Andy Ruiz Jr appeared to be at least a year away from securing his second opportunity to fight for a heavyweight world title, but three failed drugs test from Jarrell Miller have thrust the Mexican-American into the limelight at a time when he would have only been expecting a domestic dust-up. It's a situation which Ruiz is unaccustomed to, with the 29-year-old yet to headline a major card in the United States, although that does not necessarily have to be considered as a hindrance as he prepares to take on IBF, WBA and WBO title holder Anthony Joshua at Madison Square Garden.
A failure to make the 2008 Olympic Games eventually led to Ruiz deciding to turn professional at the age of 19, meaning that the California-born fighter has just come through a decade in the paid ranks. Ruiz has been progressed as a relatively fast rate and opportunities have been provided to fight in Mexico, America and Macau, but he had fought no more than fringe contenders before earning a shot to fight for the WBO belt against Joseph Parker in December 2016. At that stage, Ruiz was effectively heading into unknown territory given the status and reputation that Parker had earned as one of the sport's top prospects, but the New Zealander was arguably fortunate to claim the win by majority decision.
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Much is made of Parker having home advantage with the bout taking place in Auckland, but there is also a debate to be had over what was in Ruiz's favour. The majority of the pressure was on Parker's shoulders, Ruiz possessed the greater technical ability and Parker is one of the smaller high-level heavyweights in the division. The opportunity was there for Ruiz to seize his moment, and while he can argue with justification that he was hard done by on that occasion, he could still have done more. There were moments in the contest when Ruiz's output dropped considerably, and it was the difference when scorecards of 114-114, 115-113 and 115-113 were read out afterwards.
Nevertheless, that can only be used as a learning curve ahead of the showdown with Joshua, although Ruiz does find himself in a position where he will need to be proactive. The size difference between the pair - both in terms of height and physique - means that Ruiz can only really look to get in close to let his hands go, which will inevitably put him in a position to be caught by Joshua. Ruiz had to adopt a similar strategy when facing Alexander Dimitrenko in his last outing in April, with the German possessing a three-inch height advantage. There is no comparison to be made regarding the different levels in power offered by Joshua and Dimitrenko, but it unwittingly provided Ruiz with a chance to use the mindset required to make any sort of a dent in the Brit. It could lead to an early finish - most likely for Joshua - although it should mean that the fight is entertaining for as long as it lasts.
Ruiz will take the positives from dismantling Dimitrenko in the manner which he did, but the downside is that it is probably the most notable of his 32 triumphs. Dimitrenko had previously been blown away by Parker and stopped by Bryant Jennings, and the defeat to Ruiz has relegated him to the status of a name opponent for some of the prospects in the division. Ruiz did what he had to do and did it well, but he is yet to show that he possesses the attributes to provide a threat to any of the elite names.
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Darren Plant
