Andy Ruiz zeroing in on next opponent after loss to Anthony Joshua

Call him real-life Rocky Balboa, call him Cinderella, call him anything; but you must call him Champ... or at least former champ. Andy Ruiz is now officially in camp training for his next fight. He already has the month picked, and that's August. If you've lost count that's 6 months away.

This shows the mistakes he made outside the ring after defeating Anthony Joshua are well on the way to being fixed. While he's never been one to have major discipline he went off the rails before the re-match with the Brit. Way way way off the rails. You could even say his non-commitment to a structure is as bad as Deontay Wilder's excuse list for him losing Saturday.

With him already busting himself, it's a good sign because frankly in a division loaded with 6'5" plus killers, it's good to have one 6'2" that loves to throw hands. However, he's still calling his own shots right now. A decision on who will replace his now-former trainer Manny Robles is yet to be made. but it is dwindling down. He's spoken with Teddy Atlas and expects to talk more with the New Yorker. He also talked with Joe Goossen and Virgil Hunter. The word has come from his camp that an official decision will be made within the month. Whoever it is will have to jump into the pool feet first.

Andy hopes to drop his fighting weight to around 250. With his frame that should be a decent amount of weight. If he adheres to whatever his soon to be named trainer says; by the end of the summer he should be primed and ready to go. So who does he want his return against? Well, we know now who it won't be. Ruiz said he'd be willing to fight Luis Ortiz; just not his first fight back. He's mentioned doing the trilogy vs AJ, but that seems like a serious long shot as Anthony has to deal with mandatory's as well as wanting Fury. "THE DESTROYER" is ranked 5th across the board and the men above him are locked in, as are many right below him... with a few exceptions.

Another Brit; Dereck Chisora, has been rumored to fight everyone, but yet there seems to be nothing on the table as of yet. Joseph Parker is fighting this weekend so if he gets through it unharmed, he could do a quick turn-around. But there's a decent 3rd option not on too many people's radars. "BIG BANG"; the hard-hitting 36-year-old Zhilei Zhang. The southpaw would be an excellent first fight back for a couple of reasons.

First, he's a southpaw; and you always want to be tested by the awkward style they have. Secondly, his size. If he wants to get in there again vs AJ, wants a crack at Tyson Fury, and has said he'd be interested in fighting Wilder; might as well square up against someone with his 6'6" frame. And although the Chinese fighter has yet to be in there versus a big name, he can be useful in this spot. And most importantly, his under-appreciated punching power. He has 16 KO's in his 21 fights, so he can get into a rock em sock em type firefight if Andy wants. And he also is a champion. He's presently the WBO Oriental Heavyweight Champion.

Whoever Andy winds up throwing hands with you can easily say in his career; this IS THE MOST IMPORTANT fight yet.