A full summer of boxing is on the horizon, and in early August former heavyweight world champion Andy Ruiz returns to the ring against Jarrell Miller.
This fight between Ruiz and Miller is scheduled to take place on August 3, 2024 at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, California.
This heavyweight matchup takes place on the undercard of Terence Crawford’s bout with Israil Madrimov, which will be for the WBO interim Super Welterweight title and WBA Super Welterweight title currently held by the latter.
Fighter Bio | Andy Ruiz | Jarrell Miller |
Odds: | -370 | +270 |
Age: | 34 | 35 |
Nickname: | Destroyer | Big Baby |
Height: | 6ft 2in | 6ft 4in |
Reach: | 74in | 78in |
Weight: | Heavyweight | Heavyweight |
Trainer: | Aureliano Sosa | |
Record: | 35-2 | 26-1-1 |
Last Fight: | Win agains Luis Ortiz (September 4th, 2022) | Loss against Daniel Dubois (December 23rd, 2023) |
Read Andy Ruiz vs. Jarrell Miller fight date, ring walk time, how to watch, undercard & odds.
Andy Ruiz briefly held the IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO heavyweight world titles after a stunning win over Anthony Joshua in June of 2019. The Mexican-American lost the rematch and the titles later that year, and has fought just twice since.
Ruiz will have been out of the ring for just under two years by the time he comes up against Miller in Los Angeles in August. This period of inactivity is partly due to shoulder surgery but he has also seen a proposed showdown with former WBC champion Deontay Wilder fall through.
The Destroyer made his debut in 2009 with a first-round knockout win in Tijuana, Mexico, and he quickly started to establish a reputation as a heavy hitter winning four of his first five bouts inside the opening round.
After putting together a 13-0 record, Ruiz stepped up to take on a higher level of opponent in 2012 with four tricky fights, including a meeting with the then 11-1 Elijah McCall, and continued his unbeaten streak.
Ruiz’s first real breakthrough came the following year as he stopped the previously unbeaten Joe Hanks in the fourth round to land the vacant WBO Inter-Continental belt. He followed that up with another nine wins, culminating in a points victory over Franklin Lawrence, and that earned the California-native a shot at the vacant WBO world heavyweight crown.
Ruiz made the trip to New Zealand to face Joseph Parker and fell short in his bid to become a world champion as he was on the wrong side of a majority decision in 2016. He responded with three successive victories and then engineered a second world title shot against Joshua in 2019 as a late replacement for Miller.
He went into the bout as a huge underdog and was sent to the canvas in the third round, the first time he had been knocked down in his career. However, Ruiz scored two knockdowns of his own after getting up in the same round and went on to record a TKO win in the seventh, producing what is widely regarded as being among the biggest upsets in the history of heavyweight boxing.
Ruiz’s time at the top was short lived, however, as Joshua won the rematch later the same year. This time the Briton altered his tactics and stayed behind his jab, and Ruiz was unable to close the distance.
He has fought only twice since then, beating experienced duo Chris Arreola and Luis Ortiz, and will hope a win over Miller can put him firmly back in contention to challenge for a world title once again.
Strengths | Weaknesses |
Technique | Height |
Defense | Reach |
Durability | Inactivity |
Jarrell Miller is embarking on a comeback bid after seeing his unbeaten record brought to an end by Daniel Dubois in his last bout.
Miller was stopped in the closing stages of the 10th and final round by Dubois and his record now stands at 26-1-1.
Big Baby made his debut in 2009 with a first-round stoppage and won his first four fights inside the distance, but he was held to a draw in his fifth outing by Joey Dawejko, although he was deducted two points in that four-round contest.
Miller responded with another run of early finishes as he stopped his next five opponents.
In 2017, he claimed a pair of eye-catching wins over the 18-1-1 Gerald Washington and the 33-2 Mariusz Wach, stopping both, and those successes put him on a path towards a world title challenge but he was ultimately suspended and unable to face Joshua.
Miller was out of the ring from November 2018 until 2022 when he returned with a points win over Ariel Esteban Bracamonte. He followed that up by stopping Derek Cardenas and veteran Lucas Browne, before seeing his unbeaten record ended by Dubois.
Strengths | Weaknesses |
Power | Lacking defense |
Size | Lacks experience against elite |
Reach | Movement |
Odds mentioned in this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.