Andy Ruiz Jnr’s former trainer claims they ‘lost control’ of him after he made ‘new friends’ ahead of the second fight with Anthony Joshua and hits out at former heavyweight champion for his lack of motivation
- Andy Ruiz Jnr’s former trainer has claimed they ‘lost control’ of the Mexican star
- Ruiz Jnr stunned Anthony Joshua, winning his heavyweight titles in June 2019
- But he failed to hold onto the belts when the pair met again in Saudi Arabia
- Manny Robles also hit out at Ruiz Jnr for a lack of motivation for the second fight
The former trainer of Andy Ruiz Jnr has revealed how they ‘lost control’ of the Mexican fighter in the build up to his defeat by Anthony Joshua last year.
Ruiz Jnr shocked the world and embarked on an unlikely heavyweight title reign when he defeated Joshua at Madison Square Garden in New York back in June 2019.
But he failed to capitalise on his ascent to the top of the heavyweight division and was beaten by Joshua six months later in Saudi Arabia after weighing in at 15lbs heavier than the pair’s first fight.
Andy Ruiz Jnr’s (L) former trainer has claimed they ‘lost control’ of the Mexican fighter before his second clash with Anthony Joshua
Manny Robles (L) helped mastermind the defeat of Joshua at Madison Square Garden in 2019
And Manny Robles, Ruiz Jnr’s former trainer and as yet the only person to mastermind a defeat of Joshua, has claimed his camp ‘lost control’ of their fighter and points the finger at his ‘new’ friends.
Robles, speaking to Marc Gatford via the MyBettingSites.co.uk blog, said: ‘Unfortunately the dad had a lot to do with the situation ending. We lost control of Andy, so the dad decided to blame this on me.
‘He said I’m not doing my job, but I am not his dad. You’re his dad, you control him. If you can’t control your own son, how do you expect me to control the guy?
‘Andy admitted after the fight he f****d up. He said he didn’t train properly and takes the blame – as he should. After that I don’t know what happened, he’s acting like he won the damn fight.
‘I did the best I could under the circumstances, I showed up everyday. I decided to take the camp to Mexico to get him away from his new friends. I never saw these guys before he won the title, I never saw them, never knew who they were.
‘I don’t know where they were when Andy didn’t have a roof over his head. I have no idea where they were then. They weren’t around when I said to Andy “move into my place, let me help you”.’
Ruiz Jnr shocked the world and embarked on an unlikely heavyweight title reign last year
But Joshua reclaimed his titles with a unanimous decision win over Ruiz Jnr in Saudi Arabia
Robles also slammed Ruiz Jnr’s lack of motivation going into the second fight, claiming the Mexican’s attitude ‘didn’t make me feel good at all’.
‘I had to put up with a lot, I had to endure a lot, it wasn’t fun. I did the best I could to get him to focus on the fight and keep him disciplined but unfortunately his mind was somewhere else.
‘It didn’t make me feel good at all. You are world champion, man, you’re not a kid anymore. He was world champion: WBA, WBO, IBF, what more could you want? There’s your motivation right there.
‘If I win the world title today I want to be back in the gym tomorrow. That’s how most fighters think, they don’t want to lose their bouts, they don’t want to lose their belts. They want to get back in the gym and go to work.
‘He says he wasn’t motivated – you’re already a world champion, you’re rich, you’ve got money in the bank now. What motivation do you want now? You’re not homeless anymore. You buy yourself a mansion and you’re telling me you’re not motivated? You’re kidding me?
Original interview came via the MyBettingSites.co.uk blog, where you can find all the latest sporting insight and tips
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