By Mark Vester
The last time John Ruiz saw action in London, he was training with Lennox Lewis in 1994. Ruiz was heklping Lewis prepare for his first bout with Oliver McCall. Things did not go as planned and Lewis was upset by McCall in two rounds. Now Ruiz is the mandatory challenger to WBA champion David Haye. Their fight is expected in London during the first quarter in 2010.
“The last time I was there I was working with Lennox Lewis when he lost to McCall,” Ruiz told The Times Online. "I’m definitely ready to go back now; the fans were great back then.”
Ruiz saw action on the undercard to Haye's title win over 7'2 Nikolai Valuev. He was surprised Haye got the win in Germany. After watching Haye up close, Ruiz feels the Hayemaker is a very good opponent for him. Ruiz doesn't think Haye will be able to avoid him in the same manner that he avoided Valuev.
“It was a fight where there weren’t that many punches thrown, for me I’m a little surprised that Haye got it because I couldn’t get a decision out of those judges in Germany. I could see that Haye’s a mover, he’s a runner - for me it’s a good opponent. I’m a lot quicker than Valuev, a little bit more experienced with bigger guys and it’s a better opportunity for me than fighting Valuev again," Ruiz said.
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