Last Saturday night Anthony Joshua retook his throne as one of the leading players in
the heavyweight division by putting on a clinical performance in the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia against Andy Ruiz Junior in their rematch.
Their first fight saw many fans turn their back on Joshua after he suffered his first
professional loss earlier in June. Joshua had no excuses in the aftermath, he
went back to training camp to correct his mistakes along with producing an
effective gameplan to put into action to reclaim his fallen titles. While at the time he insisted
he was fine going into the first fight, after winning last Saturday
he later admitted he had an undetailed health issue that left him tired and drained
going into the fight. It was classy for Joshua not to speak on the matter until after he
had defeated Ruiz.
As for the rematch itself, it was a classical showdown of a boxer and a puncher, if any
of you guys watched my previous analysis in the build up to the first fight you heard
me talk about how he needed to go back to boxing finess for this fight, indeed he done
that and he done it well. Joshua had a punch perfect
performance, he established a confident jab early, he remained calm and focused,
and he brought the school of boxing to Andy Ruiz junior. Ruiz came into the fight extremely
overweight, while Joshua came in much slimmer and agile. I hope Joshua stays down at this
weight for his future fights, last Saturday he was no bodybuilder, he had the perfectly
conditioned physique for a boxer.
My personal opinion of the fight is I felt Andy Ruiz dealt a great disservice to the
heavyweight championship belts in preparation for this rematch, being a champion
is not about winning a once off fight, it's about reigning and defending that
belt against the greatest of competitors, and with that comes a great responsibility
of living the life of a champion outside of the ring, not just inside. I feel Ruiz
showed that he, at least not right now, hasn't got what it takes to reign as a champion
in one of the world's toughest sports to do so in. In the words of Andre Ward, all he
had to do was push the plate back for this fight, and he couldn't manage to do it, which
is very disappointing. But even with that being said, he still became the heavyweight
champion last June, and no one can take that incredible achievement away from him. A lot
of boxing critics, including me, can point the finger and blame his lifestyle choices,
but to Andy Ruiz it is entirely up to him whether he wants to bounce back from
this loss. All great champions lose, it's part of boxing, Ruiz can rise again if that's
in his heart.
I feel Joshua on the other hand proved to the world that he shouldn't have been written
off just after one loss, many fans turned their back on Joshua after the first fight,
a fight in which he provided absolutely zero excuses after, he dedicated himself to
training to get the titles back, he conducted himself like a champion when he wasn't one,
and that's why he's champion again.
As for the real reason why Joshua beat Ruiz last Saturday night, sure technically it was
a clinical performance from Joshua, but I see
the real reason being what each boxer did in preparation for the fight, Ruiz stayed
out partying, eating unhealthy foods, while Joshua
trained in the dark, that's the difference between the winner, and the loser. Winning
a title is one thing, defending it is a whole other
ball game.
The victory for Joshua now puts the perfectly laid plans back in place. There's no doubt
that a megafight is brewing in the heavyweight division, with Wilder and Fury scheduled to
have their rematch, the winner of that fight versus Anthony Joshua is looking to become
the biggest fight in Boxing since Mayweather Pacquiao. Things take a long time to come
to fruition in Boxing, but when things do begin
to come together, there's nothing quite like it.
Talks of a Joshua Wilder showdown began all the way back in early 2016, that makes it
nearly 4 years of marination, 4 years of fights on either side of the atlantic. Mayweather
Pacquiao in comparison was 5 years in the making, but the difference here is that all
the heavyweight boxers are in their prime. When
Mayweather and Pacquiao fought they were well past their best, when we finally get to see
an undisputed heavyweight champion, it will be one who's at his peak. While the three
major heavyweight boxers are certainly Joshua Wilder and Fury, we can't write off Whyte,
Usyk and Ortiz. As for Ruiz, I personally think that with the amount of money he has
earned and with the dedication he seemingly lacks,
he's gone from zero to hero right back down to zero. I'd love to be proven wrong, but
I really just don't see Ruiz deserving of a
heavyweight title shot again any time soon.
What do you guys think will be the megafight to defy this era of heavyweight boxing. It
all depends on who wins the Wilder Fury rematch, and if Joshua
can keep ahold of his titles in the meantime. As for the fight we saw last Saturday, were
you impressed with Joshua's performance in the ring. Do you think Ruiz can bounce back
like Joshua did. Let us know in the comment section
below.
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