Anthony Joshua believes that he needs to “expose” the flaws of Andy Ruiz in order to win their heavyweight showdown.
Back in June, Ruiz captured the IBF, WBA, IBO and WBO heavyweight world title when he stopped Joshua in the seventh round at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
A rematch clause was invoked, with the second bout taking place in Saudi Arabia on December 7.
The rematch is seen as a 50-50 fight after the initial contest was widely viewed as a potential mismatch. Ruiz accepted the fight on late notice after his initial opponent, Jarrell Miller, was pulled from the bout after testing positive for banned substances. This time around, Ruiz will have a full training camp.
Joshua feels that he made a big mistake by becoming reckless after dropping Ruiz in the third. After decking Ruiz, it was Joshua who went down twice in the same round. Joshua was knocked down two more times before the contest was waved off.
“A little blip should not change you as a person,” Joshua exclusively told Sky Sports from Saudi Arabia at a press conference on Wednesday.
“You should stay consistent with who you are. I can become familiar with him. I know what I’m in for. I know what I’m capable of. I know what he’s capable of.
“I know some of the attributes he possesses, and some of the weaknesses. I have to go about exposing him a little bit more. The first time I had him down [in the first fight], I could have been smarter. These little things you think about in your head. Now I meet him eye-to-eye again and, subconsciously, the clock is ticking and I start thinking more and more about the fight.”
