Ruiz Jr. - the man who didn't look like a fighter was a real fighter and Joshua had no answers. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/48487939
One thing that differentiates the greats from the good is the the likes of Ali , Leonard, Robinson is that whilst in their prime, they didn't lose to no-hopers. Joshua will almost certainly win the rematch, but the way he was beaten (not a one punch flash KO) will live with the rest of his career.
Please do not think that Ruiz is a no-hoper. Do not be fooled by his body shape. He is a talented boxer-puncher with fast hands and good combinations. He also has a good chin on him. I thought that he beat Joseph Parker in New Zealand a few years ago but Parker got the benefit of 'home cooking'. I had a feeling that this was going to go badly for AJ for several reasons; a) Ruiz was a substitute boxer and AJ struggled to beat Takam when was a late replacement for Pulev. b) AJ was under pressure to get a result as it was his US debut and Wilder had made a big statement in his last fight. c) Ruiz is trained by Freddie Roach and you should never under estimate how good a trainer he is. Joshua should move abroad now and change his trainers. UK trainers are limited and one-dimensional. AJ has a big weakness with his head and upper body movement and going to someone like Virgil Hunter or Abel Sanchez, or even Freddie Roach should make big improvements. Sadly I don't think that he will.
I get what you mean. It is a bit unfair of me to call him a no-hoper as he is a far better boxer than me. Anyone who gets a title shot (even if a late replacement) has some pedigree. But I don't think he will be the next Rocky Balboa who becomes an all time great. If you look at some of the HW upsets of recent times (Buster Douglas, Oliver McCall/Hasim Rahman, Michael Bentt etc), they have been good, solid fighters. Able to earn a living, but would need a job when the boxing career is over. I place Ruiz in this bracket. He may prove me wrong. I wish the guy all the luck in the world, I really do. If he plays his cards right, he'll earn lots from the AJ rematch and possibly cement himself as a contender for whenever the big names need an opponent. I agree that AJ has looked vulnerable in many of his fights. He doesn't have the technical ability of Fury nor explosiveness of Wilder. Wilder still produced a near KO in R12 against Fury despite being near humiliated. AJ has often look a bit too gassed after the half way stage. I still think he'll handle Ruiz comfortably in the rematch. In terms of his position amongst the Big 3, it's difficult to say as all of them have their flaws. I think Wilder beats him in a punch out. Against Fury he always has the puncher's chance as Fury will be going for a points win.
