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03/12/2008 Archived Entry: "John Ruiz: Is He Back In the Mix?"
John Ruiz: Is He Back In the Mix?
By Ted Sares
Courtesy of Eastsideboxing.com
Photo by Juan C. Ayllon
My main thing is to go out there and win. That is what boxing is. You go out there and you fight and you win. It is not about looking pretty.
--John Ruiz
John “The Quite Man” Ruiz, 43-7-1-1, was 25-2 when he met undefeated David Tua in 1996 for the WBC International heavyweight title in Atlantic City. Tua was 22-0 at the time. Ruiz came out cold and was cold cocked by a particularly brutal and fully leveraged series of left hooks in just 19 seconds. It was the kind of brain-scanning inducer that could end a career, but to Ruiz’s credit, he regrouped. Three months later, he launched an unbeaten string of eleven fights including a stoppage of Tony Tucker and a SD of Jimmy Thunder for the vacant NABF heavyweight title. He also iced tough Ray Anis in one.
Then, on August 12, 2000, he fought the first of three consecutive big fights with Evander Holyfield going 1-1-1 but seemingly having the best of it over the more popular Holyfield during the course of the matches. However, the fights were not fan friendly and for many, Ruiz had a horrible style to watch with his continual clinching, sneaky short rights and roughhousing tactics. Ruiz’s unspectacular style makes it difficult for an opponent to look good, but against “The Real Deal,“ he was strong and solid and jumped back into the mix.
To read the rest of this article, click on the link that follows:
http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=14798&more=1
