Andy Ruiz Jr will bid to rekindle memories of that famous upset of Anthony Joshua after the official weights were announced for Sunday night’s huge showdown vs Luis Ortiz in Los Angeles.
Ruiz Jr (34-2) will face Ortiz in a WBC heavyweight title eliminator at Crypto.com Arena – the bout airs as a FOX Sports pay-per-view at a cost of $74.99.
Ruiz vs Ortiz weights
On Saturday he tipped the scales at 268lbs (19st 2lbs) at the official weigh-in – exactly the same number as when he stopped Joshua to win the IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight titles at Madison Square Garden in June 2019.
Six months after that Ruiz turned up in Saudi Arabia at a flabby 283lbs for the rematch with Joshua, and dropped his newly-won titles in a disappointing decision defeat.
If putting on weight absolutely didn’t work for Ruiz then it appeared losing a load didn’t either – he scaled a trim 256lbs for his next fight vs Chris Arreola last May. He duly won a decision after an early scare, but recently said he would in future prepare for boxing not a bodybuilding contest.
Well on Saturday he proved as good as his word, going back to the same sort of physique he displayed for that first fight with Joshua back in 2019.
Ortiz almost two stones lighter
Ortiz meanwhile, now 43 years old and with a record of 33-2, represents a major challenge for Ruiz as he bids to get back to the top of the heavyweight mountain. His only two defeats in the pros remember both came at the hands of Deontay Wilder in world title challenges.
‘King Kong’ weighed in at 245lbs on Saturday – almost two stones lighter than Ruiz.
The winner of Sunday’s bout is likely to face the winner of next month’s Deontay Wilder vs Robert Helenius showdown in New York – also a WBC eliminator – for the position as mandatory challenger to current champion Tyson Fury.
