The sold-out crowd in New York which was largely in favor of Anthony Joshua were left stunned and silent when the champion was knocked out in the 7th round of last night’s bout by Andy Ruiz Jr.
Joshua, previously undefeated, was defending his IBF, WBA and WBO titles but was knocked down four times before underdog Ruiz was awarded a technichal knockout.
Reacting after the match, Joshua said, “big respect to Andy, big big respect. He’s a good fighter. Thank you America. Thank you everyone for coming out this evening. Sorry I let my friends down, sorry I let my supporters down.”
He went on to say, “there’s no excuses. It’s my own fault. I got caught with a big shot. Congratulations to him. I would have preferred it to be Deontay Wilder, do you know what I mean? But it wasn’t. It was Andy Ruiz, and he deserves it, and the fame and fortune he’s about to receive.
“I don’t want anyone to kind of drown in their sorrows. This is boxing. It’s all the same. It just wasn’t my night. It was Andy Ruiz’s night. You know what? It’s good for the TV”.