A critical look at the past week in boxing
OKAY
If Andy Ruiz Jr.’s only goal was to raise his hand in his comeback fight against fellow heavyweight contender Luis Ortiz on Sunday in Los Angeles, then he did it. If he wanted to make a statement, well, he didn’t have a great night.
The former unified champion looked incredible for three moments, the moments in which he dropped Ruiz, twice in round 2 and once in round 7. Otherwise, Ruiz waited more than hit and was outmatched by his weak legs. opponent in a mediocre fight. According to CompuBox, Ortiz threw 428 punches, Ruiz only 287 (24 per round).
That allowed Ortiz (33-3, 28 KOs) to stay in the fight despite knockdowns, winning six rounds on two cards and seven on the third.
What went wrong?
Ruiz (35-2, 22 KOs) would say “nothing.” The strategy devised by Ruiz and trainer Alfredo Osuna was evidently to box, wait for Ortiz to commit, and then counter with fast, hard combinations. That’s essentially what Ruiz did, which resulted in the knockdowns and the unanimous decision victory.
However, I think there was more to it than sticking to a game plan. Ruiz had never faced a southpaw opponent before Sunday, which was significant. He reportedly had trouble adjusting to southpaw sparring early in camp. And it seemed the issues weren’t fully resolved against Ortiz, who is a particularly smart southpaw with fight-ending power.
So Ruiz has reason to be satisfied that he walked out of 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 October 15 in Brooklyn.
It was a productive night for Ruiz although it was not exciting.
BAD
Andy Ruiz Jr. (right) knocked down Luis Ortiz three times. Harry How/Getty Images
Ortiz performed the best he could against Ruiz.
The Cuban can still box, he can still think, he can still throw a lot of punches, he can still hit. He just couldn’t get over two things on Sunday, Ruiz’s ability to take a hard shot and his own inability to do so.
Ortiz has dropped five times in his last two fights, including two knockdowns before knocking out Charles Martin in six rounds in January. He can still take a decent hit without seriously injuring himself. The problem seems to be his legs, which seem to betray him when they catch him.
That’s what happened when Martin floored him with a jab that wouldn’t have worked for him five or 10 years ago.
Ortiz can still compete at a high level – as he showed on Sunday night – but his weak legs are hard to beat. And he will only get weaker as he reaches 40 years old.
Should you retire? He wouldn’t advise her to walk away based on his response when asked after the fight if he could have finished.
He seemed surprised that someone would ask him that question after what he believed to be a strong and courageous performance even though it was a reasonable question given his age and obvious responsibilities.
“Do you think I’m done?” he said. “You saw a warrior tonight. What do people want? Do you think I’m done?
In fact, he performed well enough against Ruiz to get another meaningful fight, which was a win of sorts. And he obviously wants to continue what he’s done most of his life, make a living for his family, hold on to his dream of winning a world title.
I think we will see Ortiz fight at least one or two more times.
WORSE
The fate of Jose Valenzuela on the Ruiz-Ortiz undercard is an example of how cruel boxing can be.
The lightweight contender was undefeated and a rising young star as a result of his skill, controlled aggression and striking power. His ceiling was high. And then he met Edwin De Los Santos, a late replacement for Jezreel Corrales.
De Los Santos didn’t just upset Valenzuela, he overwhelmed him. The fast-handed Dominican landed almost at will from the opening bell, resulting in two knockdowns and an impressive third-round knockout.
De Los Santos (15-1, 14 KOs) went from a relatively unknown fighter to a major player in the deep 135-pound division. Valenzuela (12-1, 8 KOs) went in the opposite direction, from a star in the making to a fighter who might not have elite skill after all.
Valenzuela said he was surprised by De Los Santos’ aggression. However, it was more than that. His biggest problem seems to be his inability to avoid punches, as former champion and TV analyst Shawn Porter suggested.
He must go to great lengths to hone his defensive skills if he hopes to become the fighter he was projected to be.
And, not least, he will have to overcome the psychological trauma of such a devastating loss, which will not be easy. Some fighters can bounce back from that kind of setback, many can’t.
We’re going to learn a lot about Valenzuela’s mental toughness in the coming months.
RABBIT PUNCHES
Juan Francisco Estrada (43-3, 28 KOs) received surprisingly tough resistance from the relatively unknown Argi Cortes (23-3-2, 10 KOs) on Saturday in Mexico in what was supposed to be a set-up for a third fight. with his rival. Roman Gonzalez on December 3. Estrada, who hadn’t fought in nearly 18 months, was able to earn a unanimous decision victory but was never able to take full control of the fight. Maybe he was rust. He maybe he underestimated Cortes. Perhaps Cortes is just better than anyone realized. Most likely it was all three reasons. Bottom line: It was strange to see the great Mexican champion struggle to beat an upstart. The version of Estrada we saw on Saturday probably couldn’t beat “Chocolatito,” who lost a hard-fought decision to Estrada in March of last year. Fortunately for Estrada (43-3, 28 KOs) a better version is likely to appear for the rubber match. Estrada will have shaken off all the rust he experienced and certainly won’t underestimate Gonzalez, one of the best fighters of his generation. Meanwhile, Cortes (23-3-2, 10 KOs) became a player in the 115-pound division overnight as a result of his performance. He can box, he’s tough and he handled the spotlight like he’s been there a million times. He also has Hall of Fame trainer Nacho Beristain in his corner. Cortes suddenly has a bright future. …
I would pick Wilder to beat Ruiz, but would give the latter a chance in that fight because of his chin. I’m not sure anyone can withstand Wilder’s power for long, even Tyson Fury went down four times in three fights with him, but Ruiz has an unusual ability to absorb punishment. That, combined with his solid skill set and his fast, heavy hands, makes him a threat to Wilder. … Isaac Cruz (24-2-1, 17 KOs) had another impressive performance on the Ruiz-Ortiz card. The lightweight contender buried Eduardo Ramirez (27-3-3, 12 KOs) in an avalanche of power punches until Ramirez went down twice and was stopped in the second round. Is there anyone more fun to watch than Cruz? The 24-year-old Mexican now has two consecutive knockouts (including one against Yuriorkis Gamboa in April) since he lost a disputed decision to Gervonta Davis last December. I don’t know how he would fare in a rematch with Davis or against excellent techs Devin Haney and Vasiliy Lomachenko, but he would make them work hard for whatever they get, as we saw in the Davis fight. …
Abner Mares (31-3-2, 15 KOs) didn’t raise a hand against Miguel Flores (25-4-1, 2 KOs) in his first fight in four years, but he should be pleased with himself. The 36-year-old former three-division champion fought the naturally bigger and fresher Flores to a majority draw in a 10-round lightweight bout on the Ruiz-Ortiz card. Mares seemed to be on his way to a sensational victory in round 3, during which he hurt Flores several times with right hands. However, he then settled into a stick-and-move mode that allowed Flores to catch up with him late in the fight. Mares said afterward that he struggled with the weather and other problems, but that he put in a solid performance given the circumstances. I didn’t like his stance in the second half of the fight, maybe he was just tired, but he can still fight at a high level.
Gallery
Photos: Andy Ruiz Jr.’s unanimous decision victory over Luis Ortiz
