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ANDY RUIZ OPENS UP ON HIS HIDDEN BOXING CAREER

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RIYADH: Andy Ruiz has spent his entire life in boxing as an outsider. “Six years old,” the Mexican-American fighter replied when asked about his first time stepping into the ring.

“My first amateur fight I was 7 years old. That was in San Diego, California. And I lost, too. I was 7 years old weighing more than all the other 7-year-olds, so my dad had brought this other guy who was 12 years old because he was bigger. It was a hell of a fight, and I actually still have that videotape,” said Ruiz, now 30.

“My whole life I’ve been fighting big guys. I feel that’s where I got the experience, and I just thank my dad for always pushing me,” he said.

“Even when I didn’t want to box anymore, he’d drag me out of my room to train, saying, ‘you’re going to do something.’ That’s exactly what has happened,” he said.

“My dad had confidence in me since I was a little kid. He’d always tell me, ‘You know what? You’re going to beat him’,” Ruiz added.

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“The main thing he’d tell me was not to be scared … because we’re all the same, all flesh and blood. Just go in there fearless, do what I do best, and let my hands go.”

To say Ruiz was considered the underdog going into June’s heavyweight world title fight against the poster-boy of modern boxing, Anthony Joshua, would be a fair assessment.

Ruiz had had a month’s notice, had fought less than a month and a half earlier, and was viewed by many as unfit and out of shape.

As the world would later find out, such narrow-eyed judgment of his shape and build was flawed.

While the great and good of the boxing world questioned what errors had led to the ripped, 1.98-meter-tall Joshua being beaten in the seventh round by a “tubby” fighter almost 20 cm shorter, Ruiz was celebrating a job incredibly well done.

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“I think those were the doubters wondering, ‘what has happened to Anthony Joshua? There’s something wrong with him’,” said Ruiz.

“But truly I think it was my style, the way I handled him, and that I took his punches. He gave me the hardest punches he has and I ate them,” he added.

“We watched it a lot (since) to correct the mistakes I did and see the things I needed to do more,” Ruiz said.

“I think I lacked the pressure. The fight could’ve been over sooner, but I think I let it slide a little bit,” he added.

“They (people) look at me now and are like, ‘man, if Andy Ruiz did it, I could do it.’ I’ve got to motivate people and let them know that everything is possible, but you’ve got to train hard, you’ve got to work hard.”

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This weekend, the two men go toe-to-toe again in the eagerly awaited “Clash On The Dunes,” presented by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) and taking place in Diriyah near Riyadh.

Fan demand is huge, forcing fight organizers to release this week another phase of tickets, starting at SR999 ($266).

Fight week usually pops and crackles with insults traded and rising tensions between the fighters.

But the buildup to the jewel in the crown of the first-ever Diriyah Season festival has again proven how this boxing maverick moves differently than many of the biggest names in the sport, past and present.

“I don’t think there’s a reason to be trash-talking each other. I know that’s what the fans and everybody else want to see, but that’s not how my mum raised me,” said Ruiz.

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“I think I’m a different fighter from everybody else. I have respect for all the fighters. If I saw AJ (Joshua) right now I’d shake his hand and tell him, ‘How you doing? Good luck for Dec. 7 — best man wins’.”

Many hearing Ruiz say that might wonder how a boxer preparing to, in his own words, “go to war” with his opponent in only a few days’ time can be so jovial and warm toward his rival ahead of the biggest fight of his career. It is certainly a unique stance, but so is Ruiz.

June’s fight earned him a rumored $7 million. For Saturday’s rematch he will earn a lot more. Do the niceties toward Joshua derive from the fact that the big-reaching Brit changed Ruiz’s life, making him an overnight multimillionaire when they first met?

“Exactly,” was Ruiz’s quick response. “I respect the guy. I respect any fighter who jumps in the ring because we all risk our lives to feed our families. This is our job. Of course I respect the man.”

Since that night in New York’s Madison Square Garden, everything has changed for Ruiz. He has vast wealth, and is having to adapt to his newfound global celebrity.

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Asked how life has been treating him since then, he said: “Really well, a bit overwhelming at times but this is what I dreamed for, this is what I’ve been working hard for, this is what I’ve been training for since I was 6 years old.”

He added: “It’s not just great for me but it’s great for my family, my kids. Our whole lives have changed after June 1.”

His craziest big-money buys since then? “Probably all the cars I’ve bought. Four cars already. Two different (Mercedes) G-Wagons, the brand-new Rolls Royce, the Lamborghini truck. I bought my mum and dad a truck. Just having fun.”

Fun is fun, and even so close to such an epic boxing occasion, Ruiz manages to laugh and share a joke with those around him.

He and Joshua both arrived in Saudi Arabia last week, with the American’s 8,000-mile trip definitely the more arduous of the two.

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Asked how he plans to beat Joshua for the second time in seven months, Ruiz said: “I know he’s going to try and be boxing me around. I think that’s why he lost some weight, trying to keep me out with the jab, and that’s exactly what we’ve been practicing.”

He added: “That’s how we’re planning and exactly how we’ve been training: Being small, being more slick, owning the pressure, throwing the combinations, me being first.”

Ruiz said: “I think he’s still going to be boxing around four or five rounds until I bring the pressure and start working the body.”

-ArabNews

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Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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Boxing

Autopsy on dead Nigerian boxer to be conducted on Wednesday

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The body of Segun Olanrewaju, the Nigerian boxer who slumped and died in the ring in Ghana on Saturday is still in a mortuary in Ghana. The President of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C), Dr Rafiu Oladipo, informed Sports Village Square that an autopsy will be conducted on Wednesday.

He said that the NBB of C is closely monitoring the events in Ghana, even as the Director General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade has asked for updates on the sad incident.

On Monday, a delegation of the NBB of C visited the family of the late boxer in Sango Otta in Ogun State. Oladipo said he was still in shock at the death of the boxer who he considered fit having fought last December 29.

He revealed that one of the members of the Nigerian delegation to Ghana stayed behind to follow up on the autopsy.

He narrated that the late boxer took part on Thursday in the mandatory weigh-in which is normally conducted 24 hours before a fight. Additionally, a medical check-up is also to be conducted.

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“But in this instance, there was no medical check. On this ground, Oladipo blamed the Ghana Boxing Authority.

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Boxing

Tale of five Nigerian boxers who tragically died from ring injuries

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Like every human endeavour, sports have had an ample share of dreadful incidents. The latest is the death of a Nigerian boxer, Segun Olanrewaju over the weekend in Ghana.

The sad incident points to the risk attendant to boxing which in other climes, is a short route to wealth.  Every time a boxer steps into the ring, his life is often at risk.

The boxing rings have recorded a lot of casualties. An estimated 1,604 boxers are believed to have died as a result of injuries sustained in the ring.

Nigeria too, contributed to the sad episode.

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1. Homicide Ilori (vs Eddie Phillips, 26 June 1953)

On 26 June 1953, in a lightweight boxing contest between Homicide Ilori and Eddie Philips in Lagos, Ilori was knocked down in the fourth of an eight-round fight.

 He was aided out of the ring with some assistance and later complained of feeling “exhausted.” He was taken to Lagos’ General Hospital by Jack Farnsworth, secretary of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control, where he died of his injuries at 3:30 am.

 This made the front page of Lagos’ newspapers, including a picture of a knocked-out and dazed Ilori on the canvas with the headline “The Last Punch.”

Another newspaper in Australia, Daily Mirror in Sydney reported that Ilori was the third boxer to die in Lagos in the previous 18 months.

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Eddie Phillips, the boxer who knocked out Ilori, who was only 19 at the time, decided to

retire; stating ‘I will never wear the gloves again in my life.’” He would eventually return to the ring and fight again.

2. Asimi Mustapha a.k.a Young Ali (vs Barry McGuigan, 14 June 1982)

A Nigerian boxer, Asimi Mustapha whose ring name was ‘Young Ali’ fought an Irishman, Barry McGuigan, who knocked him down in the sixth round. He fell into a coma in London after being stretchered out of the ring.

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Nigeria’s Asimi Mustapha, aka Young Ali (right) in the ill-fated fight with Irish Barry McGuigan.

He was placed on a life support machine but would later pass away at his home, being survived by his then-pregnant wife.

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3. Nojim Gbadegesin (vs Kelvin Onwudiwe, 28 September 1991)

Nojim Gbadegesin, Nigerian flyweight boxer died after suffering a brain injury in his second professional fight. The 27-year-old customs worker, went into a coma after he was knocked down by fellow Nigerian Kelvin Onwudiwe in the sixth round. He died in the hospital in Lagos.

4. Chukwuemeka Igboanugo (v Prince Gaby Amagor, 6 December 2022)

At the National Sports Festival in Asaba, Chukwuemekka Igboanugo of Imo State received a punch in the chin in the bout with Prince Gaby Amagor of Anambra State. He suffered a technical knockout.

After being knocked out, Igboanugo collapsed while attempting to leave the ring. He was immediately taken out of the ring for medical treatment before being rushed to the hospital. Despite immediate medical attention, he was pronounced dead, with officials suggesting underlying health conditions may have contributed to his death. 

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5.  Sherif Lawal (v Malam Varela, 12 May 2024)

London-based boxer Sherif Lawal died after he collapsed in the ring during his professional debut.

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Sheriff Lawal died during his first professional fight.

The 29-year-old was knocked down by Portuguese opponent Malam Varela in the fourth round of a middleweight bout at Harrow Leisure Centre.

Lawal received treatment from paramedics at the scene and was taken to hospital but later pronounced dead.

The British Boxing Board of Control said in a statement: “Condolences to the family of Sherif Lawal following his tragic passing.

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“The thoughts of all those involved in boxing in Great Britain are with them at this difficult time.”

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Boxing

Trump, Tyson, Magic Johnson others react to the death of former world heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman

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Former heavyweight champion George Foreman (C) and his sons George Foreman III (L) and George Foreman IV pose during the Television Critics Association 2008 summer press tour in Beverly Hills, California July 9, 2008. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

Following are quotes and reactions to the death of American Olympic champion and twice heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman, who died on Friday at age 76 in Houston, Texas.

U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP

“George Foreman is dead. What a GREAT FIGHTER!!! He had, without question, the heaviest and biggest punch in the history of boxing.

“With the exception of Ali, when you got hit, you went down. He was something really special, but above all, he was a Great Person, with a personality that was bigger than life. I knew him well, and he will be missed. Warmest condolences to his wonderful family!!!”

BILLIE JEAN KING, 39-TIME GRAND SLAM TENNIS CHAMPION

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“Sad to learn that 2x heavyweight champion boxer, Olympic Gold medalist, and entrepreneur George Forman has passed away. He was a great champion and a good friend.

“He bet on me in the Battle of the Sexes, and acted as a bodyguard to help me after the match when the crowds stormed the court. Our condolences to his family. May he rest in power.”

MIKE TYSON, TWICE HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING CHAMPION

“Condolences to George Foreman’s family. His contribution to boxing and beyond will never be forgotten.”

MAGIC JOHNSON, FIVE-TIMES NBA CHAMPION

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“I attended so many of George’s championship fights over his career. He was a knockout artist in the ring, and it was a pleasure getting to know him not only as a boxer but as a man.

“After leaving the ring, he turned into an amazing businessman — I even bought one of the first George Foreman grills! Cookie and I will be praying for his family during this time.”

BOB ARUM, AMERICAN BOXING PROMOTER

“George was a great friend to not only myself but to my entire family. We’ve lost a family member and are absolutely devastated.”

FRANK WARREN, BRITISH BOXING PROMOTER

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“I remember in 1990, I brought him over here to London and promoted him here on his comeback trail. He was a joy to work with – he was a fabulous guy. Very, very humble in the way he was, had a lot of time for people. And he was a great fighter.

“He was part of that holy trinity of heavyweight boxers, with Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.

“The great fights they had between them were special times for boxing and world sport. They’re events that have gone down as not just boxing, but significant moments in the world of sport.”

WORLD BOXING COUNCIL PRESIDENT MAURICIO SULAIMAN

“I was honoured to present George Foreman the WBC Boxing green belt which my father Jose Sulaiman had ready and was in a drawer for more than 30 years.

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“Legendary boxing champion, life-changing preacher, Husband, father, grand and great grandfather and the best friend you could have. His memory is now eternal, may Big George rest in peace.”

MICHAEL BUFFER, BOXING RING ANNOUNCER

“I’m totally heartbroken with the news of my dear friend of more than 35 years George Foreman passing away. I’m finding it difficult to deal with. I’ll collect my thoughts and have more to say soon about a man that I (and so many others) loved and respected.”

FRANK BRUNO, BRITISH FORMER HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING CHAMPION

“RIP George Foreman… we sparred on a couple of training sessions and I could not believe how strong he was.

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“Many have their opinions of some of the top heavyweights ever but for me, he is certainly in the top group. To be a World champion in two different eras tells you how good he was… sad day for world boxing, a true legend.”

HOUSTON MAYOR JOHN WHITMIRE

“George’s journey from the streets of Fifth Ward to boxing and business success was an inspiration.

“He never forgot where he came from … Houston will forever be proud to call George Foreman one of our own.”

-Reuters

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