Anthony Joshua was knocked out by Andy Ruiz Jr seven years ago but went on to avenge his first career defeat six months later
Anthony Joshua was stopped by Andy Ruiz Jr
Andy Ruiz Jr believes Anthony Joshua has never recovered from the knockout defeat he suffered at the hands of the Mexican-American.
Ruiz Jr stopped Joshua in 2019 after being called up as a late replacement when Jarrell Miller tested positive for a battery of banned substances. Ruiz Jr upset the odds, climbing off the canvas before dropping Joshua four times en route to victory as he snatched the world titles from the Brit.
Joshua would go on to win back his titles six months later with a points victory over an overweight and lethargic Ruiz Jr. Joshua is now scheduled to take on Tyson Fury later this year – but Ruiz Jr believes he is still feeling the effects of his defeat seven years ago.
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“Long story short, my really good friend, who’s a doctor, told me that after I hit him with that shot to the temple, he wasn’t going to recover,” he told Vegas Insider. “This was like two months after I fought Anthony Joshua and I was like, what do you mean? I think he’s going to be good.
“And he was like, no, he is not going to recover. Every time he gets hit right there, something is going to rattle in his brain. And after he beat me, all these other fights he started losing. And so we’re like, what the heck is going on? But everyone still has that willpower and the warrior in them that they could overcome any obstacles and battles that they’ve been through.
“Especially with Anthony Joshua, all the things that he’s been through and he’s still fighting. He’s still breathing and that’s amazing. Especially him almost dying in a car accident. I don’t have anything bad to say about AJ, but just give me the trilogy so I can redeem myself!”
Joshua will first take on little-known Kristian Prenga in July before facing Fury in November. Fury has already had his warm-up fight, outpointing Arslanbek Makhmudov earlier this month. And Ruiz Jr said of the former world champion’s performance: “I think it was a good fight, especially for him coming out from a long time since he has fought.
“It was crazy because he was supposed to pick me to fight for his return, and he ended up picking the Russian. But overall I thought it was a good fight; but looking at that fight, I’m just like, man, if I was in there, it would’ve been a whole different ball game.”