Ruiz has just exploded the myth of the superheavyweight

Super heavyweights only exited in the minds of casual boxing fans. I never heard anybody refer to a 6'5 boxer as being a super heavyweight in the 70's, 80's, or 90's. Hell even in the early 2000's. That super heavyweight stuff came up in the last 10 years because idiots like Max Kellerman said it and then people at home who don't know boxing just repeated it.

Mike Tyson was 5'10 and beat numerous guys who were 6'5 plus. Nobody found it shocking. Evander Holyfield beat various guy around 6'5 plus and nobody found it shocking. If anything the taller you get as a heavyweight the worse you become. Real boxing fans always knew this. This is why the heavyweight division now is a joke. A bunch of slow as heck taller guys with no stamina. AJ losing didn't prove anything and the casual boxing fans will still believe that Anthony Joshua would beat guys like George Foreman, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis and others.

 

been preaching that for years... always knowing time would eventually prove me right.

 

the modern trend in boxing at the highest level (top 3) says otherwise.

 

they are also the worst top 3 since the start of the tv age.

 

You are absolutely right if youre talking every era till about 10 maybe 15 years ago. But over these recent times and especially today thats a small heavyweight. Any time before the last decade and a half that would be considered a big HW. Not in todays game.

 

Joshua has more experience against top level opponents than Ruiz has. He got dropped for the first time in his career in this fight, got off the canvas and beat the sh*t of Joshua. Whereas Joshua clearly looked panicked and shaken, Ruiz kept a cool head and showed a lot of composure to not get excited and punch himself out. Can’t see Joshua winning the rematch. He showed the same flaws in this fight that he has in All of his fights, he didn’t get away with it tonight though.

 

nice opinion, but it's irrelevant. they still dominant relative to their own competition. it's hard to believe that it's merely a coincidence.

but going further back, did Lewis, Bowe and the K Bros vanish from existence just now? Taller, heavier guys have been the most dominant since the 90's. That's not denying that boxers like Tyson, Holyfield, Roy Jones, Haye or whoever else can have major success and win titles. But in terms of sheer dominance and reigns, I think the SHW thing holds true. Mostly because reach is such a massive advantage if range and footwork are mastered in association with other strong athletics traits. Even if we're limiting that to the top 2 being big men with the rest of the pack around the 6 ft to 6'3' mark, there's still a separation between the elite and the sub elite.

 

He can win the rematch if he forgets about going for the KO. Joshua has always had a bad tendency to punch and then not move and get countered, Wlad used to do the same before he learned to clinch. Joshua has never learned to clinch well as he's always been the better fighter on the inside and we saw that when he dropped Ruiz but he stayed in the pocket too much and hooked with a hooker and paid the price.

So Joshua either needs to keep the fight on the outside and go for a points win, because as soon as he steps inside he's going to lose the exchanges more often than not. He can do that by either moving more or learning to clinch and smother Ruiz's counters.

 

That was very succinct. I just rewatched the fight and that's exactly it. AJ really is glassy. He should not be in the pocket vs Ruiz. Ruiz will dismantle him every time. AJ also cannot not take Ruiz's hooks, so he should stay the hell out of Ruiz's range.

 

there are many reasons why hw got bigger, in the time frame you you point out. one of them is the switch from 15 to 12 rds. hw is the only division where size instantly became more important than endurance. and in the absence of truly skilled fighters in the last decade, any 1 trick pony with size can win a title. ruiz had to do it with actual skill, and in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, there were dozens of guys of his caliber, and they were bigger too. andy is a well schooled boxer with fast hands, and thats all it takes today. the top 10 used to be well schooled across the board.
just take a look at the most basic things. rewatch any part of the fight and take note of the angle each fighter kept his jawline. aj, who is much taller, so should have been looking down at ruiz, forcing his chin into his chest. instead he fought the whole fight with his chin in the air, looking down his nose at ruiz.
while ruiz, the shorter fighter, instead of facing up to the taller fighter, kept his chin pointed at aj's shoes... chin nice and tucked. if you know what youre looking at, you get an idea of what level they are actually fighting at.
but enough about what i see, what do you see?

 

You just need a skilled boxer with the right size and abilities.
It doesn`t need to be 6`5 or 6`6 or smth.
Usyk is the perfect size and with the perfect skills and mindset. If Usyk get the right fight before Joshua and not rush that up, he will beat Joshua as well. He will destroy Wilder as well.

 

This.

 

Mike Tyson would k** Joshua. I think that is pretty sure now.

 

Meh, if Joshua could have defended his body vs Ruiz's body punches it would be a different story.

 

Muscles on chins!! I've said it before on this forum and been mocked by the usual suspects.