Andy Ruiz! Heavyweight champion!

S Clark · « **on:** 3 Jun 2019, 05:15 am »

Overlook a heavy fighter at your own risk. Considerably overweight, but not especially out of shape, the rotund Ruiz landed the big punches to put away the seemingly disinterested champ, Anthony Joshua. I don't follow the ring much anymore, but Ruiz clearly has skills to go with his power.

RoadTripper · « **Reply #1 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 09:39 am »

Ted Atlas: "Ruiz set physical fitness back 100 years".

hibuckhobby · « **Reply #2 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 01:35 pm »

This might be good for Joshua. Get him refocused and disabuse him of the idea he can't be beaten.
Hibuck….

dB Cooper · « **Reply #3 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 02:20 pm »

hibuck,
It might be. It might also be good for boxing. Now, Joshua is without a title and Wilder has one, which means he has leverage he didn't have before. So mybe that fight now happens, although it will no longer be a battle of undefeateds.

S Clark: "When you fail to take an opponent seriously, he becomes a serious opponent." - Old boxing saying.

Despite his talent, I never liked Lennox Lewis all that much because he gave up his title not once but twice due to lack of preparation against fighters who had no business beating him. We'll see if Joshua learns the lesson the first time.

Somewhere, Butterbean is smiling.

Goosepond · « **Reply #4 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 03:02 pm »

Oh, I love watching two idiots beating each other's brains out!

Gene

Letitroll98 · « **Reply #5 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 06:00 pm »

Quote from: RoadTripper on 3 Jun 2019, 09:39 am

Ted Atlas: "Ruiz set physical fitness back 100 years".

And the state of professional boxing these days. I've always liked that Ruiz breaks the mold and yet has real boxing skills, not just a brawler. But this guy wouldn't have ever gotten close to Ali in his prime, Ali would have been criticized for fighting another bum of the month. Boxing is just about dead.

fredgarvin · « **Reply #6 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 06:25 pm »

Quote from: S Clark on 3 Jun 2019, 05:15 am

Overlook a heavy fighter at your own risk. Considerably overweight, but not especially out of shape, the rotund Ruiz landed the big punches to put away the seemingly disinterested champ, Anthony Joshua. I don't follow the ring much anymore, but Ruiz clearly has skills to go with his power.

Yes he does, and he showed a good chin as well. Joshua has been accused of a weak chin before, he showed that in this one.

OzarkTom · « **Reply #7 on:** 3 Jun 2019, 06:40 pm »

Quote from: Letitroll98 on 3 Jun 2019, 06:00 pm

And the state of professional boxing these days. I've always liked that Ruiz breaks the mold and yet has real boxing skills, not just a brawler. But this guy wouldn't have ever gotten close to Ali in his prime, Ali would have been criticized for fighting another bum of the month. Boxing is just about dead.

+1

dB Cooper · « **Reply #8 on:** 7 Jun 2019, 10:51 pm »

Quote from: Letitroll98 on 3 Jun 2019, 06:00 pm

And the state of professional boxing these days. I've always liked that Ruiz breaks the mold and yet has real boxing skills, not just a brawler. But this guy wouldn't have ever gotten close to Ali in his prime, Ali would have been criticized for fighting another bum of the month.

Forget Ali, he probably wouldn't have gotten close to Joshua if he had prepared properly (although, to be fair, Ruiz was a late sub for a guy with a different style who failed his drug test).

Quote

Boxing is just about dead.

Yes, it is.

Bad decisions. Fighters with rigged records. Fights that never get made because of politics (promoters/sanctioning bodies, or networks). For some reason, Floyd ducking Pacquiao for five years comes to mind despite hardly being unique.