Damian Knyba Drops Andy Ruiz Jr, Wins Unanimous Decision

Damian Knyba used his size, reach and a seventh-round knockdown to beat former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr by unanimous decision on Friday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Knyba was awarded the fight by scores of 117-110, 114-113 and 114-113, a result that returned him to the win column after his January stoppage loss to Agit Kabayel and left Ruiz facing renewed questions about his future after another inactive spell.

Ruiz, now 35-3-1 with 22 knockouts, was fighting for the first time since his majority draw with Jarrell Miller in August 2024 and subsequent surgery on his right hand. He had reunited with trainer Manny Robles, the coach who was in his corner for the June 2019 stoppage of Anthony Joshua at Madison Square Garden, but the former IBF, WBA and WBO champion struggled to close distance against Knyba’s 86-inch reach.

Knyba, 18-1 with 11 knockouts, boxed behind the jab from the opening rounds, moving Ruiz onto punches and refusing to give the shorter man sustained exchanges at close range. Ruiz had some success when he forced his way inside and opened a small cut near Knyba’s left eye with a right hand, but those moments were brief and did not shift the pattern of the fight.

The decisive breakthrough came in the seventh round, when Knyba hurt Ruiz with a right hand and followed with a combination that sent him to the canvas. Ruiz beat the count and survived the follow-up attack to reach the bell, despite being badly hurt and marked up around both eyes.

Ruiz responded in the eighth, landing a heavy right hand that briefly troubled Knyba, then worked the body in the ninth as he tried to drag the fight into the type of exchanges he needed. Knyba held at times when Ruiz got close, but he regained control in the later rounds by returning to the jab and movement that had carried the fight for him.

Afterwards, Knyba said, “I used my physical attributes, my reach, my movement,” before adding, “Andy is a great fighter and it was an honor to share the ring with him. I wish him nothing but the best.” He also made clear that his target is a second fight with Kabayel, saying, “This feeling is so amazing,” and, “I really want a rematch with Kabayel.”

Ruiz rejected calls for retirement after the defeat and pointed to Knyba’s tactics as a reason he could not produce his combinations. “He was holding every time I came in, and I couldn’t get my combinations off,” Ruiz said, while also insisting, “I want to run it back. He was a great opponent, I didn’t want an easy fight and that’s why I chose Damian.”

The result pushes Knyba back towards the top level of the heavyweight division, with Kabayel now elevated by the WBC to full champion. Ruiz, recently signed by Matchroom Boxing, is looking for activity rather than retirement, but Knyba’s stated priority is a rematch with Kabayel rather than an immediate one with Ruiz.