JOSHUA’S REDEMPTION
AJ boxes clever this time to win on points and regain his crown
ANTHONY JOSHUA regained his world heavyweight titles in the desert against Andy Ruiz — and this time he boxed clever.
The Watford giant had been destroyed by the flabby but tough Ruiz in a massive upset in June, getting caught after looking to finish off his unsung challenger.
Last night Joshua showed Ruiz the utmost respect as he picked him off from long range. It wasn’t thrilling but Joshua boxed a smart fight, boxing to plan, not getting involved, using the ring. He deservedly won by unanimous decision after 12 rounds.
Clash On The Dunes? They should have called it Desert Storm III as the heavens opened on the day of the fight. After a week of sunkissed days and moonlit nights it had rained from central Riyadh to the ancient ruined city of Diriyah.
Never mind the kingdom’s propaganda, called sportswashing. Nature took care of the cleansing process. At least superficially.
It never rains but it pours in the desert. The first large splashes were the prelude to electric storms. As the clouds burst and the skies lit up, was it a worrying omen for AJ? Would lightning strike twice?
Would Ruiz send another paralysing bolt through Joshua here in this rematch, as he had done to take over most of the world heavyweight belts in New York this summer?
The downpour came and went, came again and went again in the hours before the big fight itself.
There was a canopy over the ring to protect the fighters from the worst of it but for most of those in attendance it was a case of reaching for the opaque plastic ponchos distributed in haste. Should they have gone to Cardiff after all?
When you build a 15,000-seat arena in less than two months there is no time to put on a roof. Mercifully their entrance came
apres le deluge. With an unusual show of patriotic loyalty the London bookmakers kept faith with Joshua as favourite even though the majority of substantial betting was on Ruiz.
Both men looked tense when pictures beamed on to the giant screens from their dressing rooms as they were having their hands wrapped.
In another screen shot of Joshua he was sweating so profusely that it looked as if he might be standing out in the rain.
I had never seen him as hyper as this before a fight. So much was on the line and so far from home.
But once the bell went Joshua boxed coolly, though he did look nervous early on. Ruiz was cut beside the left eye by a Joshua right in the first and as the blood seeped the wound became a target. But Ruiz uncorked a right of his own in the second and now Joshua was cut also by the left eye.
Joshua continued to move so much better without the muscle bulk and was boxing according to plan. Jab, move, another round in the bag.
But just when he seemed to be taking complete control in the fourth Joshua was caught by some sneaky shots in close late on. It was a reminder he still had to be careful. I gave this round to Ruiz.
The jab-plan was still working well for Joshua in the fifth, however, and that weapon opened the Ruiz cut again.
Then came the best shot of the fight so far when Joshua landed a beautiful lead left hook in the sixth. AJ’s confidence was growing now but Ruiz just brushed off that left hook and kept coming.
Joshua opened the seventh with a couple of big rights and the chant of ‘AJ, AJ’ filled the desert night. But Joshua was holding more later in the round as Ruiz, like a tank, rumbled ever after him, always looking to get rough in close. It was hardly a thriller but as long as Joshua kept boxing like this he would win comfortably.
Yet whenever it went close Ruiz opened up and he seemed to hurt Joshua in the eighth. Joshua’s trainer Rob McCracken screamed at him from the corner to go back to the basics.
That Joshua did in the ninth, moving more and using his long left jab again as he boxed to orders. His corner breathed easier. Only a late knockout could thwart Joshua.
It was a procession by the 10th. Joshua was virtually toying with the Mexican who had shocked the world just six months ago.
Same old, same old in the 11th, Ruiz chasing, Joshua picking him off and holding when necessary as he counted down the clock. The 12th was his lap of honour, on his toes…a little flurry of excitement.
Joshua said he would not celebrate at the final bell because he was only winning back what he felt he should never have lost in the first place. Sure enough, he did not raise his arms at the final bell, but it was thank you and goodnight.