Home Boxing News Mike Tyson worried Andy Ruiz Jr’s weight loss will diminish his power

Mike Tyson worried Andy Ruiz Jr’s weight loss will diminish his power

Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson believes Andy Ruiz Jr 33-1 (22) could be compromising his power by losing weight ahead of his highly anticipated rematch with Anthony Joshua 22-1 (21) in Saudi Arabia on December 7.

Joshua was a shock loser when the pair met in New York in June, going down four times before being stopped by Ruiz Jr in the seventh. The result cost the 30-year-old Brit his IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight championships.

The 30-year-old Mexican-American, who weighed in at 268-pounds and outweighed Joshua by 20-pounds for their first bout, has shared photos in recent weeks of his dramatic weight loss.

The leaner version of Ruiz Jr doesn’t sit well with Tyson, who is concerned the move will affect his power.

“There have been rumours he has lost weight. I don’t like that,” said the 53-year-old Tyson to Parimatch.

“I believe losing the weight can affect power sometimes. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.

“He did well at that weight, so he should stay at that weight.”

Tyson believes it was Ruiz Jr’s power as much as his speed that guided him to victory in the first Joshua fight.

Tyson continued: “In the first fight, Ruiz put the pressure on him so fast that he didn’t know what to anticipate.

“And there were some hard punches.”

Footage of the interview was shared on Tyson’s official Twitter account where it has been viewed nearly 30,000 times.

On Instagram fans were supportive of Tyson’s theory.

“I agree with Mike here,” one person posted.

“That weight can help with leverage.”

“I’m with you on this, champ,” said another commentator.

Another insisted the weight loss wouldn’t negatively affect Ruiz Jr’s performance.

“Ruiz will destroy AJ again,” they wrote.