Joseph Parker vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. December 10 fight

By Boxing News - 11/02/2016 - Comments

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By Eric Baldwin: Top Rank promoter Bob Arum plans on holding a press conference this Saturday in Las Vegas on November 5 to announce the Joseph Parker (21-0, 18 KOs) vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. (29-0, 19 KOs) heavyweight clash for the vacant WBO belt on December 10 in New Zealand. The Ruiz Jr. vs. Parker fight will be for the WBO title that Tyson Fury recently vacated.

It should be a good fight. Parker, 24, recently defeated Carlos Takam in a World Boxing Organization title eliminator last May to put himself in position for a title shot. Parker was hoping to get a crack at Tyson Fury, but he chose to vacate his title instead of facing him or Wladimir Klitschko.

Since beating Takam, Parker has stopped Solomon Haumono and Alexander Dimitrenko in consecutive fights. The win over Dimitrenko came last month on October 1 in New Zealand.

Ruiz Jr. is ranked #3 with the WBO. He’s recently beaten Franklin Lawrence, Josh Gormley, Ray Austin and Rafael Zumbano Love. He’s looked good against the weak opposition he’s fought.
This is a tough fight to predict because both Parker and Ruiz Jr. have been matched against weaker opposition since turning pro. It’s one of those types of fights where it’s impossible to predict a winner. The two fighters reportedly spared each other in the past, and Parker wound up with a cut lip from the experience.

“Arum says Joe Parker and Andy Ruiz will hold a presser Saturday in Vegas to announce Dec. 10 fight in New Zealand. #boxing ,” said Dan Rafael said on his Twitter.

Ruiz Jr. is going to need to be in the best shape of his life for this fight, because he can’t afford to come into the fight looking flabby in the 250s. He’s got to be able to move around the ring, because Parker is going to be using movement like he did in his win over Takam. Parker has a good jab, and he might not need much more than that for him to beat Ruiz Jr. in this fight. Ruiz Jr. does better against guys that are stationary and not making it difficult for him to land his heavy shots.

It’s going to be interesting to see how well Ruiz Jr. reacts to a moving target in this fight. If he has to chase Parker around the ring all night long, it could be tough on him. Parker is a hard fighter to force into a war. It’s not like before. Parker used to slug it out with his opponents. Parker now uses his boxing skills to get the better of his opponents. Parker does like to slug, but not nearly as much as he did in the past.