Andy Ruiz Jr vs. Anthony Joshua II: fight guide, predictions, ring walks, UK start time, TV, odds

Heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr goes head-to-head with challenger Anthony Joshua on Saturday

(Image credit: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

By The Week Staff

last updated 6 December 2019

Andy Ruiz Jr vs. Anthony Joshua II

What: IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO world heavyweight title rematch
When: Saturday 7 December
Where: Diriyah, Saudi Arabia
Ring walks: 8.45pm (GMT) according to Sky Sports
Fight start time: 9pm (GMT)
TV channel: live on Sky Sports Box Office

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“I really believe Andy’s gonna go in there and do it again. When I look at the first fight and I see certain things as a fighter, a lot of red flags that alert me. And if that same mindset and momentum goes into the second fight, Andy Ruiz is going to win that easily. I’d prefer him to win because we’re in the same stable. When he wins we have the opportunity to unify the division. If Joshua wins, I don’t think that’s gonna be.”

“I see it a better fight than the first fight. I see Joshua winning the fight. I think it’s a fight where they’ll both push each other, they should bring the best out of each other and I don’t think Ruiz will have to make any adjustments to the first time. He just kind of went through him and that was it and I don’t think Joshua ever got started, you know? So I think Joshua will get started, I think Ruiz will be forced to make adjustments and I think they will bring the best out of each other and I edge it to Joshua.”

“I don’t know. I still think it’s a 50/50 fight. It’s gonna be a very close fight. Either Ruiz pushes the fight faster and goes forward because he’s taken his best shots. Or Joshua – you see he’s trimmed down a lot – he boxes him from the outside and keeps him at bay. I don’t know. I think if he [Joshua] boxes from the outside and uses his advantages. His reach, he used that very well against me, but I don’t have the same style as Ruiz, it’s a hard one for me to call.”

“Ruiz has the belts and everyone says once you become champion you’re 10% better and I think that is a fair statement. But I think Joshua will fight a totally different fight. When he had Ruiz down, all he had to do was take his time but he ran in with the wrong punches and put himself there to be hurt. This time we will see more poise. If he uses his skills and controls the pressure, I think Joshua wins the fight.”

“Joshua is expected to head to Saudi Arabia fully focused and the most motivated he has been in his career. He may step on the scales lighter to try and match the speed of Ruiz and up his output. His defence will always be a question mark but if he works on his footwork and head movement he can match the first 2.5 rounds in the first fight and go on to finish Ruiz in vintage Joshua fashion. Winner: Joshua via KO/TKO.”

“I’m split regarding this fight. It will either end in a knockout or on points and if it goes to points it means Ruiz wasn’t able to duo what he does best and throw clusters of punches and work the body - and that Joshua will have kept him at bay with his jab and won enough of the rounds. But if there is a knockout, I believe it will come from Ruiz. If Joshua stands there throwing combinations with someone who bases his whole style on trading punches and turns it into a slugfest, I believe Ruiz will do something similar to the first fight. If he [Joshua] forces Ruiz to take more risks it will open the opportunity for him to land a massive counterpunch when Ruiz is tiring. That’s the only way I can see Joshua knocking out Ruiz.”

“Oh, he’ll [Joshua] come back and be even better now, because [of] the realisation that you can lose. Sometimes you can believe all the hype and you just think you can’t lose. I’ve been in that position. You’re on the floor. The greatest thing is the embarrassment. If you can overcome that by way of friends and family, you’ll be better. When you lose a fight as heavyweight champion of the world, it’s not like you lost a fight, you lose a part of yourself and you got to go find it. A lot of times, the hardest part is you didn’t get beat, you just fell for the hype. People say ‘you’re so good, you’re so good’ and then you think ‘I let the people down’. But you can recapture yourself and understand look, I’m an athlete, I got to go back to the drawing board.”

“I think it [the rematch] will probably be very different. Despite much discussion about how Joshua didn’t look right or wasn’t at his best, blah, blah, blah, he sure looked pretty good when he dropped Ruiz flat on his back in the third round. Then he got nailed later in the round and suffered a concussion. That Joshua made it as far as he did into the seventh round and was still in the fight was impressive. He will be ready for the rematch and he knows what’s at stake. Joshua also knows what Ruiz is capable of, so I expect Joshua to be in top shape physically and mentally for his most important fight. Think Lennox Lewis-Hasim Rahman II [Rahman uspet Lewis in a fifth round KO in their first fight in 2001, and then Lewis got his revenge seven month later with a fourth-round KO in the rematch].”

“When they fought back in June, Ruiz was thought of as nothing more than a portly late replacement. But as Joshua found out, this was a book that never should have been judged by its cover. Expect to see a more disciplined and focused AJ this time around. Ruiz has been taking an extended victory lap and you just wonder - is this Buster Douglas 2.0? [Douglas surprised Mike Tyson to become the heavyweight champion in 1990 with a 10th-round KO victory but lost a third-round KO against Evander Holyfield eight months later and never regained the belt].”

“I think his last few fights have showed that his [Joshua’s] chin is a bit suspect, no doubt about that. Certainly the last fight proved it and that is something that’s always going to be there. I look at it and think what is AJ going to do? Is he going to box? I don’t think he's going to outbox him because Ruiz has got fast hands and I think he will catch him again and knock him out again.”