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Andy Ruiz Jr. didn't want an easy fight in his return to the boxing ring.
'Destroyer' is set to face Luis Ortiz in a headlining bout on Fox Sports pay-per-view. The bout is taking place in Ruiz Jr.'s backyard, as the event is being held at the Cypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California.
The fight is set to be the first after a long layoff for the former heavyweight champion. His last outing in the ring was against Chris Arreola last May in what was supposed to be a tune-up bout. Instead, Ruiz Jr. got everything he could handle that night from the veteran.
Ruiz Jr. was knocked down, but he ended up perservering to win the bout via unanimous decision. Following the victory, the former heavyweight champion decided to take some time off and change trainers in order to fully prepare for his comeback.
Despite the long layoffs and rough last outing, Ruiz Jr. decided to return against a top contender: Luis Ortiz. 'King Kong' is coming off two destructive knockout victories since his loss to Deontay Wilder in 2019.
At the press conference, Ruiz Jr. discussed why he's fighting Ortiz in September. He stated:
"I didn’t come here to cherry-pick anybody. We wanted a tough opponent, and that’s why we picked Luis Ortiz. He’s strong, he’s awkward, he’s a lefty, but we’ve had a long training camp and we’ll be ready."
Watch the Ruiz Jr./Ortiz press conference below:
Will Andy Ruiz Jr. defeat Luis Ortiz?
At the moment, Andy Ruiz Jr. is a big favorite in his pay-per-view showdown with Luis Ortiz.
'Destroyer' has been out of the ring for a long time, and his last performance wasn't great. Furthermore, this will be his third trainer in as many fights, due to him changing head coaches several times.
Despite that, Ruiz Jr. is a big betting favorite in his showdown with Ortiz in September. However, the line has much more to do with the latter than it does the former.
'King Kong' is still a good boxer — there's little doubt about that. However, he's now 43 years old and has shown massive signs of decline in the past few fights. While he's coming off a knockout over Charles Martin earlier this year, he was hurt and dropped several times in the win.
As of now, Andy Ruiz Jr. is expected to prevail on his return. However, as evidenced by most of his career thus far, the odds do not matter.
