Andy Ruiz Jr conceded that three months of partying and inadequate training had left him badly out of shape, leading to defeat in his world title rematch with Anthony Joshua on Saturday night.
The Mexican-American, the second-heaviest world champion in heavyweight history, was resoundingly beaten on points at the Diriyah Arena in Saudi Arena, six months after he had surprised the boxing world by clinching a seventh-round stoppage against Joshua in New York.
Ruiz gained almost seven kilograms for the second clash with the British boxer, lifting his weight to 129kg, and it showed in a significantly more sluggish display. With only a second professional defeat in 35 bouts, Ruiz surrendered the WBA, IBF and WBO belts he won from Joshua earlier this year.
"I don't want to say the three months of partying or celebrating didn't affect me as, to tell you the truth, it kind of did," Ruiz said at the post-fight press conference. "I should have trained harder. I should have listened to my team and coaches. For this fight I was overweight. I didn't move how I wanted to.
"Me, my dad, and my team were talking … I should have listened to them. I think we started [training] too late. Three months of partying, celebrating, affected me. What can I say?
"I shouldn't have put on all this weight. I tried to do my kind of training on my own and I'm sorry to [trainer] Manny [Robles], my dad. I got too confident in myself.”
Many had questioned Ruiz’s lifestyle since shocking the sport in June and becoming Mexico's first heavyweight champion, with the California native spending lavishly on a new mansion and high-end cars.
Yet Ruiz vowed to come back stronger, especially if that means a third clash with Joshua.
"There's a lot of responsibility being a champion of the world," he said. "I think the partying and all that stuff got the best of me. Being a champion for the first time, being over here and there and missing training, it was hard.
"For the trilogy I will be a lot better. If it's here even better; I want to redeem myself in Saudi Arabia.
"I think people are still doubting me. I am still a dangerous fighter to anyone in the division. At 100 per cent I can dominate anyone in the world. You best believe I am going to come back and be the heavyweight champion of the world once again."
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
THE LOWDOWN
Photograph
Rating: 4/5
Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies
Director: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz
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Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
MORE ON THE US DEMOCRATIC PRIMARIES
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
THE DETAILS
Kaala
Dir: Pa. Ranjith
Starring: Rajinikanth, Huma Qureshi, Easwari Rao, Nana Patekar
Rating: 1.5/5
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If you go
The flights
Etihad (etihad.com) flies from Abu Dhabi to Luang Prabang via Bangkok, with a return flight from Chiang Rai via Bangkok for about Dh3,000, including taxes. Emirates and Thai Airways cover the same route, also via Bangkok in both directions, from about Dh2,700.
The cruise
The Gypsy by Mekong Kingdoms has two cruising options: a three-night, four-day trip upstream cruise or a two-night, three-day downstream journey, from US$5,940 (Dh21,814), including meals, selected drinks, excursions and transfers.
The hotels
Accommodation is available in Luang Prabang at the Avani, from $290 (Dh1,065) per night, and at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort from $1,080 (Dh3,967) per night, including meals, an activity and transfers.
