AJ: Ruiz not the guy I wanted to be fighting

[greg]

get your priorities in life straight my man, sleep can wait, posting on boxrec is far more important

ain‘t it the truth

[candyslim]

Because some people need protecting from themselves. We have seen just how vulnerable Joshua was in the Ruiz fight. Maybe that was an abberation, maybe it wasn't. Yes it's admirable that he wants to go back to MSG but it's also stupid.

If he does that and gets beaten none of those calling for him do that are going to give a sh1t. Some will delight in his failure as they have already. He isn't guaranteed to beat Ruiz in the UK but he owes it to himself to give himself the best chance.

He has one opportunity to win back those titles. Fukc it up and there may never be another.

I admire your loyalty to your man but you're not his carer. If he takes on the challenge and loses, so what?

Maybe he doesn't want a protected record? Maybe he wants to prove himself? Why should you deny him that? He doesn't belong to you.

No of course I'm not his carer but I want to see him regain his titles and go on hopefully to become undisputed champion. In order to have any chance of doing that he has to make sensible decisions. I'm not suggesting for a moment that he must give up on his US ambitions, only that he put them on ice until he beats (or doesn't) Ruiz then he can fight in the US again, knowing that if goes tits up again, he has another rematch option to fall back on.

If he takes on the challenge and loses that would disappointment me because I'm a fan, but at least if he loses in the UK I'll know he gave himself his best chance but simply wasn't good enough.

For the record I have been a Joshua fan for 7 or 8 years and a boxing fan for a little over 50.

[ewenhay]

I admire your loyalty to your man but you're not his carer. If he takes on the challenge and loses, so what?

Maybe he doesn't want a protected record? Maybe he wants to prove himself? Why should you deny him that? He doesn't belong to you.

No of course I'm not his carer but I want to see him regain his titles and go on hopefully to become undisputed champion. In order to have any chance of doing that he has to make sensible decisions. I'm not suggesting for a moment that he must give up on his US ambitions, only that he put them on ice until he beats (or doesn't) Ruiz then he can fight in the US again, knowing that if goes tits up again, he has another rematch option to fall back on.

If he takes on the challenge and loses that would disappointment me because I'm a fan, but at least if he loses in the UK I'll know he gave himself his best chance but simply wasn't good enough.

For the record I have been a Joshua fan for 7 or 8 years and a boxing fan for a little over 50.

Fair enough but you're just advocating a protected record which will nullify your other ambition that he is remembered as a great champion.

You can't have it both ways

[candyslim]

Plenty of time to put it right and win over the open-minded. Haters are gonna hate, whatever he does.

[gilgamesh]

I dont understand

Joshua wants to fight in the USA to avenge his loss. I say fair play to him.

Why are his fans complaining?

Because some people need protecting from themselves. We have seen just how vulnerable Joshua was in the Ruiz fight. Maybe that was an abberation, maybe it wasn't. Yes it's admirable that he wants to go back to MSG but it's also stupid.

If he does that and gets beaten none of those calling for him do that are going to give a sh1t. Some will delight in his failure as they have already. He isn't guaranteed to beat Ruiz in the UK but he owes it to himself to give himself the best chance.

He has one opportunity to win back those titles. Fukc it up and there may never be another.

A True Champion shouldn't be affected by Location. He should fight the same in any part of the World. As long as they breathe Oxygen, and drink Water, and it's a ring, it's a Boxing match. It doesn't become some mystical sport you have no knowledge of just because you're in a different country.

If you need everybody patting you on the back telling you you're their man for you to be able to perform well, you don't have a fighter's heart, and you never will.

[oogiebe]

Because some people need protecting from themselves. We have seen just how vulnerable Joshua was in the Ruiz fight. Maybe that was an abberation, maybe it wasn't. Yes it's admirable that he wants to go back to MSG but it's also stupid.

If he does that and gets beaten none of those calling for him do that are going to give a sh1t. Some will delight in his failure as they have already. He isn't guaranteed to beat Ruiz in the UK but he owes it to himself to give himself the best chance.

He has one opportunity to win back those titles. Fukc it up and there may never be another.

A True Champion shouldn't be affected by Location. He should fight the same in any part of the World. As long as they breathe Oxygen, and drink Water, and it's a ring, it's a Boxing match. It doesn't become some mystical sport you have no knowledge of just because you're in a different country.

If you need everybody patting you on the back telling you you're their man for you to be able to perform well, you don't have a fighter's heart, and you never will.

Couldn't agree more. I was applauding AJ at first when he said he wanted this in the US in NYC to turn the loss completely around. No credibility in this.

[candyslim]

Well I've explained myself to the best of my ability. Looks like we are just going to have to accept that we see things differently.

[caldo2025]

I don’t take AJ as being a reluctant star if you know what I mean. I think that he loves and craves media attention unlike some of the legends of the sport that found the press conferences and interviews being the worst part of the fight build up. Heck if I looked like AJ, I’d definitely be the same way. But I just don’t feel that we will be watching AJ fighting well into his 30s because it doesn’t seem like he’s fighting for history or a place in it.

I could be dead wrong. Hearn really screwed things up with bringing Ruiz in as the replacement in NYC. AJ needed to get a fight under his belt here in states before a quality defense. It was a lot to ask and hope for that AJ deal with all of that in his first fight in one of the most prestigious boxing locals. We shall see I guess. I hope you’re right because AJs been super for the sport.

I don't see it as Hearn messing up any more than Joshua failing to deliver or Ruiz fighting a good fight.

A champion should surely be able to fight in New York against a fairly low ranked challenger?

Unless you'd prefer that a champion only defends at home against guys who have no chance of beating him? That's not a champion in my eyes.

Nice point and you are correct I guess but we all knew that AJ was and is a work in progress and by no means accomplished at his craft. As a manager of one of the top two most popular or most marketable commodities like AJ, I think that Hearn was careless here. Maybe Hearn felt more confident with recent signees and Canelo’s stardom to take a chance on AJ’s future but I don’t believe that. I think that if Hearn could pick one of his boxers to be atop Boxing, it would be AJ. So I’m really in the camp that Hearn picked wrong and put his boxer in an awful situation altogether. It cost him and AJ a ton of money and put one of his best assets in a must win situation in the rematch. What if AJ doesn’t get it done in the rematch? I mean, he’s got to be all done I believe. His days of fighting in front of 100k in main event are over at that point.

[greg]

.. A True Champ should be able to fight anywhere and location shouldn't matter? Really? Maybe so....I keep wondering how many True Champs have we had over all these years?

[ewenhay]

.. A True Champ should be able to fight anywhere and location shouldn't matter? Really? Maybe so....I keep wondering how many True Champs have we had over all these years?

There was boxing before Eddie Hearn you know

[candyslim]

I think that is what they call a 'non sequitur'.

[Bandog]

AJ is still young, and he will bounce back. One thing I wish he would do though is to do the rematch where he lost the titles, like Lennox Lewis did when he lost to Rahman years back.