Dillian Whyte has never had too much good stuff to say about Andy Ruiz, and the two heavyweights have exchanged a number of insults and threats over social media. Now, ahead of former heavyweight champ Ruiz’ ring return against Chris Arreola, set for May 1st, Whyte has criticised Ruiz, 33-2(22) for taking what he says is a “strategic comeback fight,” one that is against a “shot fighter.”
Whyte, speaking with Sky Sports, says the fight with 40-year-old Arreola has purposely been picked to “make Ruiz look good.”
“A strategic comeback fight,” Whyte said of Ruiz facing Arreola. “It’s a fight that’s going to make him look good. Make him look like, ‘Oh Yeah, he’s this and he’s that,’ but on paper it’s not, because Chris Arreola is shot. Chris Arreola has been shot for a few years. He was a decent fighter in his heyday but he’s been retired for two years since losing to Adam Kownacki. Let’s be honest, it’s Chris Arreola he’s fighting. Typical joke fight from the fake Mexican.”
Harsh words from Whyte, or words of truth? To be fair, although Arreola, 38-6-1 with 33 KO’s, has been out since the August 2019 decision loss to Kownacki, Arreola looked good in that fight even though he lost; Arreola showing he had a lot left, his astonishing punch output seeing to it that we got a great action fight. Arreola certainly did not look “shot” in that fight. We must wait and see how much Arreola has left in the Ruiz fight but all indications are “The Nightmare” has trained, and is training, very hard; with Arreola joining Ruiz in dropping a good deal of weight.
If anything, Whyte appeared to be fighting a “shot” fighter in his last fight, when he crushed a poor, unsteady from the start, Alexander Povetkin. What would Whyte be saying if Ruiz had beaten that version of Povetkin? As a comeback fight after almost a year-and-a-half out, Ruiz has not picked a gimme in Arreola.
In fact it could be that the veteran Mexican/American gives the younger Mexican/American the kind of hell he gave Kownacki. Whyte is being far too overly critical here. Agree or disagree?