Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua’s introduction into the American mainstream market was supposed to be a done deal until a last minute replacement in opponent in Andy Ruiz Jr. not only spoiled Joshua’s coming out party but also put a halt to a potential heavyweight unification fight between WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder. On June 1, 2019 Andy ‘Destroyer’ Ruiz Jr. TKO’ed Anthony ‘AJ’ Joshua in the seventh round in Madison Square Garden in New York. The betting odds were in favor of Joshua who came in at -2500 and Ruiz was a +900. The logical theory is that major oddsmakers regarded Joshua as one of the better heavyweight champions on the planet and Ruiz was considered a minimal threat due to being a last minute replacement and also due to his small stature and unappealing physique.

Odds Analysis

The odds for Ruiz Jr. versus Joshua 2 are again not accurate, I base my reasoning on the fact that championship heavyweight boxing is a much more dangerous division due to the sheer force and impact of a fighter’s strikes. Also, one must take into consideration that Andy Ruiz Jr. Had an extensive amateur career (105-5) and Joshua had an approximate 48-3 amateur record. Anthony Joshua’s physique is not equipped for professional prizefighting due to being muscle bound which limits his range of motion, agility, rhythm, fluidity in movement, ability to adapt and adjust during dynamic movements and combination punching. Therefore, the current betting odds for this highly anticipated heavyweight championship rematch in Saudi Arabia are inaccurate and unjustified. The hot desert climate will favor Andy Ruiz Jr. due to the fact that he trains in Southern California.

How Will This Fight Play Out?

On paper the first fight appeared to be a no contest for Joshua but in reality this was not the case. That was Joshua’s first fight on American soil and he overlooked Andy Ruiz Jr. as a credible opponent and serious threat due to his fat physique and perhaps was focusing on his potential mega fight unification with Deontay Wilder.

In the third round, AJ landed the series of punches that dropped Ruiz Jr. to the canvas for the first time in his pro. career at 2:17 of round three, but Ruiz Jr. responded by applying forward pressure with his own series of punch combinations to drop A.J. at 1:48 of the third round and with seconds remaining in the round Ruiz Jr. dropped A.J. again by landing a series of punches against a helpless A.J. who was pinned against the ropes...he was saved by the bell.

AJ never recovered from the two knockdowns in the third round and was unable to get his feet under him following two consecutive knockdowns. Ruiz, took total control of the fight from the fourth round onward by applying relentless forward pressure with both variety and volume of punch combinations when he was in the correct range to do so for the remainder of the fight which ended in the seventh round by the referee calling a halt to the contest.

In the upcoming rematch I believe that Joshua will be much more focused, serious, determined, better physically conditioned and with a more disciplined and strategic approach in the rematch than in the first fight, but I believe that Joshua was peaked as a boxer and he cannot evolve into an elite level fighter in the heavyweight division due to being too muscular to compete in this dynamic sport. On the other hand, Ruiz Jr. will have the adequate amount of training time to fully prepare for the rematch and correct defensive errors previously made in the first fight and will be extremely confident to defeat A.J. Again. I predict that Ruiz Jr. will again be victorious against A.J. in the scheduled rematch on December 07, in Saudi Arabia.

Prediction: Ruiz Jr. via K.O.