Andy Ruiz Jr. says he’ll be a lot fitter on May 1 than he was in his rematch with Anthony Joshua.
Ruiz, scheduled to face Chris Arreola on pay-per-view from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif., said on a Zoom call Tuesday afternoon that he expects to weigh around 250-255 pounds for the heavyweight fight.
That’s 28.5-33.5 less than the 283.5 he weighed for the second Joshua fight, which many cite as one reason for his poor performance in a one-sided setback. He weighed 268 for the first Joshua fight, which Ruiz won by knockout to win three titles.
However, Ruiz’s target weight range isn’t uncharted territory. He weighed 252.25 as recently as July 2018, when he easily outpointed Kevin Johnson. And he regularly weighed in the 250s and high 240s in the mid-2010s.
Still, Ruiz, 31, couldn’t be happier about his conditioning program under trainer Eddy Reynoso, with whom he began to work after the loss to Joshua.
“I’ve always been overweight,” he said. “Now that I’ve been dropping weight … in the right way, eating the right things, working on the right things, I feel amazing. I can do stuff I couldn’t do before because of my big gut. I had chichis (breasts), which wouldn’t let me throw the right punches.
“Now I’m more motivated, more dedicated to the sport. The sky’s the limit.”
Ruiz (33-2, 22 KOs) said he ballooned to more than 300 pounds after the loss to Joshua, a further testament to his bad habits.
He said the process of getting to his target weight – losing fat, building muscle — is a gradual one. In other words, fans shouldn’t expect to see a sculpted Adonis on May 1.
“After my last defeat against Anthony Joshua I gained to almost 320, 310 pounds,” he said. “I’ve been working slowly but surely to be around 255, 250. I don’t want to go too crazy losing weight.
“Now I’m trying to change fat into muscle, just working hard. The discipline is there. I’m staying focused.”
Reynoso, who also trains Canelo Alvarez, said that he agreed to work with Ruiz with the stipulation that he would stay on track in his conditioning. The 2019 Trainer of the Year said he hasn’t been disappointed.
“I talked with Andy and his entire team and they gave us the confidence that Andy would work hard,” Reynoso said through a translator. “He’s done exactly that. The focus is for him to once again become world champion.
“There are a lot of great fighters at heavyweight, but we all believe that with this hard work Andy is going to show who he really is.”
[lawrence-related id=18833,17054]
