Andy Ruiz Jr suffers another setback in comeback loss to Damian Knyba

The fight

On Friday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, former heavyweight titleholder Andy Ruiz Jr (35-3-1, 22 KO) headlined DAZN and TNT's "The Fight" card against Poland's Damian Knyba (18-1, 11 KO) in a scheduled 12-round bout. Knyba won by unanimous decision, with scorecards reading 117-110, 114-113 and 114-113. A seventh-round knockdown scored by Knyba proved decisive, given how close the remaining rounds were on two of the three cards. Ruiz appeared badly hurt after the knockdown, but the referee allowed him to continue after warning his corner that the fight would be stopped if he was in further trouble. Unofficial media scoring varied noticeably: Bad Left Hook had the fight far more one-sided for Knyba (118-109), while Bleacher Report scored it much closer (115-112).

After the fight, Ruiz said Knyba had held him excessively throughout, preventing him from throwing combinations, though he acknowledged he had chosen a genuine risk as an opponent following a long layoff. He expressed interest in a rematch and gave no indication he was considering retirement. Analyst Tim Bradley said after the bout that Ruiz should retire, despite having been the lone panelist among himself, Shawn Porter and Terence Crawford to predict a Ruiz win before the fight.

From triumph to a long rebuild

In 2019, Ruiz became the first fighter of Mexican descent to win a heavyweight world title, stopping the previously undefeated Anthony Joshua in the seventh round at Madison Square Garden as an 11-1 underdog on five weeks' notice. He lost the title just six months later in an immediate rematch in Saudi Arabia, having reportedly weighed roughly 15 pounds heavier than for the first fight. In the more than six years since, Ruiz has fought only three times, including a majority draw with Jarrell Miller in August 2024, after which he underwent hand surgery and did not fight again for 762 days.

For this comeback, Ruiz reunited with trainer Manny Robles, who guided him through both Joshua fights before an earlier falling-out. According to the Guardian, the reconciliation began during a vacation in Tulum, when Ruiz messaged Robles on Instagram. At Thursday's weigh-in, Ruiz came in at 254.3 pounds, his lightest since 2018, while Knyba weighed 255.5 pounds. The bout was the first of a three-fight promotional deal with Eddie Hearn's company.

What's next

The win was the biggest of Knyba's career, though he had suffered a third-round stoppage loss to current WBC champion Agit Kabayel in January. Ruiz, who turns 37 next week, said he still believes he has a title run left in him and wants to stay active, though his recent form raises questions about how realistic that goal remains.