Andy Ruiz Jr., former-heavyweight champion of the world, claims his ex-wife stole the belts from him after he enjoyed the most successful night of his life when he shocked Anthony Joshua to pull off one of the biggest sporting shocks of all time.
The victory happened in 2019 in New York City when the then-undefeated Joshua was tipped as a clear favorite to defend the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts when Ruiz Jr. stepped in on short notice after Jarell Miller failed three drugs tests.
It seemed to be going the way many expected when Ruiz Jr. was sent to the canvas in the third round before the Mexican-American responded by dropping AJ just moments later, he then forced an eight-count on the defending champion.
Ruiz Jr. would then go on to win the bout in the seventh round when he knocked the Brit to the floor twice, before the referee waved the bout off after AJ appeared to seem disoriented and unaware of his surroundings.
It saw Ruiz Jr. as the second Hispanic heavyweight champion in boxing history, but at the peak of his career his wife appeared to be uninterested as he claims she tried to take his belts away from him after they broke up.
“I have a few [belts], but from my break-up and all that, they stole everything,” Ruiz Jr. told DAZN ahead of his fight against Miller. “Almost $1 million worth of jewellery.
“And my belts. My championship belts, she took that too. I know for a fact because she did that restraining order for me to move out of my house that I bought, and all my belts were there, my jewellery.
“She knew the combination to my safe and everything. So she literally wiped me out. I didn’t care about the jewellery at that time. I was like, ‘You know what, forget that, it’s just material things’. But the championship belts hurt me a lot.”
How long was Ruiz Jr. champion for?
Ruiz Jr. would only go on to hold the heavyweight title for one fight as he immediately agreed to rematch Joshua on December 7, 2019.
Joshua produced a professional and clinical performance to win by unanimous decision (118-110, 118-110, 119-109) in Saudi Arabia after he remained behind his jab and avoided getting close to trade punches, where Ruiz Jr. found success in their first fight.
“I should have taken this fight more seriously,” Ruiz Jr. said after the bout. “Three months of partying and celebrating affected me.
“In addition, he showed respect to Joshua, saying “Anthony Joshua did a hell of a job.”