Andy Ruiz knows it’s foolish to think that Anthony Joshua will enter their rematch with the same approach he carried into their first fight.
The defending unified heavyweight titlist is also quick to remind the boxing world that there’s plenty of room for improvement on the winner’s side as well.
Ruiz and Joshua both met on Wednesday for the first time since the aftermath of their memorable first fight this past June in New York City. That night ended with California’s Ruiz (33-1, 22KOs) scoring an upset for the ages in knocking out England’s Joshua (22-1, 21KOs) to claim a slew of heavyweight titles in a fight he accepted on less than six weeks’ notice.
The rematch is now set for Dec. 7, to air live on DAZN-USA and Sky Sports Box Office from a yet-to-be-erected venue in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, where the official announcement presser took place on Wednesday.
“It’s time to turn the page,” noted Manuel Robles, Ruiz’s head trainer. “Dreams do come true but now, it’s a reality. It’s time to go to work.”
The session was the first stop of a three-city press tour, which will head to New York on Thursday and conclude on Friday in London. Both boxers will head straight to training camp from there, giving Ruiz more than twice as long to prepare for the sequel as was the case the first time around as he took the fight as a replacement to Brooklyn’s Jarrell Miller who tested positive for multiple banned substances during random pre-fight testing.
Joshua was more than a 30-1 betting favorite to turn back the challenge of Ruiz, with oddsmakers taking a hit. Sportsbooks have the odds much closer this time around, as handicappers have clearly learned their lesson.
Ruiz senses that Joshua has as well—and is already preparing for the best-imaginable version of the 2012 London Olympian and former heavyweight titlist.
“He’s more hungry, he wants his belts back,” Ruiz acknowledged of his heavyweight rival. “That’s what is giving me more motivation He’s training harder, I’m training harder too.
“I only had a month, a month and a half to train for the first fight; I have even more time now. It’s going to be a hell of a fight, two big heavyweights punching each other in the face. It’s going to be a hell of a fight.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
