Anthony Joshua warns Andy Ruiz Jr. is ‘digging his own grave’ with trash talk

AJ wants the unified world heavyweight champion to know that all he’s doing is igniting his flame and hunger, while “digging his own grave.”

“I’m not going to say that’s the reason, because when I’m in the ring we’re in the lion’s den,” Joshua said to William Hill about regaining his fire, while beginning to unpack Ruiz’s recent smack talk. “I’m never looking for excuses, but it’s interesting that you say that because I didn’t meet Ruiz until the press conference, or the week of the fight, because [Jarrell] Miller pulled out and he was the best replacement. 


“So there wasn’t that real fire, but honestly the smack talk is only digging his own grave because it’s a different kind of thing now, do you know what I mean?” he continued. “Yeah, I took my 'L' and I handled it like a man, but I’m going to show people the art of bouncing back.

“That’s what this fight is to me. And I’m just speaking about me to the public. Whether they believe it or not, you can run with it and take it how you please, but for me what it means is the art of bouncing back.”

Upon seeing footage of Joshua training last month, Ruiz took to his Twitter account and posted a robot emoji to describe the former unified world champ’s fighting style.

Earlier this month, he also doubled down on calling Joshua a “robot” and used the hashtag “#CherryPickGoneWrong” referring to AJ’s team selecting him as the replacement for Miller, only for Ruiz to knock him down four times and score a stunning seventh-round TKO on June 1 to become the first Mexican heavyweight champion. On Wednesday, Ruiz even posted footage from wrestling legend Ric Flair delivering the classic line “To be the man, you gotta beat the man!” Let’s see if Joshua can indeed make Ruiz eat his words Dec. 7 to become the two-time unified heavyweight champion of the world.