ANDY RUIZ JR returns to the ring for the first time in 18-months when he takes on Chris Arreola next month.
The former unified heavyweight champion hasn’t fought since losing his rematch with Anthony Joshua in December 2019 in Saudi Arabia.
Ruiz Jr would later blame his partying and weight gain as he surrendered the belts back to AJ with a whimper.
But the 31-year-old has got himself back into fighting shape as he looks to get his career back on the right track.
And he will fancy his chances of earning his 34th victory against Arreola.
The 40-year-old Mexican-American heads into the bout on the back of a defeat against Polish fighter Adam Kownacki.
Both head into the ring on May 1 in California with bags of experience, but how do the rivals compare?
Arreola is nine years older but went 12 rounds in his last fight so stamina shouldn’t be a major issue.
Ruiz Jr has only lost two of his 35 fights which came against Joshua and Joseph Parker.
Arreola has lost six in 47 scraps but went 27 fights without defeat until he came up against Vitali Klitschko in 2009.
He also faced defeat against big-hitting Deontay Wilder in 2016.
An impressive 33 of his victories have come by knockout while Ruiz Jr has knocked out 22 of his opponents.
While Ruiz Jr may have age on his side, his opponent will look to use his reach to his advantage.
Arreola is an inch taller and has an extra two inches in reach.
Should Ruiz Jr get back into winning form, a potential showdown with Dillian Whyte is on the cards – as revealed by SunSport earlier this month.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
