Andy Ruiz will clear off at least one bucket list item this weekend.
The long-term goal for the former unified heavyweight titlist is to enjoy a second title reign. The next step on that journey leads Ruiz to playing an arena he’d previously only attended as a spectator. That changes this Sunday, when he faces Miami’s Luis Ortiz (33-2, 28KOs) in a scheduled 12-round WBC semifinal title eliminator atop a Fox Sports Pay-Per-View event from Crypto.com Arena (formerly Staples Center) in Los Angeles.
“It feels amazing,” Ruiz told BoxingScene,com. “It’s such a legendary place for events, for concerts, for fights. It’s a blessing for me to have my turn to fight there as the main event.”
It comes nearly four years after Ruiz—who lives in Imperial, California and trains in San Diego—sat and watched Ortiz in this very venue, more than four months before making his debut under the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) banner. Ortiz scored a tenth-round knockout of Travis Kauffman on the undercard of Deontay Wilder’s 12-round draw with Tyson Fury in their memorable December 2018 fight to launch their eventual trilogy.
“The first time I’ve seen Luis Ortiz fight in person was at Staples Center,” recalled Ruiz. “He was on the Deontay Wilder-Tyson Fury card. My dad told me, ‘Look, Andy, one day you’re going to fight one of these guys.’ What do you know, now I’m fighting one of these guys and hopefully fighting the other soon.
“At that time, I was still trying to get back into the heavyweight rankings. I fought Joseph Parker (for the vacant WBO title in December 2016, suffering a majority decision defeat) but was still trying to fight my way back and get to the point of possibly fighting one of those guys.”
Ruiz would join the PBC circuit in April 2019, scoring a knockout win at nearby Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. It would set up his biggest pro achievement to date, facing then-unbeaten and unified WBA/IBF/WBO/IBO heavyweight titlist Anthony Joshua whom he stopped in the seventh round of their June 2019 clash he accepted on just five weeks’ notice. Ruiz (34-2, 22KOs) became the first boxer of Mexican descent to claim a piece of the heavyweight crown with the win, though losing the belts to Joshua in their December 2019 rematch.
Just one fight has followed, a twelve-round decision win over fellow Mexican-American heavyweight Chris Arreola last May 1 at Dignity Health Sports Park. The event was limited due to social distancing still being in place at the time, though no such restrictions are any longer in play.
“I know it’s going to be huge,” Ruiz said. “All the Mexican fans will be there, La Raza coming out to support me.”