Former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. is reportedly reuniting with his former trainer, Manny Robles, after five years. Ruiz (35-2-1, 22 KOs) found his best success with Robles, who led him to an upset win over Anthony Joshua in June 2019.
Ruiz, 35, split with Robles in January 2020, shortly after his defeat against Joshua in their rematch in December 2019. It was weird for Ruiz to leave Robles because he had done a great job as his coach. He was the one who turned him into a star and millionaire.
The Comeback Trail
Ruiz’s career has been in a freefall since leaving Robles. He’s fought just three times since 2020 against these fighters:
– Jarrell Miller
– Luis Ortiz
– Chris Arreola
Ruiz’s last fight against Big Baby Miller was a 12-round draw last summer at Turki Al-Sheikh’s event at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on August 3rd. Andy did not perform well, fading early and laboring to a draw against a fighter who was knocked out in his previous fight against Daniel Dubois.
That wasn’t the performance that Ruiz needed to be invited back for some of Turki’s other big cards, but he can turn things around quickly if he can beat two or three of the top contenders in the division. It would be fun to see Ruiz expose British heavyweight Moses Itauma. The Brits are crowning him as the next star, but he looks like a hype job.
The hand speed, power, and combination punching are still there for Ruiz. He just needs to get active and not allow his weight to balloon. It’s obviously hard for him to do because he made $10 million from his two fights against Joshua. It’s unclear how much of that nest egg Ruiz has left after five years of spending, but he’s likely still quite wealthy. With a couple of wins, Ruiz could double that if Turki is interested in him.
If Robles can light a fire under Andy Ruiz Jr, getting him to fight four times a year, he can capture the WBA ‘regular’ title and potentially lure Joshua or one of the other popular heavyweights into fighting him.
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