Ruiz has no deal with DAZN. Joshua fought on DAZN on a fight-by-fight basis and he also lost, and a loss tends to break most contracts fighters do sign with networks (if they have deals). If DAZN wants to televise the rematch, seems like they need to sign Andy Ruiz to a big deal RIGHT NOW. Otherwise, Al Haymon and Andy Ruiz could insist the rematch take place on Showtime PPV. Seems like an ideal opportunity for Ruiz. Mexican fans buy a lot of PPVs in the U.S. Hearn has been trying to get Joshua on US PPV for a while. Wilder-Ortiz II and Ruiz-Joshua II could both end up on Showtime PPV later this year. Depending on how many people purchase these PPVs (not to mention Pac-Thurman) could determine if the PPV model is really dead. Looks like we might be seeing a showdown between Showtime and DAZN this year, too.
Andy Ruiz hasn't agreed to fight in the UK. And Eddie Hearn has been trying to get Joshua on US PPV. If Joshua and Wilder would've fought, it would've been on Showtime PPV as well.
That's made me think...could Showtime and Al fight this hard? Chances are it'll go to purse bids (Unless they've agreed something in the first fight contract, I'm not aware of that though so please correct me if it exists). It could be a serious bidding war. Showtime will want to take advantage of Ruiz while they can and they'll also want to see Eddie's face when he loses rights to a fight involving his crown jewel. And Hearn is going to desperately throw the kitchen sink at this to stop Showtime embarrassing him. Ruiz's side are going to be so awkward to AJ's side. What we do know though is that it'll be on Sky because AJ MUST fight on Sky. It's only in the US where he hasn't got anything in place. I suspect AJ's side will win in terms of the purse bids, but I think Showtime will do everything to frustrate Hearn.
It won't go to purse bids. It's not a mandatory. Hearn always includes rematch clauses for Joshua fights. Usually they spell out how much the guy who scores the upset in fight one will receive for the return (and it's always less than Joshua), which is why so many people have declined to sign Hearn's deals. What the standard rematch clause doesn't include is the network televising the fights and the locations. Ruiz has no deal with DAZN. Hearn and Joshua always said they could fight on Showtime PPV if they liked. Joshua had fight-to-fight deals with DAZN. If Ruiz wants the fight in the U.S. (or Mexico) as he's said, it very well could take place somewhere like AT&T Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys play and where Errol Spence-Mikey Garcia just took place. The Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving day (which is always on Thursday), so Saturday night November 30 is free.
