I didn’t pick 43 year old Ortiz, he looks like Joshua!

Andy Ruiz Jr is adamant he didn’t pick an aging Luis Ortiz and says his opponent on September 4 is similar to Anthony Joshua.

“The Destroyer” defeated Joshua in six rounds before losing a rematch six months later. Ruiz has only fought once since the December 2019 clash.

The creation of two huge purses took its toll on Ruiz’s ambitions. The first-ever head of Mexico’s top division hopes a win over Ortiz will lead to another title fight.

Andy Ruiz Jr

“We are here again. I am grateful for another opportunity,” Ruiz said at a press conference. “We didn’t come here to collect someone.

“We wanted a tough opponent. That’s why we chose Luis Ortiz. He’s strong, he’s clumsy, he’s left-handed, but we had a long training camp. We will be ready.”

On his lone victory over Chris Arreola in the past three years since his brief title reign, Ruiz added: “The main thing for me is to stay busy.

“I don’t underestimate Luis Ortiz because he comes to fight. He wants to be world champion. On September 4, we will go on our feet. Let’s see who will win.”

Weight

Ruiz lost weight again after hiring a new strength and conditioning coach. The scales should reflect this 24 hours before the fight.

However, Ruiz isn’t as concerned as everyone else when it comes to how he looks in the ring.

“It’s nice to feel this fight. We know that this fight will not be easy. He has a different style than I’m used to, but we’ve been training hard in the gym to perfect our skills.

“He will bring. But we just have to do everything we can to get this win and win championships. It’s a big struggle for me to climb up the ladder.

“The main focus was on training my skills. This is not a weightlifting competition. So I was going back to what made me a champion in the first place.

“I’m not here to lose weight or look good. I just want to be a part of it.”

Anthony Joshua

In comparison between a veteran Ortiz and his old nemesis Joshua, Ruiz added: “I think for me this fight is similar to the Anthony Joshua fight, except he’s left-handed.

“We have a great team and we work hard. There will be a hell of a fight on September 4.”

WBN editor Phil has over ten years of boxing news experience. Follow WBN on Facebook @officialworldboxingnews and Twitter @world boxing news.