By Miguel Maravilla at ringside
In a WBC heavyweight eliminator, former unified champion Andy “The Destroyer” Ruiz Jr. (35-2, 22 KOs) of Imperial Valley, California defeated Cuban Luis “King Kong” Ortiz (33-3, 28 KOs) over a twelve round unanimous decision on Sunday night at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Ruiz dropped Ortiz twice in the second round, but the 43-year-old King Kong survived. The pace slowed until the seventh round when Ruiz dropped Ortiz again. The scores were 113-112, 114-111, 114-111.
It was Ruiz who began to stalk when the southpaw Ortiz pumped the jab, later in the round Ortiz mixed up a combination that landed on Ruiz’s head. Returning the favor in the second round, Ruiz hit Ortiz with a short right hand, sending him to the canvas when he was up and continued to fight and dropped him a second time as Ortiz ended the round. A body shot in the third by Ruiz sent Ortiz reeling, Ruiz controlled himself by controlling the round. Hitting and exchanging jabs in the fourth, Ortiz kept Ruiz at arm’s length as Ruiz attacked and tried to land a slashing right hand.
Ruiz stayed close to Ortiz in the fifth as the Cuban continued to box and punch. Looking to land the right hand, Ruiz attempted to neutralize Ortiz in the sixth as King Kong continued to box and punch. The pace in the seventh round favored Ortiz as the jab was holding Ruiz, however, Ruiz connected with a huge right hand that sent Ortiz to the canvas for the third time. Continuing to pump the jab, Ortiz used the stick as he had a good eighth round keeping Ruiz away and limiting him.
The former world champion seemed to slow his pace in the ninth as he stalked by, Ortiz connecting with a solid left straight to Ruiz. Towards the end of the fight in the tenth, Ortiz continued to work on the jab that neutralized Ruiz and limited his work output. Heading into the championship rounds, the fight seemed close as Ortiz dictated to his pace, later in the eleventh round, Ruiz connected with a solid right hand that made Ortiz’s left eye swell. With the fight pending, Ortiz lurked and was busy as the two finished exchanging at center.
After 12 rounds, the judges scored a close fight 114-111, 114-111 and 113-112 in favor of Ruiz.
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