Some fighters can bounce back from that kind of setback, many can’t. He must pull out all stops to hone his defensive skills if he hopes to become the fighter he was projected to be.Īnd, just as important, he’ll have to overcome the psychological trauma of such a devastating loss, which won’t be easy. His biggest problem appears to be his inability to avoid punches, as former champion and TV analyst Shawn Porter suggested. Valenzuela said he was surprised by De Los Santos’ aggression. Valenzuela (12-1, 8 KOs) went the opposite direction, from a budding star to a fighter who might not have elite ability after all. The quick-handed Dominican landed almost at will from the opening bell, which resulted in two knockdowns and a stunning third-round knockout.ĭe Los Santos (15-1, 14 KOs) went from a relatively obscure fighter to a major player in the deep 135-pound division. And then he met Edwin De Los Santos, a late replacement for Jezreel Corrales.ĭe Los Santos not only upset Valenzuela, he overwhelmed him. The lightweight contender was unbeaten and a rising young star as a result of his ability, controlled aggression and punching power. The fate of Jose Valenzuela on the Ruiz-Ortiz card is an example of how cruel boxing can be. I believe we’ll see Ortiz fight at least once or twice more. And he obviously wants to continue what he’s done most of his life, to make a good living for his family, to cling to his dream of winning a world title. ![]() Indeed, he performed well enough against Ruiz to get another meaningful fight, which was a victory of sorts. What do the people want? Do you think I’m done?” He seemed stunned that anyone would ask him such a question after what he believed to be a strong, courageous performance even though it was a reasonable query given his age and obvious liabilities. Should he retire? I wouldn’t advise him to step away based on his response when he was asked after the fight whether he might be finished. And they’re only going to get weaker as he moves into his mid-40s. Ortiz can still compete at a high level – as he demonstrated on Sunday night – but his weak legs are difficult to overcome. That’s what happened when Martin put him down with a jab that would’ve had no effect on him five or 10 years ago. The problem appears to be his legs, which seem to betray him when he gets caught. He can still take a decent punch without getting hurt badly. Ortiz has been down five times in his last two fights, including two knockdowns before he stopped Charles Martin in six rounds in January. He just couldn’t overcome two things on Sunday, Ruiz’s ability to take a hard shot and his own inability to do so. The Cuban can still box, can still think, can still throw a lot of punches, can still punch. Ortiz performed about as well as he could against Ruiz. It was a productive night for Ruiz even if it wasn’t a thrilling one.Īndy Ruiz Jr. Thus, Ruiz has reason to be satisfied that he exited the ring with a victory, one that could lead directly to a massive fight against former champion Deontay Wilder if Wilder defeats Robert Helenius on Oct. And it appeared that the issues weren’t fully resolved against Ortiz, who is a particularly clever southpaw with fight-ending power. He reportedly had problems adjusting to southpaw sparring partners early in camp. Ruiz had never faced a left-handed opponent before Sunday, which was significant. I believe there was more to it than sticking to a game plan, though. That’s essentially what Ruiz did, which resulted in the knockdowns and the unanimous decision victory. Ruiz (35-2, 22 KOs) would say “nothing.” The strategy devised by Ruiz and trainer Alfredo Osuna evidently was to box, wait for Ortiz to commit and then counter with quick, hard combinations. That allowed Ortiz (33-3, 28 KOs) to stay in the fight in spite of the knockdowns, winning six rounds on two cards and seven on the third. ![]() According to CompuBox, Ortiz threw 428 punches, Ruiz only 287 (24 per round). Otherwise, Ruiz did more waiting than punching and was outworked by his 43-year-old, weak-legged opponent in a lackluster fight. The former unified titleholder looked terrific for three moments, the moments when he put Ruiz down – twice in Round 2 and once in Round 7. If he wanted to make a statement, well, he didn’t have a great night. If Andy Ruiz Jr.’s only goal was the have his hand raised in his comeback fight against fellow heavyweight contender Luis Ortiz on Sunday in Los Angeles, then he succeeded.
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