Andy Ruiz Jr. faces Jarrell Miller in a must-win heavyweight clash in 19 days on August 3rd on ESPN+ PPV at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. The two aging, chunky heavyweights will meet on the undercard of the Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov card.
(Credit: Matchroom Boxing)
Ruiz’s Last Stand?
If Ruiz loses this fight, he might want to consider retiring from the sport because it would end any hopes of him getting the trilogy match against Anthony Joshua that he’s been banging on about for the last five years.
Jarrell Miller (26-1-1, 22 KOs) may have the edge in this contest, as he looked much better in his last fight in a losing effort to Daniel Dubois on December 23d, 2023, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Miller lost by a tenth-round TKO but gave Dubois massive problems in the first six rounds.
The 34-year-old former IBF, WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Ruiz Jr. (35-2, 22 KOs) hasn’t looked sharp since his upset seventh-round knockout victory over Anthony Joshua five years ago on June 1st, 2019. It’s evident now that it was a fluke, catching the chinny AJ with a shot he didn’t expect and finishing.
Since then, Ruiz has fought only three times and has looked poor in each fight. In his last fight, he defeated Luis Ortiz by a unanimous decision in twelve rounds in 2022.
“I think Andy Ruiz vs. Jarrell Miller is a brilliant fight. Firstly, everybody knows Andy Ruiz,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to Matchroom Boxing, talking about the August 3rd undercard heavyweight contest between former unified champion Andy Ruiz Jr. and Jarrell Miller in Los Angeles.
The matchup is brilliant. Two heavyweights in their mid-30s are in a position where they can’t afford to suffer another loss to stay in the running for lucrative matches. Ruiz has bigger dreams than Miller, given that he’s a former unified heavyweight champion with the potential to bring in huge crowds for his fights in Southern California.
Eddie Hearn’s Thoughts on the Fight
“He defeated Anthony Joshua at Madison Square Garden [on June 1, 2019, by a seventh-round knockout] and has been looking for a big fight since. He’s been out for a little bit [22 months since September 4, 2022] of time,” said Hearn about the one-hit-wonder Ruiz.
“I actually think, speaking to [trainer] Bozy Ennis, who has got Jarrell Miller in camp. You look at pictures of him, and he’s looking in really good shape. That’s something that has been a problem for him in the past; that shape is conditioning,” said Hearn.
Even the out-of-shape-looking 333-lb Jarell Miller, who fought Dubois last December, would be pure trouble for Andy Ruiz Jr. Obviously, it’s important that the 36-year-old Miller comes into this fight slimmer and in better condition.
“I actually think this is a really tough fight for Andy Ruiz. It’s going to be all action,” said Hearn. “Jarrell Miller is always going to be on the front foot, always comes to fight, and Andy is a very sharp counter-puncher as well, but he’s been out of the ring for a long time.”
This is a very tough fight for Andy Ruiz Jr. because he hasn’t fought in a long time and has looked horrid in his last three fights. In his last fight, 43-year-old Luis Ortiz outboxed him, and he was only saved by the knockdowns.
“There’s going to be huge support for him in Los Angeles, but he better have hunger in his belly for this fight because otherwise, he’ll get overrun by Jarrell Miller,” said Hearn about Ruiz.
The support can’t save Ruiz if he can’t handle Miller’s high output and aggression because he will put it on him from round one until the fight ends. Ruiz’s ambition just doesn’t seem to be there anymore, and it’s believed he’s just hanging around for the money.
Fate’s Twist
“Jarrell Miller pulls out of the fight; Andy Ruiz steps in. AJ suffers his first defeat, and now they’re [Miller and Ruiz] fighting each other,” said Hearn about how fate changed Ruiz’s career, turning a run-of-the-mill fighter into a millionaire, setting him up for life.
“It’s a big fight for the heavyweight division. You’re seeing these great matchups in the heavyweight division now where the contenders are fighting each other, and I think it’s great for the sport,” said Hearn.
I wouldn’t go so far as to call Miller and Ruiz top contenders at this point in their careers, but they are fringe-level. It’s important for them. The winner probably isn’t going to get a title shot. If it’s Ruiz, he will need to beat someone in the top five, like Jared Anderson or Agit Kabayel, to put himself in position for a world title shot, if that’s the goal.
I’m not sure that it is. I think Ruiz just wants fights against Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury to collect more dough and then kick back for another one to two years until another nice payday offer falls into his lap.
“Not to just have guys fighting for the world title, but the top contenders in the division fighting each other,” said Hearn.
