{"id":1187575,"date":"2026-09-05T08:38:19","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T08:38:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1187575\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T08:38:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T08:38:19","slug":"what-does-hearn-do-with-andy-ruiz-jr-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1187575\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does Hearn Do With Andy Ruiz Jr. Now?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Knyba was supposed to provide a credible bridge to something lucrative. If Ruiz Jr. handled the tall Polish heavyweight, Hearn could begin selling another fight with Joshua or offer him to Moses Itauma, Filip Hrgovic, Daniel Dubois, or Fabio Wardley. Instead, Ruiz Jr. lost a unanimous decision and was dropped heavily in the seventh round.<\/p>\n

The official scores also disguised how poorly he performed. One judge had Knyba winning 117-110, while Glenn Feldman and Kevin Morgan returned narrow 114-113 cards. Those two tallies flattered Ruiz Jr., who spent most of the fight struggling to cross the distance behind Knyba\u2019s jab.<\/p>\n

Without the knockdown, Feldman and Morgan would each have scored the fight 114-114, producing a majority draw. Ruiz Jr. came surprisingly close to escaping without another defeat, but the 117-110 card gave a more accurate picture of Knyba\u2019s control.<\/p>\n

Scraping out a draw would not have repaired the damage to his value, either. Matchroom needed Ruiz Jr. to beat Knyba convincingly enough to support talk of something bigger.<\/p>\n

Matchroom Had to Take the Risk<\/strong><\/p>\n

Plenty will second-guess the decision to put Ruiz Jr. in with Knyba after such a long absence. The matchmaking was not the mistake.<\/p>\n

Ruiz Jr. was a fringe contender when he replaced Jarrell Miller against Joshua in June 2019. His stunning knockout victory changed boxing history, but everything that followed suggested the performance was an extraordinary night rather than the beginning of a dominant championship run.<\/p>\n

Poorly prepared for the Joshua rematch, he then fought sporadically against Chris Arreola, Luis Ortiz, and Miller. Weight changes, injuries, trainer switches, and long absences became the story of his career.<\/p>\n

If he required two or three soft opponents before facing somebody at Knyba\u2019s level, Matchroom had no reason to sign him. Hearn needed immediate proof that the old-hand speed, combination punching, and hunger were still there. He did not receive it.<\/p>\n

The lower weight created another false signal. Ruiz Jr. came in at 254.3 pounds, his lightest weight in eight years, allowing the comeback to be presented as evidence of renewed discipline. The scale showed that he had lost weight. It did not show that he had recovered the timing, hand speed, or mobility that once made him dangerous.<\/p>\n

Faced with a 6\u20197\u2033 opponent possessing an 86-inch reach, Ruiz Jr. struggled to cut off the ring and rarely got into punching range in position to release combinations. He followed Knyba, reached with punches, and repeatedly allowed the taller man to jab before tying him up.<\/p>\n

Weight can be managed during a training camp. The physical decline caused by age, injuries, and years of inactivity is harder to reverse. Matchroom signed Ruiz Jr. because his fast combinations once made him unusually dangerous for a heavyweight. Against Knyba, that version was nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n

What Does Queensberry Gain?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The defeat also leaves Hearn dependent on other promoters if he wants to recover value from Ruiz Jr.\u2019s name.<\/p>\n

Itauma needs rebuilding after his loss to Hrgovic, but Frank Warren gains little from helping Matchroom rescue a failed signing. A victory over Ruiz Jr. carries far less weight now that Knyba has exposed him. If Itauma struggles or loses, Queensberry damages one of its most important young heavyweights.<\/p>\n

The same issue applies to Hrgovic, Dubois, and Wardley. Ruiz Jr. remains experienced and can still punch, yet beating him no longer proves that one of Warren\u2019s heavyweights belongs near a championship. Queensberry would accept the risk while Matchroom received most of the benefit.<\/p>\n

Money might persuade Warren, but he has plenty of available opponents without taking responsibility for Matchroom\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n

David Adeleye may be the only recognizable heavyweight Hearn can match with Ruiz Jr. without seeking help from another promoter.<\/p>\n

Such a fight would amount to combining two damaged investments. Adeleye was comprehensively beaten by Hrgovic, while Ruiz Jr. has now lost to a lower-level heavyweight. It may produce entertaining action, but it would not restore either man to serious contention.<\/p>\n

At 36, Ruiz Jr. would also be facing a younger, larger puncher after Knyba dropped him and left him badly marked around the left eye. Another loss might erase the remaining value of his name.<\/p>\n

Saudi-funded heavyweight cards offered Hearn the easiest way to turn Ruiz Jr.\u2019s reputation into money. A convincing comeback win would have allowed Matchroom to offer him for Itauma, Hrgovic, Dubois, Wardley, or another boxer being positioned for a lucrative event.<\/p>\n

Losing to Knyba removes much of that appeal. Ruiz Jr. can still be advertised as a former unified champion, but he no longer resembles a credible opponent for a championship fight. The familiar name remains while the sporting justification has disappeared.<\/p>\n

Hearn is left without the cash-out opportunity that made the original gamble worthwhile. Ruiz Jr. is too diminished to sell as a contender and still dangerous enough that a rival promoter receives little benefit from using him.<\/p>\n

Can Hearn Escape the Contract?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Matchroom announced Ruiz Jr.\u2019s agreement as a multi-fight promotional deal. Other reports described it as a three-fight arrangement, although the full terms and any release clauses have not been made public.<\/p>\n

An escape clause after a first fight loss would give Hearn an easy answer. Without one, Matchroom remains tied to a former champion who was signed to reach lucrative bouts quickly but failed at the first stage.<\/p>\n

A long rebuilding program makes no sense for Ruiz Jr. His age, inactivity, and history of poor discipline make further investment difficult to justify. Another Joshua fight now looks like nostalgia; Queensberry has little incentive to lend Hearn one of its heavyweights, and easier opposition only delays the same question.<\/p>\n

Ruiz Jr. was supposed to provide a shortcut to a profitable heavyweight event. Following the loss to Knyba, Hearn is on his own with an albatross.<\/p>\n

BoxingNews24.com has delivered independent boxing coverage since 2007, including original news, fight analysis, schedules, and results. Our experienced boxing writers cover major fighters and events worldwide, with published content reviewed by editors for accuracy, clarity, and reliable sourcing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Knyba was supposed to provide a credible bridge to something lucrative. If Ruiz Jr. handled the tall Polish…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1187576,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4108],"tags":[1935,79,16,15],"class_list":["post-1187575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/117217534394254944","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1187575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1187575"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1187575\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1187576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1187575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1187575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1187575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}