negotiation, the rematch will officially be taking place on Saturday, December 7, 2019 at Diriyah, Saudi Arabia. Tickets of the match is currently up at the Diriyah Season website, and the cheapest priced tickets go for 100 GBP, which is around 128.69 United State Dollars and 46,457.09 Nigeria Naira.
In view of the fight, Anthony Joshua in an interview said that “It’s more of myself and I have to change. I’m looking at myself in the mirror and saying I know I’m better than my previous lose”. I believe it’s all about how you come back. When you go through a road once, you can do it again. So, I have a different challenge in my head. Andy Ruiz is still the same person. He will come game and I’ve got change some of my bits and bobs. AJ also added that he was 50 percent of the way towards a win, and just got caught. He concluded by saying ‘I feel was up against challenger at the time and, as I mentioned prior to the fight, I was only champion until June 1st. Andy is the champion right now, and that will only last until December 7th. “Until he has to put his tittle in the air, two warrior go to war and the best man will walk out victorious”.
Andy Ruiz, on the other hand, said “I don’t think AJ is going to try to go head to head with me, how else can I say this. But if he does, even better. I am confident about the rematch and I don’t underestimate my opponents. It’s obvious that AJ is going to come with a different approach. But like Mike Tyson said inside the gym, “everyone has a plan until they get hit”. Without doubt, I know that everyone has been looking for a reason why AJ performed poorly and lost. It was down to the style. Styles make fights and I’ve been calling AJ out for a while. I believe his style was perfect for me, and that tells why I plan to do the same thing”. Ruiz also made a disclaimer on the rumor that he has gone soft, saying that he’s looking forward to beating AJ once again.
I really think that the fight is going to be a cracker. And despite Ruiz recording a win in their first encounter by TKO in round eight, I really believe AJ will give him “a run for the money” this time around. Various odds have been circulating, with Ruiz toping the chart and some certain percentage of draw as 25/1 too. Please guys let see your thoughts on the fight.
Who do you think will win the fight? Share you views in the comments box below.