RUIZ-TONEY ROUND BY ROUND ANALYSIS

April 30, 2005 - by Anne Vitello

ROUND 1
Ruiz lunges in with a single jab; Toney slips it easily. Ruiz stays active, coming in again with short combinations. Toney counters with a hard right inside. The Quiet Man seems to have heard all of the complaints about his clinching style: Keeping his distance, he is working from the outside. In the middle of a short exchange, Toney lands that right again - right on the money. Ruiz absorbs it and keeps walking in. Respectable action from both men, though the final moment is a clinch.

ROUND 2
This time Toney connects first, a left upstairs. Toney gets that right in again, and Ruiz grabs him. The fighters are separated by the ref, each pumping hooks while in a clinch. Moments later, in a holding and hitting scenario, Ruiz is warned by the ref about illegal tactics. There are some single punch exchanges, at arms-length. Then Ruiz unleashes some thumping hooks to both sides of Toney's body. Toney acts unfazed, but had to have felt that.

ROUND 3
More jabs from the outside! Ruiz is making use of his height this evening. He looks a little awkward with the new technique, but it's a refreshing change. Toney is finding the mark consistently with his right. James wants to come in low and fight inside. But when Ruiz can get some breathing room (an unusual goal for him) he is landing some real bombs. Toney seeks instant retaliation, but his rallies don't seem to add up to the equivalent of what he has received. After three rounds, this fight has been pleasantly active and shows promise of being a serious heavyweight battle.

ROUND 4
James Toney pastes John Ruiz with a fierce overhand right! John naturally clinches and holds on for a moment. Ruiz has been working doggedly in this fight however, and showing a determination to transform his game. Wow, that was a huge right counter from Toney, right on the kisser - coming off a big right from Ruiz. John Ruiz answers with long straight punches, both upstairs and down. In the closing moment, Ruiz connects with the one-two combo again. This is definitely getting interesting.

ROUND 5
It's still not necessarily a pretty fight, but certainly it has been a much more watch-able contest than what may have been expected. For the first minute or two, the men alternate walking in; many single and 2-punch combos are delivered. Toney walks in and connects with a left hook which clearly gives John a moment's pause. Ruiz is diligently busy, and gets his shots in. But James Toney looks ominously relaxed, and in contrast The Quiet Man is not necessarily at ease.

ROUND 6
John Ruiz is really letting his hands go. The question is, is anybody accumulating damage in the ring? John is straightened up, and wide open, taking risks and boxing aggressively. Toney walks Ruiz down, but sometime he has to walk through a jab or two. In a less eventful round, the impression is that Ruiz needs a moment to regroup and regain his energy; James Toney makes a few unsuccessful attempts to land a big overhand right. But he won't turn down a change to recharge, either.

ROUND 7
Boom! In the opening seconds, James Toney charges out of his corner, and pops John Ruiz (jab-right-left hook), who hits the canvas while protesting that it was not a legit knockdown Looks like there was indeed a problem with the fighters' feet getting entangled or stepped on. Although John Ruiz battles back to make up for the knockdown, Toney follows up like a champ too. In action similar to those more closely fought early rounds, the boxers end the round in fighting style.

ROUND 8
John Ruiz is down again, but this time it is ruled a definite slip. Nevertheless, John is clearly getting beaten to the punch, and has not put his game together with any great effectiveness. Quality phone booth action; both men flick short punches, shoulder-to-shoulder. This is really a decent bout, despite low expectations. On occasion, Ruiz does take an opportunity to lean on the back of Toney's neck. But it's no more than any bigger man would do in the same situation. Uh oh, a bit too enthusiastic with that right, Toney lets one fly after the bell has rung.

ROUND 9
Clinching on the ropes, then in the center of the ring; the ref is starting to get his own workout now, separating 450+ pounds of heavyweight. Ruiz is pumping his jab; he appears to have thrown more punches in this fight than in his last 2 or 3 put together. This is not his most active round however, and he has not managed to hurt Toney. Meanwhile Ruiz is still an easy target. James Toney is timing the bigger man, and relying on his right hand counter for consistent success.

ROUND 10
Ruiz is getting serious now. After a few jabs, he fully commits with a one-two and a right hand that lands with authority. Toney retaliates. Then both men slow down. Ruiz is making the smaller man carry him at every opportunity. Toney looks frustrated, back against the ropes, with John Ruiz slumped against him and rolling in with some hooks to the body. Then it's James' turn: Coming off the ropes, he seeks payback. But this round shows an interesting moment for Ruiz: His old tactic of making use of his weight brought him some level of success (when he kept his fists busy as well).

ROUND 11
It's slightly messy, but it's not nearly as ugly as had been expected. Two sluggers seek to land that one huge right hand that will make all the difference. And it's Toney who lands the biggest right counter yet: A stinging blow to Ruiz's cheekbone. John's punches just never seem to land as hard or as clean. John Ruiz is giving the performance of a lifetime, but it may not be enough. James Toney's lateral movement and countering abilities have effectively thwarted Ruiz's efforts to beat him down.

ROUND 12
Looking worn but diligently in motion, John Ruiz lands a quality right hand; Toney backs up. But he does not necessarily look hurt. In fact he comes back with 2 bunches of punches. Ruiz keeps coming too, but he is visibly worn down. James Toney has taken a few punches, and he has repaid much of Ruiz's efforts. Now it's some of the classic Ruiz, punch and hold. With less than a minute to go, this final round of action was not exactly the most exciting. While both men have worked hard and fought well, James Toney nevertheless appears to have surpassed Ruiz and controlled the bout.

POST-FIGHT COMMENTS:
Well, John Ruiz gave a man room to punch, and he paid for it with his title. James Toney stuck with a reliable right countering tactic, and connected with it, practically at will. Ruiz's new technique - a less than successful approach from the "seemed like a good idea at the time" school of thought - was to keep his distance. The result, however, was that he left himself open. More busy but less able to connect, The Quiet Man came up short.

"I want Klitschko. I won't duck nobody." James Toney clamped a cigar in his teeth and rattled off a long list of comments. Though he at one point referred to the former champion as "garbage", he also gave John Ruiz a positive remark, of sorts: "I tip my hat to him. He gave me an opportunity. I did what I had to do." And so. There is a new player in the heavyweight division. Whether it's Klitschko, Byrd or otherwise, James Toney's next fight is sure to draw higher expectations than this division has seen in a while.