By Jimmy Ayash
By now most boxing fans know that the Anthony Joshua vs Andy Ruiz Jr. Rematch is on. Even though the negotiations hit a bump in the road after the Middle East Showdown was announced, both Boxers and management groups are on board and excited/ eager for that post Fight check.
Some fans aren’t happy about the location of the fight, but most understand that these boxers are taking the punches in the face and deserve to try and earn as much money as they could.
Some are disappointed and are claiming that staging the bout in Saudi Arabia is a money grab. Well of course it is, these boxers aren’t taking life-changing punches to the face for the fun of it.
Maybe I should have started out with Andy Ruiz’s name when I first started this article. After all, he is the champion and his name deserves to have some respect on it. So it’s actually Andy Ruiz Jr. vs Anthony Joshua.
My Prediction:
I want to be clear that I do believe Anthony Joshua will reclaim his throne as the top dog in the division after beating Andy Ruiz Jr.
I don’t see this fight going the distance. The first boxer that gets wobbled will eventually get hurt again and lose this fight by KO.
Make no mistake about it; this is a firecracker, fireworks, Action, must-see fight.
The damage has been done with Anthony Joshua, even if he wins by knockout, he still has to fight Wilder and Fury to show he is the best.
The loss to Andy Ruiz, I think made boxing fans and casual fans a lot more interested in the heavyweight division, and Anthony Joshua may have indirectly Helped raise the pay days and profiles of the other top heavyweights by losing the fight at MSG that took social media by storm.
Think about it, Joshua is making just as much money for this fight, as if he beat Ruiz and is now fight Wilder for a Undisputed Heavyweight Unification Dream Fight in England.
Actually If Joshua Beats Ruiz & Wilder Beats Fury, AJ/ Wilder would no doubt rival the Mayweather/ Pacquiao Fight financially and possibly pass a staggering $1 billion in revenue.
No matter what happens, Ruiz set himself up Beautifully to not only take many more big money fights in the ring, but to also be a huge celebrity. He can easily make guest appearances, take pictures and sign autographs for the rest of his life and be very comfortable. Just from that one fight he has this past year on June 1st.
I believe a properly trained and healthy Tyson Fury is by far the best Heavy on the planet, but that’s a conversation for another day.
My Dream Last Night:
I don’t know why, but I don’t often dream boxing. Last night I did and boy did it startle me.
I dreamt that Anthony Joshua won the first few rounds simply by boxing and staying on the outside. Andy Ruiz stayed patient and lost a few rounds only trying to set up a KO punch similar to the strategy of George Foreman’s second boxing career.
Andy Ruiz’s height and weight limits him on the type of strategy he can put in play away.
In the 5th and 6th rounds we start seeing some action and both guys start trading. AJ desperately wanting the knockout can’t help himself but throw big bombs.
All of a sudden, out of nowhere, AJ’s gas tank becomes completely empty and he can’t breathe anymore. This allows Ruiz to sneak in close without worrying about to much leather coming back at him.
Joshua goes down a couple of times from Ruiz’s punches, but isn’t really hurt as much as gased (similar to the Oleksandr Usyk vs Tony Bellew contest). The crowd is stunned as we’re about to see a stoppage and as AJ struggles to get to his feet after going down for a third time in the round, the referee stops the fight and we have another shocker.
Photo courtesy of Ed Mulholland/ Matchroom Boxing
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