Anthony Joshua's bid to make a splash in his US debut ended in misery for the four belt heavyweight world champion with a stunning loss to underdog Andy Ruiz at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.
Ruiz recorded a monster upset, knocking down Britain's Joshua four times to take the World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation, International Boxing Organization and World Boxing Organization titles.
Ruiz came into the fight as a massive 20-1 underdog. But he won it in the middle of the seventh round when the referee stopped it at 1:26 of the round after the fourth knockdown.
Ruiz, sent to the canvas once himself, knocked Joshua down twice in the third round and twice more in the seventh.
Joshua had a massive height and reach advantage as he weighed in at a chiselled 255 pounds compared to the portly Ruiz, who beefed up to 268 pounds compared to 250 for his most recent fight.
Ruiz, who has won four fights in a row, looked fearless and poised while Joshua -- who had won all 22 of his previous bouts -- never seemed to recover from the first knockdown early in the third.
“AJ got sloppy. It was a beautiful combination in the third round. He was in total control of the fight but he got sloppy and never recovered. Listen, tonight was his night but AJ will come back 100% and we will make the rematch in the U.K. in November or December," said Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn.
But this night now belongs to Andy Ruiz, he made history in the heavyweight division tonight. It will go down in history as a very big one. AJ has the heart of a lion and will come back stronger. Now at least we know the opponent for the end of the year in the U.K. Absolutely we will enact the immediate rematch. He will be devastated when it sinks in. It makes the fall fight a must win.”
2023-10-23 09:29:24
