Andy Ruiz believes Anthony Joshua is a different fighter from the night of their first meeting. In the summer of 2019, Ruiz caused a seismic upset when he climbed off the floor to drop Johsua four times before stopping him in seven rounds.
A rematch six months later saw Joshua apply a different approach as he boxed Ruiz from the outside rather than engage in any exchanges with the heavy-handed Mexican. The cautious approach was evident in Joshua’s defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in September and Ruiz is insistent that the change has made his former rival a fighter with a reluctance to attack.
“I wouldn’t want to destroy anybody’s career at all, but I can see him being gun-shy and hesitating a little bit, and I can see him getting hurt,” said Ruiz when speaking to Brian Custer on The Last Stand. “Maybe he’s a little scared of getting hurt because he doesn’t want the same thing happening.
“It’s normal for fighters, and I think he needs to get his confidence back. I wouldn’t say I ruined him. I wouldn’t want to ruin anybody’s career. He is hesitating. He’s thinking too much instead of going in there and being the dog.”