Former super-middleweight champion, Carl Froch, has slammed the performance of one heavyweight in what his first and only title defence to date.
Froch revealed his disappointment in Andy Ruiz’s preparation and display in his rematch against Anthony Joshua in 2019, just six months after he claimed the titles in a shock stoppage win over the Brit.
However, in Saudi Arabia six months later, it was a different story, with Joshua comfortably outboxing Ruiz for the duration and claiming an easy unanimous decision victory to reclaim his unified titles.
In an interview with Sporting Post, Froch explained his frustration at Ruiz’s below-par performance, putting it down to an inadequate fight camp that failed to bring out the best of the Mexican on fight night.
“I was out in Saudi that night and it was horrible to watch, it was just boring. He just boxed, moved and got out of the way. Fair enough he did what he had to win, and he came home with his belts intact, he was world champion again. But, when I lost to Kessler and I fought Abraham, I was outboxing Abraham for four or five rounds and then I had him on the ropes and I tried to smash his head in. I wanted to beat him and show everyone I belong at this level, so I went for the finish late.”
“AJ just boxed and moved and kept out of the way, and I thought if he wants to fight Fury, that performance was not good enough. He was in against a 20st fat boy from Mexico, who had overeaten and not trained, and I thought this is a disgrace. He’s beat AJ and now in a rematch he’s not even trained. And AJ just kept out the way, boxed and moved.”
Now, ‘AJ’ is aiming to win back his titles again, having lost them to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021, and hopes that a planned heavyweight tournament in the Middle East could earn him the opportunity.