THE REBOUND

IT will come as a surprise to some to be reminded that Andy Ruiz Jnr is still only 31 years of age, a pup in heavyweight terms, and has gone the 12-round distance just once in his career to date.

If looks are deceiving, so are upset wins, and it is quite natural therefore to assume Ruiz, based on his shape and recent exploits, has been there, done it, and seen better days. It is just as understandable to assume he will now inevitably go the way of the many other former heavyweight champions who, once reaching the summit, found it hard to rediscover the motivation to carry on and repeat their success.

But what if the Andy Ruiz story turns out to be different? What if, at 31, he is just getting started? What if his win over Anthony Joshua in June 2019, a huge shock at the time, was in fact not his crowning achievement but merely a breakout performance he produced earlier in his career than expected?

All will be revealed in time, of course, but what we know for now is that Ruiz,