SportsRatings: Boxing/MMA

Rankings preview: Joshua regains SportsRatings heavyweight belt

Anthony Joshua's successful rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr. was enough to propel him to the top of our rankings, back to where he was before he lost to Ruiz the first time. As such, he takes the SportsRatings heavyweight crown from Tyson Fury, who held it for the last six months. He also jumps over Deontay Wilder, who had just reached his highest ranking at #2. Ruiz Jr falls from #3 to #4.

Preview: SportsRatings Heavyweight Top 15

-3 Yr	-1 Yr	-6 mo	Dec 1	Dec 9	Fighter	Rating	Rated Record	December 7 results •12/09-12/31 Schedule
5	1	4	4	1	ANTHONY JOSHUA	46.09	16-1-0	UD 12 #3 ANDY RUIZ JR New SportsRatings Heavyweight Champion
1	2	1	1	2	TYSON FURY	45.38	17-0-1
4	3	3	2	3	DEONTAY WILDER	41.08	18-0-1
26	38	2	3	4	ANDY RUIZ JR	27.98	13-2-0	L UD 12 #4 ANTHONY JOSHUA
21	5	6	5	5	DILLIAN WHYTE	24.97	13-1-0	UD 10 #201 MARIUSZ WACH
3	4	5	6	6	ALEX POVETKIN	22.66	29-2-1	Draw 12 #13 MICHAEL HUNTER
17	7	7	7	7	JARRELL MILLER	19.46	9-0-0	--last rated win -13 months.
10	8	8	8	8	KUBRAT PULEV	18.67	20-1-0
16	33	32	13	9	MICHAEL HUNTER	17.91	6-1-1	Draw 12 #6 ALEX POVETKIN
--	17	15	9	10	EFE AJAGBA	16.95	6-0-0	•12/21 vs. #141 IAGO KILADZE
67	13	13	10	11	ADAM KOWNACKI	16.31	9-0-0
--	11	12	12	12	FILIP HRGOVIC	16.20	5-0-0	KO 3 #123 ERIC MOLINA
--	29	29	11	13	DANIEL DUBOIS	15.65	6-0-0	•12/21 vs. #14 KYOTARO FUJIMOTO
11	9	11	14	14	KYOTARO FUJIMOTO	14.12	10-1-0	--last rated win -35 months; •12/21 vs. #13 DANIEL DUBOIS
--	--	--	15	15	SHAWNDELL WINTERS	13.62	2-0-0

Note how close the top three fighters are; any one of them would take the title with a win over any of the others. Meaning that if Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder fight in 2020, the winner will be the new belt-holder. And no one outside the top three can win the belt with a single win—even beating the champ, like Ruiz Jr did last June—will just elevate the #2 fighter to the top again. This happens when there is no clear-cut champion. In cases like these, it's not "the man who beat the man" because you don't really know exactly who "the man" is! 

Dillian Whyte and Alexander Povetkin hold at #5 and #6, but the distance between them grows. Whyte decisioned Mariusz Wach while Povetkin fought to a draw with Michael Hunter and loses points. Hunter was the big winner from Saturday in our rankings (other than Joshua of course) as he leaps into the top 10 from #13, pushing Efe Ajagba and Adam Kownacki down a spot each. Ajagba fights later this month but it won't improve his placement.

Filip Hrgovic easily beat Eric Molina but it wasn't enough to move him up, thanks to Hunter's performance. He does temporarily pass Daniel Dubois, who is now at #13 ahead of his clash with #14 Kyotaro Fujimoto on the 21st. The winner there will leap into the top 10, passing Hunter for the #9 spot.

So ultimately Ajagba will be bumped out of the top 10 even if he wins, and Hrgovic will drop a spot despite his dominant KO. This is the kind of thing that happens when the top heavyweights stay active! It's hard to get used to, since we haven't seen it in quite a while.

Anthony Joshua - Andy Ruiz Jr II live round-by-round scoring

Anthony Joshua seeks to avenge his only loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia in a fight roughly scheduled to start at 4pm eastern time in the U.S. 

Joshua (22-1) was beaten soundly by Ruiz (33-1) in June in a 7th round TKO. Joshua had floored Ruiz Jr in the 3rd round but wore himself out going for the kill, and Ruiz battled back, took the advantage, and got the stoppage.

Ruiz Jr is ranked #3 in our Heavyweight Boxing Top 100, with only a very close majority decision loss to Joseph Parker staining his record. Joshua is ranked #4 after having held our #1 spot for many months prior to the loss.

The winner of this bout will claim—or reclaim—the SportsRatings belt, currently held by Tyson Fury. Along with Deontay Wilder, there are 4 fighters within striking distance of the top, and it comes down to who fights who and who beats who before a definitive champion can be crowned. This fight is one more step toward that goal.

Ruiz Jr caused a stir by weighing in 15 pounds heavier than in the first bout, this despite looking like he was losing a lot of weight at times in recent months. He wore a sombrero and sweats to the weigh-in, so it's hard to really know how much of the 283 pounds was him, but it's clear he added weight while Joshua came in 10 pounds lighter than in June at 237.

Both fighters entered the ring through a foggy laser-light show in Diriyah.

The fight is ready to start.

• Round 1: Joshua being cautious, Ruiz a bit tentative too early. Ruiz not quite pressing forward as much as he did last fight. Joshua being very cautious, keeping his distance. Body shot from Ruiz. 1-2 by Joshua. Jab from Joshua. They mix it up a bit near the end of the round, cut over Ruiz's eye. Not much happened to the end but Joshua won the 2nd half of the round for sure. Joshua 10-9.
• Round 2: Ruiz looks more determined at the start, Joshua looks more confident. Ruiz tags Joshua with a still jab. Joshua targetting the eye with the right. Another jab from Joshua. Great left from Joshua. Joshua keeping Ruiz away so far as Ruiz stalks. Flurry from Joshua out of the clinch. Joshua's left eye is also cut above. Good round for Joshua 10-9; 20-18.
• Round 3: Ruiz moving in fast, targeting the body. Body shots again from Ruiz. Jab keeping him away mostly. Ruiz misses several hooks as Joshua moves away. Not much contact in first half of round. Joshua defending well but no offense in first 2 minutes. Finally a good jab and body shot from Joshua, but not enough to earn the round. 10-10; 30-28 Joshua.
• Round 4: Joshua pawing at Ruiz's hands, keeping him from getting set. Jab from Joshua. Ruiz ducks big hook from Joshua, misses on return shots though. Joshua blocks Ruiz punches, gets in a jab and good straight right. Good action late between both, Ruiz lands a few big punches at the end. Makes the round a draw again. 10-10; 40-38 Joshua. 
• Round 5: Joshua none the worse for wear early in the 5th so far. Joshua jabs, tries to clinch and Ruiz fights through it. Ruiz continues to stalk. Good jabs from Joshua serving him well, keeping Ruiz at bay. Ruiz telegraphs a punch, good counter from Joshua. Joshua 10-9; 50-47.
• Round 6: Whiff from Ruiz, counter from Joshua connects. Ruiz lunging in but missing. Jabs from Joshua, to the head and the body. Ruiz being held at bay as Joshua dances around the perimeter of the ring. Good stiff right from Joshua. 10-9; 60-56.
• Round 7: Ruiz still stalking but Joshua has nullified him in the last few rounds, now letting his hands go a bit. Ruiz is swinging in the clinch and referee warns about hitting the back of the head. Joshua whiffs and almost leaves himself open, but recovers. Some in-fighting and Joshua scoring more. But that's what Ruiz needs. Joshua jumps into clinch. Ruiz swings wildly trying to change the rhythm of the fight. Ruiz connects with a good left, but Joshua wins the round. 10-9; 70-65.
• Round 8: First minute of round 8 is more of the same, then Ruiz finally gets in decent shot. Ref cautions both fighters about clinch work and Ruiz hitting back of head. Big shots from Ruiz, a clinch, and ref tries to get in the middle of it, separating them. Joshua jabs and clinches, and Ruiz fights through it and scores with more big shots. Ruiz's best round so far. Ruiz 10-9; Joshua 79-75.
• Round 9: Ruiz stalking again, Joshua connects with jab and immediately clinches in the corner. Left arm out, he fends off Ruiz's stalking. Whenever Joshua clinches now, Ruiz flails his arms hoping to catch Joshua with a kill shot. Jabs exchanged, Joshua whiffs with a wild shot. Ruiz moves in with jabs, flurry from Joshua, but Ruiz responds in kind. 10-10; Joshua 89-85.
• Round 10: Ruiz good shot early, but Joshua keeps him at bay for next minute. Very few shots from Ruiz getting inside, Joshua content to use jab, avoid mixing it up. Ruiz still looking for big shot or opportunity in clinch, Joshua not giving it to him. Joshua doing all the (very little) scoring here. Joshua 10-9; 99-94.
• Round 11: Joshua moves in, jabbing at will early on. Ruiz keeps coming. Needs something big with 2 rounds left. Joshua still moving around the ring well, which might be the idea of his 10 pound weight cut. Ruiz can't get in close enough to unfurl his power punches, except in brief moments in the clinch. More jabs from Joshua, who is doing all the scoring. 10-9 Joshua; 109-103. 
• Round 12: Ruiz more concerned now in the last round but Joshua fending him off, again with jabs, and tying him up effectively. Ruiz frustrated by inability to let his hands go. Ruiz demands Joshua fight him toe to toe but Joshua doesn't fall for it. A clear decision win for Anthony Joshua. 10-9; 119-112.

The judges agree: 118-110, 119-109, 118-110. Anthony Joshua regains his titles, as well as the SportsRatings Heavyweight belt.

Not the most exciting fight to be sure, especially in the anticlimactic  later rounds, but that's how Joshua needed it. An exciting fight would have seen the same result as last June. Joshua did what he should have done the first time around—produce a boring fight. It was expected to be boring last time, and it was nothing but boring. This time, people wanted fireworks and got a fire extinguisher. That's how Joshua fought—like he was fending Ruiz off with a fire extinguisher.

Joshua-Ruiz undercard: Alexander Povetkin vs. Michael Hunter scoring; Dillian Whyte vs. Wach, Hrgovic vs. Molina, Majidov vs. Little

As we've noted, the Joshua-Ruiz undercard rounds out one of the best heavyweight cards of the last 20 years. Here is a live recap of the heavyweight fights on the card and round-by-round scoring of the Alex Povetkin-Michael Hunter bout. The top 3 bouts on the card are available in the U.S. on DAZN; the earlier bouts are available on YouTube on Sky Sports (but not in the United States).

Mahammadrasul Majidov TKO 2 #174 Tom Little

Two-time amateur world champ Majidov beat Tom Little (10-8) in only his 2nd official pro bout. Little was #174 in our rankings and just 5-7 in rated bouts, so it wasn't any surprise. Majidov will enter our top 100 in January, and we grade his potential an A- meaning he should be a top 5 prospect. Majidov won the amateur world championship in 2011 and 2013, beating Anthony Joshua to win gold the first time. But at 33 he's starting his pro career pretty late, and he could be past his peak. We see a career trajectory like Kubrat Pulev's: a quick dash to the top 10, perhaps pushing into the top 5, but failing to beat the top 3 fighters.

#12 Filip Hrgovic KO 3 #123 Eric Molina

Rising prospect Hrgovic, 27, dominated journeyman Eric Molina, who was counted out in the third round despite complaining about punches to the back of the head. Hrgovic avoided Molina's attempts to hit him with a game-changing haymaker and overwhelmed him with his own power punches. Hrgovic is just outside our top 10 and with all the other action today it's unlikely this win will put him there just yet. But it was a strong performance and shows he is a danger to anyone.

Upcoming: #5 Dillian Whyte vs. #201 Mariusz Wach

Whyte (26-1) continues his quest for another title shot, taking on former contender Wach (35-5) in a scheduled 10-rounder.

First round had a lot of action, both fighters looking (too) big and hitting hard. Great shot from Whyte near the end. 10-9. Round two more of the same, but Whyte outlanding Wach 2-1 or 3-1, but Wach got a few really big shots in. Whyte returned fire, great action. No one was rocked despite the bombs. 20-18. Both fighters slowed down in the 3rd round. But still throwing heavy hands, both chins holding up very well. Closer round but still Whyte. 30-27. Round 4 Wach moving forward with effective jabs. Blocking most of Whyte's big shots, but Whyte gets a few in later in the round. 39-37. Round 5 Whyte came out with more urgency, disrupting Wach's jabs with strong shots, using Philly Shell defense. Wach is holding up but he's being hit regularly. Great action at end as both fighters let it go. 49-46. Round 6: Whyte throwing combos to Wach's single punches. Wach is looking tired but is unhurt and still throwing hard. Whyte throwing hard too, and looks stronger. Wach flurry at end shows he's still in it, but falling behind. 59-55. Seventh round, more of the same: hard shots from both fighters, very clean, scoring shots all around, and no sign of either fighter being rocked. Good body shot variations from Whyte, then he goes to the head. Wach generally headhunting. Both chins are holding up! 69-65. 8th Round, Wach eager to come out, but Whyte peppering him with body and head shots, still looking strong. Wach's work rate is well down, jabs looking weaker. Whyte takes round but Wach finishes round strong. 79-74. Round 9: Wach and Whyte trading toe to toe in the 9th! Both letting their hands go, both having their moments. Whyte getting hit hard but then coming back with his own. Wach ends with flurry. Incredible round. 88-84. Round ten: Wach needs a knockout and he knows it. Whyte not taking any chances though. Wach will just not drop! Or even be rocked by Whyte's punches. Whyte on the defense on the ropes, fighting back. Whyte's punching variety is amazing, body shots, uppercut, windmills. Last half minute Whyte rocks Wach with big combo. Wach dodges 3 huge windmills and will survive. Our final score: Whyte 98-93. Judges say: 98-93, 97-93, 97-93 for Whyte.

Upcoming: #6 Alex Povetkin vs. #14 Michael Hunter - round by round scoring

Povetkin looks for one last drive toward a title as Hunter seeks to break into the top ten.

• Round 1: Hunter's unorthodox moving is wreacking havoc for Povetkin early on, hitting Povetkin will angles all over, esp. right hands. Povetkin gets his composure but generally unable to figure Hunter out in this round. Hunter's work early wins this one. Hunter 10-9.
• Round 2: Hunter's speed still bothering Povetkin, who is missing with lots of punches. Hunter almost wobbles him with a right. Good counter by Povetkin late, otherwise round was pretty even. 10-10; Hunter 20-19.
• Round 3: Povetkin finally adjusting to the speed of the fight, some good work early. Hunter clinching when Povetkin gets close. Fight speed slowing down a bit late in the 3rd. Another close hard-to-score round. 10-10; 30-29 Hunter.
• Round 4: Mixing it up again, both mostly whiffing and dodging each others hooks. Some good power from Povetkin but didn't land flush. Ducking low at times to avoid Hunter's swinging; Hunter clinching in close. Hunter misses twice late, pace is showing for both of them. Povetkin's best round 10-9; 39-39. This is going to be a close one, every round counts.
• Round 5: Good 1-2 from Hunter; rest of round is very close again until mid-round Povetkin rocks Hunter with near-knockdown against the ropes. Hunter looks recovered but Povetkin catches him again and has to clinch. Good jabs from Hunter but Povetkin has the clear power advantage. A few late (past-bell) punches from Hunter but Povetkin wins that one. 10-9; Povetkin 49-48. 
• Round 6: Hunter still looking fast as he jumps in with jabs; if he can win rounds and avoid big punches he can still win this fight. Jab lands again. Povetkin looking a bit tired, lower work rate this round. Hunter clips him with hook and Povetkin clinches. Hunter's round 10-9; 58-58.
• Round 7: Who has more left i this close fight? Ring is looking foggy from humidity. Povetkin swinging but not connecting cleanly, neither fighter gaining advantage in first half of round. Hunter lands well and Povetkin clinches again, unhurt but stunned a bit. Pretty even round but slight edge to Hunter 10-9; 68-67
• Round 8: More very even sparring; Povetkin has a moment mid-round. Not much there but Povetkin had the only real moment; very close yet again, this one to Povetkin 10-9; 77-77
• Round 9:  Hunter full of energy at start but nothing much comes of it. Lots more missing in the first minute. One clean punch from Povetkin; return from Hunter seconds later. Both getting tired late, lots of clinches, initiated by both men. 10-10; 87-87.
• Round 10: Are we headed for a draw? Either that or a very, very close decision it seems. Inside work from both men. More clinching too. Hooks from Hunter miss in the clinch. Povetkin looking weary, he clinches, and Hunter doesn't argue. Mostly clinching, another draw round. 10-10; 97-97.
• Round 11: Head-snapping jabs connect for both fighters. Now they're diving in at the same time, meeting in clinch. Big shots from Hunter and Povetkin looks wobbly. He's staying up and fighting back; he rushes in and heads clashed. Hunter connects with 2 more big shots, clearly winning this round in a very tight fight. Povetkin weary and gets hit again. Clear round for Hunter 10-9; Hunter 107-106. 
• Round 12: Povetkin needs this round or Hunter probably wins, though any decision will probably be split/majority. Povetkin still looks a bit dazed, looking for big punches to turn the tide. Povetkin rushes in, fighters collide and they sprawl to the ground. Fight resumes, more clinching from Povetkin, but Hunter isn't connecting like he did last round. One minute to go, round is even so far. Good left from Hunter. Povetkin needs something but still clinches. Another tight round 10-10; Hunter 117-116.

Looks like a split decision coming, in favor of either fighter. We favor Hunter, and splitting the five 10-10 rounds could make it 117-111 Hunter or 116-112 Povetkin. We think a very close result goes to Hunter, but the cards overall ought to be very tight.

The verdict: 115-113 Povetkin; 115-113 Hunter; and 114-114 split draw. 

You know what? That's actually fair, as disappointing as it is. All the verdicts were very close, so no judge was far off from another. It will be interesting to see the round-by-round cards, and check against the five rounds we gave a 10-10.

The draw might put Hunter in our top 10 after all, while Povetkin will lose points but remain at #6.

Joshua - Ruiz Rematch Highlights Busy December

It's not quite up to the standards of May, 1983, but December of 2019 is shaping up to be one helluva month for heavyweight boxing, with the potential to top March of 2018 as the biggest HW boxing month of the millennium so far. At current count there are three intra-top-15 bouts scheduled, with three more top-15 boxers set to fight rated opponents. Four of these six bouts are set for the same event on December 7 in Saudi Arabia, so there's reason to believe that these fights will be held as scheduled. 

Leading the way, of course, is the rematch between #3 Andy Ruiz, Jr, and #4 Anthony Joshua. Joshua was #1 when Ruiz—just #31—pulled off the major upset with a 7th round stoppage of the formerly unbeaten champ. Ruiz jumped to #2; now he sits at #3 after Deontay Wilder's crushing KO of Luis Ortiz moved the Bronze Bomber to #2. But whoever wins the rematch between Ruiz and Joshua will unseat Tyson Fury at #1; the loser will fall to #4 or #5, depending on other results.

Below: SportsRatings' Heavyweight Top 15 for December, 2019:

-3 Yr	-1 Yr	-6 mo	Nov Rank	Dec Rank	Fighter	Rating	Rated Record	November results; •December schedule
1	2	2	1	1	TYSON FURY	45.38	17-0-1
4	3	3	3	2	DEONTAY WILDER	41.08	18-0-1	KO 7 #9 LUIS ORTIZ
12	37	31	2	3	ANDY RUIZ JR	39.57	13-1-0	•12/07 vs. #4 ANTHONY JOSHUA
5	1	1	4	4	ANTHONY JOSHUA	36.63	15-1-0	--last rated win -14 months; •12/07 vs. #3 ANDY RUIZ JR
28	5	5	5	5	DILLIAN WHYTE	24.91	12-1-0	•12/07 vs. #201 MARIUSZ WACH
3	4	4	6	6	ALEX POVETKIN	24.70	29-2-0	•12/07 vs. #13 MICHAEL HUNTER
20	7	6	7	7	JARRELL MILLER	19.67	9-0-0	--last rated win -12 months.
10	8	8	8	8	KUBRAT PULEV	18.67	20-1-0	UD 10 #226 RYDELL BOOKER
--	17	14	10	9	EFE AJAGBA	16.95	6-0-0	•12/21 vs. #141 IAGO KILADZE
68	11	12	11	10	ADAM KOWNACKI	16.31	9-0-0
--	30	28	12	11	DANIEL DUBOIS	15.65	6-0-0	•12/21 vs. #14 KYOTARO FUJIMOTO
--	10	11	13	12	FILIP HRGOVIC	15.63	4-0-0	•12/07 vs. #123 ERIC MOLINA
17	33	32	14	13	MICHAEL HUNTER	14.97	6-1-0	•12/07 vs. #6 ALEX POVETKIN
11	9	10	15	14	KYOTARO FUJIMOTO	14.40	10-1-0	--last rated win -34 months; •12/21 vs. #11 DANIEL DUBOIS
--	--	--	22	15	SHAWNDELL WINTERS	13.62	2-0-0	TKO 7 #118 SERGIEJ WERWEJKO

The three other fights on the card in Saudi Arabia are:

• #6 Alexander Povetkin vs. #13 Michael Hunter. This is a great bout. Povetkin has only lost to Wladimir Klitschko and Anthony Joshua, both champions; and Hunter has only dropped a decision to cruiserweight king (now HW prospect) Oleksander Usyk. A win would propel Hunter into the top 10, around #6, while Povetkin could rise to #5 or #4. A loss to Hunter risks dropping Povetkin out of the top 10 for the first time in nearly 12 years!
• #5 Dillian Whyte vs. #201 Mariusz Wach. Not the best matchup, but it's always good to see Whyte on a card. Say what you want but the man stays active, and you can be sure he'll be calling for a shot at the winner of the Joshua-Ruiz rematch, which he definitely deserves by now, even if he falls back a spot due to all the other action in the top ten!
• #12 Filip Hrgovic vs. #123 Eric Molina. Up-and-comer Hrgovic gets a spot on the card that won't move him up in the rankings, but is good for visibility, against an opponent he should beat pretty easily.

So that's six of the top 13 active on one night. Fast-forward to December 21 and there are three more top prospects active in the London and Los Angeles areas.

• #11 Daniel Dubois fights in the UK vs. #14 Kyotaro Fujimoto. 22-year-old Dubois is looking for a top-ten berth and he'll get it with a win. Fujimoto is actually looking to get back into the top ten—he's on a 16-fight win streak dating back to 2013, beating opponents just good enough to get him points in our system. Inactivity and lack of sound opposition over the last 3 years, however, has pushed him down from his #7(!) peak. An upset of Dubois would allow him another run at that peak, but Dubois seems exactly the type of opponent ex-kickboxer Kyotaro can't handle—he was overwhelmed and stopped in 2012 by Solomon Haumono, and Dubois applies even more pressure.
• In Ontario, California, yet another big-time prospect, #9 Efe Ajagba is set to take on #141 Iago Kiladze. It might be a stretch to call someone in our top ten a "prospect" but Ajagba is just getting started at age 25, joining 22-year-old Dubois and 27-year-old Hrgovic in the under-30 club. He hits hard with a high workrate and good form, but is still working out the kinks in preparation for an eventual run for the top prize.

If all these fights happen, no one can any longer say that the top heavyweights don't mix it up! That was true for a long time, but between last year's big March and this year's December, there are at least flurries of major activity in the division. In just one night, four of our top six fighters will be in action, including a title fight. Can't ask for much more than that in one calendar month, but we also get a slew of prospect level (top 15) action as well.