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Ruiz – Joshua 2: Cash on the Dunes

Ruiz – Joshua 2: Cash on the Dunes
Now that Deontay Wilder vs. Luis Ortiz is in the rearview mirror, it’s time to focus on boxing’s next big heavyweight fight.
On August 9, promoter Eddie Hearn announced that the rematch between Anthony Joshua and Andy Ruiz would take place on December 7 in Saudi Arabia.
Three days later, Hearn hosted a two-man press conference in London with Omar Khalil, managing partner of Skill Challenge Entertainment (the Saudi Kingdom’s “official event partner” that is putting up the money to bring the fight to Saudi Arabia). After Hearn’s opening statement, he engaged in a dialogue with Khalil who told those in attendance, “We’re a democracy of forty million people” and said that the event was part of a plan to “enhance the quality of life and overall wellbeing” of the Saudi people.
“We love what you’re doing here for sports,” Hearn responded. “This is how you grow the sport of boxing. The world will stand still to witness history in Saudi Arabia.”
Matt Christie (editor of Boxing News, the world’s longest running boxing publication) wrote of the announcement, “It’s hard to remember confirmation of such a highly anticipated showdown being so poorly received.”
Joshua’s career has been built on the adoration of British boxing fans, most of whom (like members of the boxing media) have little desire to travel to Saudi Arabia. Some employees of Sky Sport (which televises Joshua’s fights in the United Kingdom) and DAZN (which will stream the bout live in the United States) are also wary of going to Saudi Arabia.
More significantly, the choice of Saudi Arabia as the site for Ruiz-Joshua 2 has led to an outpouring of criticism from human rights groups and others who are concerned that the move plays into the Saudi Kingdom’s efforts to “sportswash” its dismal record on human rights.
Let’s start with some facts.
Saudi Arabia is not a democracy.
The National Democratic Institute (a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nongovernmental organization founded in 1983) states, “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has one of the most tightly controlled political systems in the world . . . Ordinary Saudis lack protections for the exercise of basic civil rights, including speech and association, and have limited opportunity to participate in the political process at the national level.”
The Economist’s 2018 Democracy Index ranks the Saudi government as the ninth-most authoritarian regime in the world among 169 countries listed.
Reporters Without Borders has described the Saudi government as “relentless in its censorship of the Saudi media and the Internet.” In 2019, it ranked Saudi Arabia 172nd out of 180 countries in its Press Freedom Index.
Saudi Arabia has played a troubling role in the ongoing war in Yemen.
Women in Saudi Arabia are relegated by law to second-class status.
Same-sex activity in Saudi Arabia is punishable by fines, imprisonment, and torture.
And the involvement of the Saudi government in the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, is a matter of public record. It’s particularly troubling that, at the September 5, 2019, press conference in New York for Ruiz-Joshua 2, Eddie Hearn acknowledged the presence of Prince Khalid bin Salman, who had traveled to the United States for a meeting with officials of the Trump Administration. Prince Khalid has been named in reliable intelligence reports as having been complicit in Khashoggi’s murder.
Moreover, there are legitimate safety concerns related to holding Ruiz-Joshua 2 in Saudi Arabia.
The United States Department of State has four advisory levels for travelers:
Level 1 – Exercise Normal Precautions
Level 2 – Exercise Increased Caution
Level 3 – Reconsider Travel
Level 4 – Do Not Travel
As of November 24, 2019, the State Department website had a “level 2” advisory for Saudia Arabia with the notation, “Exercise increased caution in Saudi Arabia due to terrorism and the threat of missile and drone attacks on civilian targets . . . Terrorists have targeted both Saudi and Western government interests, mosques and other religious sites (both Sunni and Shia), and places frequented by U.S. citizens and other Westerners.”
The September 14 terrorist drone attacks on nineteen key Saudi Arabian oil facilities further undermined confidence in the safety of the Ruiz-Joshua 2 promotion.
But money talks. And the Saudi Kingdom has given the promotion a lot of money (estimates range from $40 million to $100 million) to bring the fight to Saudi Arabia. Eddie Hearn referenced this reality at the September 5 press conference in New York when he declared, “No other country can compete with the money that’s available for boxing in the Middle East. If I don’t do it, some other promoter would.”
Hearn has also referenced two fight cards previously contested in Saudi Arabia – the September 28, 2018, World Boxing Super Series final between Callum Smith and George Groves (before the murder of Jamal Khashoggi) and the July 12, 2019, event headlined by Amir Khan vs. Billy Dib.
Other thoughts offered by Hearn have included:
* “We really wanted to go somewhere who believed in the sport of boxing, that had a vision. We have to realize that there is another world out there outside of Cardiff and Madison Square Garden, and we have an obligation to grow the sport of boxing to new areas, to new regions. This event could change boxing forever because, if Saudi Arabia are going to invest in these kind of fights with the population that they have, with the potential to grow the sport of boxing, you could be seeing a big change in the dynamics of the sport. That’s something that really truly excites me.”
* “The world will stop to watch this fight. I’m telling you, this is another Thrilla in Manila. This is another Rumble in the Jungle. Trust me when I say, this is one of the biggest heavyweight events of all time.”
* “This [Saudi Arabia] is probably the safest place I’ve ever been to.”
Tickets for Joshua-Ruiz 2 went on sale on September 13. The top ticket price was listed at approximately $13,500.
There are political and economic reasons why the United States and United Kingdom do business in Saudi Arabia. But that doesn’t mean we should pretend that it’s a democracy or has the entertainment value of Disneyland.
In March of this year, Endeavor (which owns UFC) returned a $400 million investment from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and severed ties with the Kingdom to protest the role that the Saudi government played in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The absence of democracy in Saudi Arabia, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabia’s role in the ongoing war in Yemen, and other issues involving the Kingdom should be weighed by the media in determining how to report on, and whether or not to attend, Ruiz-Joshua 2.
British journalist Kevin Mitchell spoke for many when he wrote in The Guardian, “This is about money, not morals – because the business does not do all that well with morals. Human rights abuse, the slaughter of innocent people in Yemen and the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi seem to have been no impediment to doing a deal with a regime so transparently desperate for international approval that ‘sportswashing’, as it has become known, is a central plank of their public relations platform.”
Thomas Hauser’s email address is thomashauserwriter@gmail.com. His most recent book — A Dangerous Journey: Another Year Inside Boxing — was published by the University of Arkansas Press. In 2004, the Boxing Writers Association of America honored Hauser with the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism.
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 322: Super Welter Week in SoCal

Two below-the-radar super welterweight stars show off their skills this weekend from different parts of Southern California.
One in particular, Charles Conwell, co-headlines a show in Oceanside against a hard-hitting Mexican while another super welter star Sadriddin Akhmedov faces another Mexican hitter in Commerce.
Take your pick.
The super welterweight division is loaded with talent at the moment. If Terence Crawford remained in the division he would be at the top of the class, but he is moving up several weight divisions.
Conwell (21-0, 16 KOs) faces Jorge Garcia Perez (32-4, 26 KOs) a tall knockout puncher from Los Mochis at the Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, Calif. on Saturday April 19. DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also features undisputed flyweight champion Gabriela Fundora. We’ll get to her later.
Conwell might be the best super welterweight out there aside from the big dogs like Vergil Ortiz, Serhii Bohachuk and Sebastian Fundora.
If you are not familiar with Conwell he comes from Cleveland, Ohio and is one of those fighters that other fighters know about. He is good.
He has the James “Lights Out” Toney kind of in-your-face-style where he anchors down and slowly deciphers the opponent’s tools and then takes them away piece by piece. Usually it’s systematic destruction. The kind you see when a skyscraper goes down floor by floor until it’s smoking rubble.
During the Covid days Conwell fought two highly touted undefeated super welters in Wendy Toussaint and Madiyar Ashkeyev. He stopped them both and suddenly was the boogie man of the super welterweight division.
Conwell will be facing Mexico’s taller Garcia who likes to trade blows as most Mexican fighters prefer, especially those from Sinaloa. These guys will be firing H bombs early.
Fundora
Co-headlining the Golden Boy card is Gabriela Fundora (15-0, 7 KOs) the undisputed flyweight champion of the world. She has all the belts and Mexico’s Marilyn Badillo (19-0-1, 3 KOs) wants them.
Gabriela Fundora is the sister of Sebastian Fundora who holds the men’s WBC and WBO super welterweight world titles. Both are tall southpaws with power in each hand to protect the belts they accumulated.
Six months ago, Fundora met Argentina’s Gabriela Alaniz in Las Vegas to determine the undisputed flyweight champion. The much shorter Alaniz tried valiantly to scrap with Fundora and ran into a couple of rocket left hands.
Mexico’s Badillo is an undefeated flyweight from Mexico City who has battled against fellow Mexicans for years. She has fought one world champion in Asley Gonzalez the current super flyweight world titlist. They met years ago with Badillo coming out on top.
Does Badillo have the skill to deal with the taller and hard-hitting Fundora?
When a fighter has a six-inch height advantage like Fundora, it is almost impossible to out-maneuver especially in two-minute rounds. Ask Alaniz who was nearly decapitated when she tried.
This will be Badillo’s first pro fight outside of Mexico.
Commerce Casino
Kazakhstan’s Sadriddin Akhmedov (15-0, 13 KOs) is another dangerous punching super welterweight headlining a 360 Promotions card against Mexico’s Elias Espadas (23-6, 16 KOs) on Saturday at the Commerce Casino.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the 360 Promotions card of about eight bouts.
Akhmedov is another Kazakh puncher similar to the great Gennady “GGG” Golovkin who terrorized the middleweight division for a decade. He doesn’t have the same polish or dexterity but doesn’t lack pure punching power.
It’s another test for the super welterweight who is looking to move up the ladder in the very crowded 154-pound weight division. 360 Promotions already has a top contender in Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk who nearly defeated Vergil Ortiz a year ago.
Could Bohachuk and Akhmedov fight each other if nothing else materializes?
That’s a question for another day.
Fights to Watch
Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. Charles Conwell (21-0, 16 KOs) vs. Jorge Garcia Perez (32-4, 26 KOs); Gabriela Fundora (15-0) vs Marilyn Badillo (19-0-1).
Sat. UFC Fight Pass 6 p.m. Sadriddin Akhmedov (15-0) vs Elias Espadas (23-6).
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TSS Salutes Thomas Hauser and his Bernie Award Cohorts

The Boxing Writers Association of America has announced the winners of its annual Bernie Awards competition. The awards, named in honor of former five-time BWAA president and frequent TSS contributor Bernard Fernandez, recognize outstanding writing in six categories as represented by stories published the previous year.
Over the years, this venerable website has produced a host of Bernie Award winners. In 2024, Thomas Hauser kept the tradition alive. A story by Hauser that appeared in these pages finished first in the category “Boxing News Story.” Titled “Ryan Garcia and the New York State Athletic Commission,” the story was published on June 23. You can read it HERE.
Hauser also finished first in the category of “Investigative Reporting” for “The Death of Ardi Ndembo,” a story that ran in the (London) Guardian. (Note: Hauser has owned this category. This is his 11th first place finish for “Investigative Reporting”.)
Thomas Hauser, who entered the International Boxing Hall of Fame with the class of 2019, was honored at last year’s BWAA awards dinner with the A.J. Leibling Award for Outstanding Boxing Writing. The list of previous winners includes such noted authors as W.C. Heinz, Budd Schulberg, Pete Hamill, and George Plimpton, to name just a few.
The Leibling Award is now issued intermittently. The most recent honorees prior to Hauser were Joyce Carol Oates (2015) and Randy Roberts (2019).
Roberts, a Distinguished Professor of History at Purdue University, was tabbed to write the Hauser/Leibling Award story for the glossy magazine for BWAA members published in conjunction with the organization’s annual banquet. Regarding Hauser’s most well-known book, his Muhammad Ali biography, Roberts wrote, “It is nearly impossible to overestimate the importance of the book to our understanding of Ali and his times.” An earlier book by Hauser, “The Black Lights: Inside the World of Professional Boxing,” garnered this accolade: “Anyone who wants to understand boxing today should begin by reading ‘The Black Lights’.”
A panel of six judges determined the Bernie Award winners for stories published in 2024. The stories they evaluated were stripped of their bylines and other identifying marks including the publication or website for which the story was written.
Other winners:
Boxing Event Coverage: Tris Dixon
Boxing Column: Kieran Mulvaney
Boxing Feature (Over 1,500 Words): Lance Pugmire
Boxing Feature (Under 1,500 Words): Chris Mannix
The Dixon, Mulvaney, and Pugmire stories appeared in Boxing Scene; the Mannix story in Sports Illustrated.
The Bernie Award recipients will be honored at the forthcoming BWAA dinner on April 30 at the Edison Ballroom in the heart of Times Square. (For more information, visit the BWAA website). Two days after the dinner, an historic boxing tripleheader will be held in Times Square, the logistics of which should be quite interesting. Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney, and Teofimo Lopez share top billing.
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Mekhrubon Sanginov, whose Heroism Nearly Proved Fatal, Returns on Saturday

To say that Mekhrubon Sanginov is excited to resume his boxing career would be a great understatement. Sanginov, ranked #9 by the WBA at 154 pounds before his hiatus, last fought on July 8, 2022.
He was in great form before his extended leave, having scored four straight fast knockouts, advancing his record to 13-0-1. Had he remained in Las Vegas, where he had settled after his fifth pro fight, his career may have continued on an upward trajectory, but a trip to his hometown of Dushanbe, Tajikistan, turned everything haywire. A run-in with a knife-wielding bully nearly cost him his life, stalling his career for nearly three full years.
Sanginov was exiting a restaurant in Dushanbe when he saw a man, plainly intoxicated, harassing another man, an innocent bystander. Mekhrubon intervened and was stabbed several times with a long knife. One of the puncture wounds came perilously close to puncturing his heart.
“After he stabbed me, I ran after him and hit him and caught him to hold for the police,” recollects Sanginov. “There was a lot of confusion when the police arrived. At first, the police were not certain what had happened.
“By the time I got to the hospital, I had lost two liters of blood, or so I was told. After I was patched up, one of the surgeons said to me, ‘Give thanks to God because he gave you a second life.’ It is like I was born a second time.”
“I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It could have happened in any city,” he adds. (A story about the incident on another boxing site elicited this comment from a reader: “Good man right there. World would be a better place if more folk were willing to step up when it counts.”)
Sanginov first laced on a pair of gloves at age 10 and was purportedly 105-14 as an amateur. Growing up, the boxer he most admired was Roberto Duran. “Muhammad Ali will always be the greatest and [Marvin] Hagler was great too, but Duran was always my favorite,” he says.
During his absence from the ring, Sanginov married a girl from Tajikistan and became a father. His son Makhmud was born in Las Vegas and has dual citizenship. “Ideally,” he says, “I would like to have three more children. Two more boys and the last one a daughter.”
He also put on a great deal of weight. When he returned to the gym, his trainer Bones Adams was looking at a cruiserweight. But gradually the weight came off – “I had to give up one of my hobbies; I love to eat,” he says – and he will be resuming his career at 154. “Although I am the same weight as before, I feel stronger now. Before I was more of a boy, now I am a full-grown man,” says Sanginov who turned 29 in February.
He has a lot of rust to shed. Because of all those early knockouts, he has answered the bell for only eight rounds in the last four years. Concordantly, his comeback fight on Saturday could be described as a soft re-awakening. Sanginov’s opponent Mahonri Montes, an 18-year pro from Mexico, has a decent record (36-10-2, 25 KOs) but has been relatively inactive and is only 1-3-1 in his last five. Their match at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California, is slated for eight rounds.
On May 10, Ardreal Holmes (17-0) faces Erickson Lubin (26-2) on a ProBox card in Kissimmee, Florida. It’s an IBF super welterweight title eliminator, meaning that the winner (in theory) will proceed directly to a world title fight.
Sanginov will be watching closely. He and Holmes were scheduled to meet in March of 2022 in the main event of a ShoBox card on Showtime. That match fell out when Sanginov suffered an ankle injury in sparring.
If not for a twist of fate, that may have been Mekhrubon Sanginov in that IBF eliminator, rather than Ardreal Holmes. We will never know, but one thing we do know is that Mekhrubon’s world title aspirations were too strong to be ruined by a knife-wielding bully.
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