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Get results and full fight coverage here for Andy Ruiz Jr vs. Anthony Joshua 2 on DAZN.
It’s a special midday boxing mega-event, coming to you from Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.
Andy Ruiz Jr (33-1, 22 KOs) shocked the boxing world when he knocked out Anthony Joshua (22-1, 21 KOs) in June. Ruiz now has the WBO, IBF, and WBA heavyweight titles, and his first defense is an immediate rematch against the man he took the belts from. This is a title fight with massive implications for the heavyweight division as we near 2020, and also as we near another big rematch featuring Deontay Wilder against Tyson Fury in February.
DAZN and Sky Sports Box Office will have the event starting at 12 PM ET/9 AM PT (5 PM UK time). The main event is expected to start at around 3:45 PM ET/12:45 PM PT, with first bell at 4 PM ET/1 PM PT.
Join as at Bloody Elbow for live results and play-by-play of the fight. Offer your opinion in the comment section!
Andy Ruiz Jr vs. Anthony Joshua
Round 1 – Ruiz looking to jab to the body. AJ scores with a hook. Joshua goes to the body. Not much action early. Ruiz has a body shot blocked. Lead right from Joshua. He’s moing on the outside and not letting Ruiz inside at all. Ruiz with a lead right but Joshua lands a counter right that cuts Ruiz! 10-9 Joshua.
Round 2 – Joshua is pawing with the left and keeping Ruiz at distance. A lead right lands and immediately gets the cut flowing blood again. It’s beside the eye, not in a dangerous spot. But a cut this early is not good. They exchange but Joshua gets the best of it. He’s jabbing through the guard of Ruiz. They clinch, but Joshua backs out and cracks Ruiz. It looks like Joshua is cut now from the earlier exchange though. Joshua is continuing to jab. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 3 – Ruiz rips to the body right away. Joshua is moving well. Body shot again from Ruiz. Jab scores for AJ. Ruiz presses and scores with a left. Joshua is much less active with offence so far. Nice jab from Joshua. Another lands. Beautiful body shot from AJ following the double jab. Bit of a nothing round though. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 4 – Ruiz bringing it a bit more early, but AJ’s footwork is on point. AJ pops him with the jab, keeping Ruiz at bay. Ruiz does land his own hard jab though. AJ with a quick lead right that just barely misses. Body work from AJ. Ruiz rips him with a right hook and a jab. Joshua with a jab and a right hook. Joshua throwing more now, and scoring. Ruiz clinches. Ruiz with a big right! He’s pressing now! AJ clinches. Good last half of the round. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 5 – Slow start to the round. Ruiz wades into the clinch. He lands to the body. Nice jab from Joshua. Another. AJ with a nice counter right hook and goes to the body. Long jab scores. Another. Ruiz lands to the body, but not with much power. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 6 – Ruiz comes out firing. AJ responds and gets into a bit of a firefight. He immediately resets and goes back to the outside though. Jabs from Joshua. Body shot. He’s twitching the right hand but not throwing it, sticking to the left jab. Ruiz lands a shot to the chest. Joshua with a beautiful lead left hook, completely changing it up. Body shot from AJ. He’s still light on his feet halfway into the fight. He just misses with a huge right hook. Ruiz holds and is warned by the ref for a rabbit shot. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 7 – Joshua shifts to the left and scores with the jab. Ruiz steps in with a hook to the body. Joshua with that lead left hook again. AJ clinches. Ruiz isn’t down with it and is warned by the ref again for a questionable punch. Ruiz can’t find AJ’s chin. He just misses with a big shot. Right hook from AJ. They’re trading now. AJ clinches, but Ruiz pulls his arms out and lands a right hook in close. AJ clinches again. The ref cautions him for a bit as he beats his chest. Right hook from AJ. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 8 – Ruiz is attempting to close the distance early, with no success. AJ’s circling left and isn’t being cut off at all. Ruiz does land a right hook. Ruiz lands a hook to the body, but he’s not finding many spots otherwise. Right as I say that, AJ engages him and Ruiz gets his shot to brawl. He scores, but AJ ties him up. Ruiz has no time for that and keeps swinging. They’re separated, but he finally made his mark to a degree. Left hook from Ruiz. I think he took that. 10-9 Ruiz.
Round 9 – Slow start. Jab from AJ, but Ruiz continues to press. Another jab from Joshua. AJ tries to clinch but Ruiz just throws a combo to back him off. Joshua goes to the body and circles out. Ruiz look annoyed at all the movement. Joshua with a lead right and an uppercut. Ruiz fires back! Joshua smiles after he gets clubbed, acknowledging the shot. Still his round though. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 10 – Ruiz immediately presses but can’t land anything of note. Back at distance he does though, with a right hook. AJ with a body jab, Ruiz slaps him back with a loose left hook. Joshua is still jabbing but there’s not as much on them. Right hook and a jab from AJ. Ruiz isn’t allowing Joshua to clinch again. Joshua circles right now, making Ruiz miss. Jabs to the head and body from AJ. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 11 – Joshua digs to the body. He’s sticking to the plan, staying outside and popping the jab. Ruiz throws a wild shot that wasn’t close to landing. Body work from Joshua. Pretty jab on the back foot from Joshua. Ruiz lands a left. He can’t find his spot though. AJ pops him with yet another jab. This is a clinic in disciplined fighting. 10-9 Joshua.
Round 12 – Ruiz with a jab, one of the few he’s found the mark with. He’s pushing forward, because he has to. AJ is circling and jabbing. Hard right from Ruiz, he’s not done yet. Joshua lands a counter left. Jabs galore from Joshua, and he’s smartly just staying out of range. Left hook from Ruiz only lands softly. Right hook scores though as AJ circled into it. Ruiz wants him to step into the middle at throw. AJ ain’t having that though. 10-9 and 118-109 Anthony Joshua on my card.
Anthony Joshua defeated Andy Ruiz Jr. via unanimous decision (118-110, 118-110, 119-109)
Undercard
Alexander Povetkin vs. Michael Hunter ends in a split draw (115-113, 113-115, 114-114) – 12 rounds, heavyweights
Dillian Whyte def. Mariusz Wach by unanimous decision (98-93, 97-93, 97-93) – 10 rounds, heavyweights
Filip Hrgovic def. Eric Molina by KO, round 3 – 12 rounds, heavyweights