Jarrell Miller (26-1-2, 22 KOs) was disappointed with his loss to former heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. (35-2-1, 22 KOs) last Saturday night at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
Miller overcame a ponderous start in the first three rounds to wear down Ruiz with pressure and control in rounds 4 through 12. Judges scored the fight 116-112 in favor of Jarrell Miller, 114-114 and 114-114.
Miller questions assessment
After the fight, Miller complained about the California judges working the contest. He said he asked that none of them be from the state because Ruiz is from Southern California.
Miller kept the pressure on Ruiz, hitting him with combinations and seemingly controlling the rounds. Ruiz landed bigger, faster punches in the fight, but was exhausted in the second half and was unable to fight strenuous enough to win the rounds decisively.
Judges scored the fight a majority draw after 12 rounds, but fans on social media overwhelmingly felt Miller, 36, did enough to call it a victory. Ruiz showed his class after the fight, saying, “Let’s do it again. That was pretty grueling.”
His Excellency Turki Alalshikh would have to favor a rematch between the two super-sized heavyweights. He could also schedule both men to face other top fighters in the division. Ruiz’s popularity makes him a good dance partner in a fight with one of the stars in the division.
“We beat the guy in that fight, but we lost in his hometown. People see what’s going on and let’s get to the next fight,” Jarrell Miller said mediareflecting on his controversial fight with Andy Ruiz Jr. last Saturday night.
Miller could have helped himself win the fight if he had landed more punches. He took Ruiz down in multiple rounds but didn’t let go of his hands, like in the 2018 classic “Gigantic Baby.”
Miller appeared to be too tired to fight the full three minutes of each round in the second half. So instead of fighting, he tried to steal rounds in the final 10 seconds when he heard the clap.
“From the moment I signed the contract, I said, ‘I don’t want any California judges.’ I dug in and let my hands go as much as I could,” Miller said. “I started learning my up-to-date technique that Boots and Bozy used [Ennis] “that these guys are going there,” Miller continued.
Jarrell likely wouldn’t have won the fight if it had taken place in Nevada or elsewhere, as Ruiz landed the better punches and had impressive hand speed. Miller looked too tired to win the fight by decision.
“I’m not a whiny person, but sometimes they have to give you a break,” Miller said. Always something. At least eight or nine,” Miller said when asked how many rounds he thought he won against Ruiz. “When he had one good shot on me, I’d give it two or three.”
Miller was taking too many strenuous punches from Ruiz to win eight or nine rounds, which was a problem because he had the whole fight. Even in the 12th round, Ruiz was landing the kind of power punches that would have knocked out someone like Anthony Joshua. When judges see a fighter getting hammered like Miller, they don’t award rounds in their favor.
Weight loss and impact on performance
“I felt like the weight came off a little bit, I lost 40 pounds. I felt a little weaker as I went on. I was like, ‘You don’t have to knock everybody out, but hold off on the punches.’ Yeah, I felt like I knocked him out a few times,” Miller said when asked if he thought Ruiz came close to a knockout in the fight.
Miller is right about how the weight loss is affecting him. I thought the same thing, as he looked exhausted and less powerful than in his last fight, when he weighed in at 333 pounds against Daniel Dubois last December.
For anyone who has dropped 40 pounds, that takes a lot of power away from a person. Miller might be better off entering the fight at 333
“I thought Ruiz was going to quit a few times,” coach Derek “Bozy” Ennis said.
“I just couldn’t put the combinations together to double the punches. Andy broke his hand. It looked like his hand was broken,” Miller said of Ruiz.
In the eighth round, Ruiz looked discouraged and unhappy with the way the fight was going. Miller just kept coming forward and landing a lot of punches.
The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered world cruiserweight champion Badou “The Ripper” Jack (20-1-1, 19 KO) to make a mandatory title defense against Ryan “The Bruiser” Rozicki (20-1), number 1 in the WBC ranking – 1, 19 KOs).
If both camps fail to successfully negotiate an agreement, the WBC will organize a tender on February 4, followed by the Jack vs. Rozicki. Rozicki’s promoter, Three Lions Promotions, immediately sent Team Jacek an offer to promote the fight in Canada last week.
“We are waiting for their counteroffer,” explained promoter Dan Otter of Three Lions Promotions. “Boxing has had a huge resurgence in Canada and Ryan is leading the way. He is one of the most electrifying and hardest-hitting fighters in boxing, definitely in the cruiserweight division. He wants the WBC green belt and ultimately the unification of the division. Ryan will fight Jack anywhere for the belt.”
29-year-old Rozicki, born in Sydney (Nova Scotia) and living in Hamilton (Ontario), fought 22 professional fights against 21 different opponents (twice against Yamil Alberto Peralta), stopping 19 of the 20 opponents he defeated. an eye-opening 95-KO percentage.
Jack, 41, was a 2008 Olympian representing his native Sweden. He is a three-division world champion, as well as the WBC super middleweight and World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight heavyweight title holder. Jack has a record of 5-0-2 (2 KO) in world championship fights.
“We respect Jack and I don’t want to sound disrespectful,” Otter added, “but he’s over 40 years vintage and has been relatively inactive for two years (only one fight). He brings a lot of experience and respect to the ring, but he will fight a newborn defender with a lot of power. Jack is going to struggle and honestly, I don’t think he’ll make it past the first few rounds.”
Ryan Rozicki is on a mission to become the first Canadian cruiserweight world champion.
Floyd Mayweather’s incredible 50-0 record is not normal and cannot be repeated in sports for another seventy years.
This is the view of Saudi Arabian president Turki Alalshikh, who wants to adopt the UFC model in which fighters lose many fights during their career.
In a speech as he hosted the Ring Magazine Awards after acquiring the long-running boxing publication from Oscar De La Hoya, Alalshikh was unequivocal in his opinion.
“Now losing some fights in boxing must be normal,” he explained. “All fighters want a career similar to Floyd Mayweather – no losses. This may happen once every 50, 60 or 70 years.
“We need it [to be] like currently in the UFC model, where champions lose and win,” added the matchmaker during the Riyad season.
Mayweather rose through the sport in the tardy 1990s to become one of its youngest superstars. Mayweather’s professional success came after winning a bronze medal at the Olympics after losing to Serafim Todorov.
Winning world titles in five weight classes, Mayweather was untouchable. The Grand Rapids native only came close to defeat a few times. He dominated Manny Pacquiao and overtook Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya after heated debates, with decisions that should have been made unanimously.
Towards the end of his career, Mayweather chose to face Andre Berto and Conor McGregor, easily winning and ending his boxing career at the age of 50 without ever going out. Calling himself “the greatest of all time,” Mayweather earned first-ballot Hall of Fame honors and is widely considered one of, if not the greatest defensive fighter of all time.
However, Alalshikh says this type of career needs to end so that fans can get the most out of boxing, as is the case with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Boxing needs to become more attractive, and Alalshikh sees the failures of top stars as a way to keep interest at an all-time high.
In this sport, many boxers enjoy undefeated streaks, the most notable of which is Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian Pound for Pound King is 23-0 and has beaten the best he has to offer in his division and cruiserweight classification.
It remains a mystery how Alalshikh plans to make Usyk suffer while he dominates everyone else. By the time his grand plan goes into action, Usyk will be long gone, and Gervonta Davis, Shakur Stevenson and Devin Haney may be more realistic targets.
WBN understands that despite alternative options emerging, it is more likely that Manny Pacquiao will face Mario Barrios next.
Bob Santos, coach of WBC welterweight champion Barrios, told World Boxing News that he is currently in contact with Pacquiao’s team. Asked by WBN if he had spoken to Pacquiao or representatives of any other challenger, Santos replied: “Yes, Pacquiao’s promoter, Sean Gibbons.” Pressed on whether Barrios vs Pacquiao might happen next, he added: “It’s challenging to say. We’ll have to see how this plays out.”
WBN contacted Santos after Conor Benn emerged as a potential alternative to Barrios. The British fighter, who recently returned from a suspension following two positive drug tests, is keen to return to competition.
Benn showed favor with the World Boxing Council at the recent WBC Convention, the WBC Evaluation Committee and during an interview with the sanctioning body over the weekend. “The Destroyer” is ranked second in the rankings at 147 pounds, despite less than solid opponents during his time in exile, during which Benn competed twice in the United States while his career in the United Kingdom was in doubt.
As he battled to clear his name and with the British Anti-Doping Authority finding no evidence that Benn had intentionally taken ostarine, the 28-year-old’s career took a pointed nosedive. Despite this, he remains highly rated and at least one step away from fighting for an eliminator or one of the remaining championship titles.
However, Pacquiao remains Barrios’ favorite. Now it’s up to the boxing legend and Hall of Famer who got the first votes to secure his shot. WBN believes a July date – most likely at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas – is the most realistic date for a Nevada swan song.
Pacquiao could extend his record as the oldest welterweight champion by six years if he can secure a huge victory over the 29-year-old world champion. At 46 years antique, such a scenario remains unlikely, but he can never be compared to one of the greatest players of this generation.
Unlike heavier boxers and his training regiment, Pacquiao looks in great shape despite his advanced age. Everything is set for a massive return to the boxing capital of the world, provided Pacquiao and his team can manage his political ambitions, which are expected to run from this month until May. After that time, Pacquiao could find himself in the summer finals and become the all-time champion, regardless of the result.
Barrios is based in the city, where he trained with Santos, and would be the perfect opponent to see out the career of one of the greatest fighters in history.
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