By Gabriel Princewill-
Anthony will have a brilliant Christmas after regaining his world titles in Saudi Arabia and returning to the top spot where he insisted all along that he belongs.
The undisputed world heavyweight champion will enjoy his Christmas turkey much better than Ruiz’s own turkey after he made a financial raking of over £65m and snatched back the titles he sensationally lost on a night intended to build momentum for a broadened fan base in the U.S.
Joshua was embarrassingly dispossessed of his world titles in Newyork by the quick handed Ruiz, a script he rewrote in Saudi Arabia .
The boxing world was split with regards his chances of avenging the defeat , given the fast hands and boxing savvy of Andy Ruiz Jnr who had sustained only one defeat in a 34 fight career at the time. Anthony Joshua regained his world titles with a disciplined and fight perfect performance by beating Andy Ruiz Jnr on points in Saudi Arabia.
The new undisputed champion used the ring well and kept his distance from Ruiz Jnr most of the night, out boxing him to a unanimous decision, and doing Britain proud. In truth, it wasn’t the most exciting of performances, as neither man was under any serious threat throughout the fight, but it was strategic in its approach, and complete in its final mission.
The Londoner did what he had to do to get the win, thrilling his millions of fans in the Uk and around the world by returning to the apex of sports premiere division.
Joshua subsequently put on a static pose in a kingly fashion as though to say ‘I am now the king again’ . His promoter, Eddie Hearns called him ”the king” stating that his man was written off by his critics, but has now proved them wrong.
CONTROL
Joshua looked in control from the beginning, beating Ruiz to the punch in the opening round and inflicting a cut on his right eye as the battle for dominance began. Lighter by nearly a stone, the Londoner’s improved conditioning added snap to his punches which flowed with force and precision as he sought to be in charge from the outset.
Displaying a new found ring movement , he controlled most of the fight from start to finish. Ruiz fought valiantly, posing a constant danger in the ring through his sustained probe to dismantle Joshua’s arsenal, but unable to penetrate Joshua’s hot and move strategy which was projected with eye catching shots along the way
The now two time champion stuck to a well planned script, using his physical advantages well, and working to frustrate his opponent. Opportunities by Joshua to follow up on some of the telling punches he threw on target were strategically skipped under strict instructions from his coach to avoid trading with Ruiz.
BULL
Ruiz who can be a bull on the offence with potentially catastrophic consequences was kept in check. Joshua at times did appeared to be running around the ring a bit more than would have been preferred by hard core critics, but this was embodied in a plan designed to trade off aesthetics for the longer term interest of ultimate victory.
The manner of his Mohammed Ali like mobility which was a refreshing transformation from his previous style of fighting disrupted his opponent’s game plan. Trading with Ruiz was always going to be a risky option after the U.S born Mexican bulldozed his way to an unlikely victory in Madison Garden, dropping Britain’s golden boy four times in the process.
It did not help Ruiz’s cause that he added nearly a stone to the already heavy weight of 19.2 stone the first time, after misleading pictures in the build up to the rematch suggested he was trimming down. Ruiz had indicated plans to lose weight and be lighter on his feet and also appeared to publish images of himself on social media that revealed a much trimmer figure.
He likely succumbed to ill advise not to lose the weight, influencing him to pile up the pounds in the misguided belief it will increase his chances of repeating the first victory he enjoyed.
For 6 months, Joshua’s profile fell dramatically following the loss which the revived world champion has now attributed to draining effect he felt before the fight. Ruiz was always a risky choice for Joshua that ill fated night in Madison Square garden, but at least he has attained redemption in victory, which is why he could shout ”two time champ”!He must work hard to stay there.