Anthony Joshua bout against Andy Ruiz Jnr could carry a lot of weight
- Briton makes his US debut in New York on Sunday morning (HK time) against the Mexican-American
- The unbeaten heavyweight champion comes in almost 20 pounds lighter than Ruiz
By itself, Anthony Joshua’s US debut heightens the revival of boxing’s heavyweight division.
Even as the madness of posturing over money by Joshua and potential foes Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury deservedly rankles followers, Joshua expresses patience with the process.
“The heavyweight division is going to be spoken about now, which is good,” the former Olympic gold medallist from England said this week as he prepared to defend his three heavyweight belts on Saturday night (Sunday morning HK time) at Madison Square Garden against former title challenger Andy Ruiz Jnr, of Imperial, California.
Fellow unbeaten champion Wilder this week soured the anticipation for a showdown with Joshua by agreeing to take his next fight by the early fall against Cuba’s Luis Ortiz. He followed up that announcement by tweeting on Friday that he has signed a contract to fight Fury in 2020.
Joshua (22-0, 21 knockouts) said he’ll strive to answer Wilder’s first-round knockout of California’s Dominic Breazeale two weeks ago with a more convincing showcase of his own talent against Ruiz.
“I don’t care who you are. You can’t not look at the bigger picture, and that’s what keeps me motivated,” Joshua said, noting that even Ruiz, his rotund challenger who habitually eats a candy bar before his fights, might be envisioning how victory will lead to “his Snickers deal.”