Can the “Mexican Rocky’ shock Anthony Joshua again?
Ruiz vs Joshua 2 – 3:45 PM EST on DAZN
Andy Ruiz vs Anthony Joshua is today in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The last time these two met, it was an incredible 7th round TKO victory by the then relatively unknown Ruiz. The hefty Mexican-American fighter put on a show in a wild scene where he knocked down Joshua again and again.
Joshua was a heavy betting favorite in the first match. He knocked down Ruiz in the third and looked like he would do fine against an apparently inferior opponent. Amazingly, Ruiz got up and looked faster and determined to pummel Joshua. He went after Joshua, stunning and hurting the British Heavyweight Champ. Joshua never recovered. He got knocked down twice in that same third round and fell two more times in the seventh. Then the ref called the fight. Tonight, he likely won’t overlook Andy Ruiz.
Coming into the first bout at MSG back in June, Joshua held multiple titles. He was the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight champ at that point. Meanwhile, Andy Ruiz was brought in as a replacement opponent with only weeks to spare before the scheduled event at MSG. Joshua was supposed to fight Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller, who then failed several drug tests and withdrew.
Many in the media hailed Ruiz vs Joshua 1 as one of the greatest upsets in boxing history. The fight went super viral, in part due to the surprisingly untoned frame of Joshua that does not match his speedy hands. They called him “Mexican Rocky”. Now, Ruiz is internationally known. Will he still have the underdog fire that fueled him to beat Joshua the first time? He might, because Vegas still considers Andy Ruiz an underdog in the second installment. The oddsmakers are clearly viewing the wild fight back in June as a bit of a fluke, in which Ruiz may have capitalized on the injury that Joshua sustained early.
Our Take: Anthony Joshua by decision looks like the value move to make today. We also might take a Prop on the fight to go the distance at one of our legal US Sportsbooks.
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Odds Shopping: Ruiz vs. Joshua 2
We shopped the Odds on Ruiz vs. Joshua 2. Here is a roundup of bet offerings from the Top Legal US Sportsbooks. You can Click Here to see the all best available bonuses and claim free bets.
Unibet PA and Unibet NJ are offering Andy Ruiz at +175 odds on the moneyline and Joshua at -230. That means a $100 bet on Ruiz to be victorious, would win $175. Their props include +225 if the fight goes the distance and +100 if Joshua wins by KO, TKO or DQ.
Pointsbet in New Jersey has a bigger moneyline payout on Ruiz at +220. You would win $220 on a $100 bet if he is the winner by any means. The PBNJ moneyline on Joshua is -278, or +375 if he wins by points, or -111 if he beats Ruiz by KO, TKO or DQ. We see some long-shot value in the Andy Ruiz Jr. by Points Prop. It has a+375 payout.
Caesars Casino and Sportsbook is coming in lower on the Ruiz to win moneyline at +185 but they list Joshua at -220. So there is a little value on the Joshua ML at Caesars. They also have some nice payouts on exact round props. For example, you can get a +3000 payout if Ruiz wins in the 10th round.
Sugarhouse is taking the lower road on the Ruiz vs Joshua moneylines right now. It’s +175 for Ruiz and -230 for Joshua. They have similar lines to other books on the props as well. You can get +240 on Ruiz to win by KO, TKO or DQ or +100 on the same bet for Anthony Joshua. Sugarhouse also has a +240 payout on ‘Fight Ends by Decision’ prop bet.
Draftkings lists Anthony Joshua as a -230 moneyline favorite to win. While they have Andy Ruiz Jr. at +165. DK also has a variety of prop bets including +130 if the fight goes over 9.5 rounds, and +240 if Ruiz wins by KO, TKO or DQ.
Stay tuned to The Props Network for more betting news.
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