Ruiz is far more athletic than people would believe. Fast reflexes, blistering hands, good agility. Yes, better than Joshua in some respects. If he got in shape, he could be even better.
This. Ruiz wasn't ranked in the top 10 if I remember correctly. Joshua foolishly tried to force a knockout against a durable opponent, which was a big mistake. Joshua and his team clearly looked passed Ruiz. If Joshua and his team would've did any research on Ruiz they would've known that Ruiz struggles with movement, but when it comes to standing in the middle of the ring and exchanging punches Ruiz does really well, since he has a cinder block for a head and isn't afraid to let his hands go.
This. You only have to watch a few minutes of Ruiz's fights to note his fast twitch reflexes and smooth combination punching. There is lots of video out there of Ruiz doing various calisthenics and floor drills and he has deceptive agility and hand and foot speed, especially for an endo/meso of his proportions! I have a feeling that he's surprised a lot of guys in sparring/fights because he is deceptively athletic and damn quick for his size. I do agree that if he somehow got his weight down into the 230's he would have better stamina/speed but may sacrifice some physical strength and punching power. Come on people, he doesn't pass the initial eye test but his physical ability and skills are plain to see.
Muscled and ripped AJ definitely looks far more athletic at 6'6'' 247 lbs сompared to 6'0'' 268 lbs Ruiz jr. But one thing Ruiz has over AJ is clearly his speed. And not only over AJ. Take a look at AJ vs Wlad and then AJ vs Ruiz. You'll see how much quicker Ruiz is than both AJ and Wlad, that's just different level of speed.
Ruiz has a lot of fast twitch muscle fibres and is highly explosive. He has a similar level of ability to Joseph Parker, but is naturally smoother and more coordinated in combination. His huge levels of flab affect him badly though.
Ruiz is one of the fastest HW combination punchers since Corrie Sanders. Very sharp and blistering in attack.
Joshua is a big stiff robot. Assume the saudis are going to let him roid to the gills like usual....but I'm not sure that'll make a difference as he's at such a talent and athletic deficit. Wilder quite possibly ends his life.
Ruiz has extremely fast hands because his technique of his punches are short, and tight from from the guard. I don't think he's fast on foot, but he don't need to be. That stupid bodybuilder just walked right up to him. I bet Joshua regrets that now! Beaten down by a chubby blob, who was probably scoffing his face in McDonald's a hour before the fight started. lol
I'm looking forward to the rematch after that fight I think we will know weather it was a off night for AJ or not.
