It is being reported by World Boxing News that before Anthony Joshua‘s fight against Andy Ruiz took place on Saturday, June 1, 2019, the UK Heavyweight was knocked out in sparring.
The fighter responsible for delivering the crippling blow in trainer camp was Philly Heavyweight and fringe contender, Joey Dawjeko.
Dawjeko posted on his Instagram Story that he will be going live tonight (Monday, June 3, 2019) to discuss the Joshua-Ruiz fight as well as answer any questions that fans may have.
According to WBN, Joshua’s father petitioned to have his son pull out of Saturday’s fight after the training camp debacle–but obviously things went on as planned.
Joshua went on to be knocked out by Ruiz in seven rounds in a fight where he looked out of sorts.
The former unified champion had a pretty bad night in his American debut at Madison Square Garden and to make things worse, broadcast microphones were able to pick up a few particular bad moments.
After Round 5, Joshua was heard asking his corner what round it was, and then heading into Round 7 he asked, “Why am I feeling like this?”
Joshua would be dropped twice in the seventh round as referee Michael Griffin called a halt to the bout.
Ruiz’s epic victory sent shock waves throughout the boxing world and has even inspired fellow fighter Nathan Gorman (who like Ruiz doesn’t have the most muscular build) as he heads into his own Heavyweight clash against unbeaten Daniel Dubois.
A rematch between Ruiz and Joshua is expected to take place sometime at the end of 2019 in the UK. But with the training camp knockout news now coming to light it seems as though the former titleholder has a lot to consider before rushing back into a fight with Ruiz.
Is AJ wise to try and fight Ruiz again in 2019 or should he give himself a longer break and try to fix the technical and stamina flaws he experienced during the first fight?
