Knyba stuns Ruiz Jr, drops former champion in seventh

Knyba stuns Ruiz Jr, drops former champion in seventh

Newslife Sports Desk

Polish heavyweight Damian Knyba pulled off a major upset on Friday night, defeating former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. by unanimous decision at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. 

Knyba, 30, used his significant height and reach advantage to frustrate Ruiz throughout the 12-round contest, consistently keeping the Mexican-American fighter at distance with his jab.

The turning point came in the seventh round when Knyba landed a heavy combination that sent Ruiz crashing to the canvas. The former champion survived the onslaught and made it to the bell, but the knockdown underlined Knyba's control of the contest. 

Ruiz attempted to fight his way back into the bout in the eighth and ninth rounds and briefly appeared to hurt Knyba, but the Polish boxer regained control with his jab and movement in the later rounds.

The judges scored the fight 117-110, 114-113 and 114-113, all in favour of Knyba. The result moved Knyba's record to 18-1 with 11 knockouts, while Ruiz dropped to 35-3-1 with 22 knockouts. 

The defeat is a major setback for Ruiz, who was fighting for the first time in more than two years and had hoped to revive his career and return to the heavyweight title picture.

Ruiz became a unified heavyweight champion in 2019 after famously stopping Anthony Joshua in their first encounter, but his career has struggled for consistency since then. Knyba's victory, meanwhile, represents the biggest win of his career and could put him back in contention for major heavyweight fights. 

Despite the loss, Ruiz has indicated that he does not intend to retire, leaving his future in the heavyweight division open.