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UKRJoseph Parker and Andy Ruiz Jr are both on the move in The Ring heavyweight rankings after notching victories on May 1.
Parker was down inside seven seconds against Dereck Chisora in Manchester, England. The former WBO heavyweight champion fought back strongly in the second half of the bout though to pull out a close decision.
Ruiz Jr meanwhile was back for the first time in 17 months, and he too suffered an early knockdown. He was sent to the canvas by veteran Chris Arreola in Round 2, and was also in trouble in the third.
This is a new Ruiz though, some 27lbs lighter than the last time we saw him, and he came out of those deep waters to punch out a convincing unanimous decision in Carson, California.
The end result is a move up to #4 from #5 for Parker, while Ruiz steps up from #6 to #5. Luis Ortiz is the man who makes way – dropping down from 4 to 6 in the latest rankings.
The rest of the top 10 remains unchanged, with Tyson Fury the champion and Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder and Dillian Whyte the top three contenders.
Fury vs Wilder 3 for Ring belt
Michael Hunter is seventh in the rankings while Alexander Povetkin is 8 despite doubts whether he will continue fighting after that comprehensive stoppage at the hands of Whyte on Gibraltar in March. Oscar Rivas and Oleksandr Usyk complete the top 10.
The Ring heavyweight title is now set to be on the line on Saturday July 24 when Tyson Fury and Deontay meet in their trilogy fight in Las Vegas.
Fury of course had been lined up to face Joshua in Saudi Arabia on August 14., but that fell apart when Wilder won an arbitration ruling to force another clash with ‘The Gypsy King’.