Andy Ruiz Jr Angrily Responds To Anthony Joshua Saying He'd "Whoop" Him In Mexico

Andy Ruiz Jr has responded furiously to Anthony Joshua's claim that he would "whoop" the heavyweight king in Tijuana.

He's hit back at Joshua while challenging the British fighter to a rematch in Mexico.

"AJ says he can 'whoop' me in Tijuana prove it let's run it in Mexico. Remember that you did have a huge reason to come to America and that was to build your profile," he wrote on social media.

Joshua has distanced himself from the business side of the sport ahead of their second meeting.

"I've taken a step back from the business, so the decisions are due when the decisions are due, and I leave that to the decision-makers," he said. "What I need to focus on now is my training, so I know there's a rematch, I know it's going to be this year.

"You've got two ends of it. There's one, I'd fight in Tijuana and Ruiz's uncle could be the referee and I would still whoop him. It don't matter to me where it is, there's that aspect, but then there's the other aspect of the British fans that have been riding with me from day one want to see me get them belts back.

"I would love it to be in Cardiff but it's going to be on neutral ground, Ruiz is the champ so he will make some calls in that situation but I'm going to battle for it to be in the UK because it's my stomping ground."

A venue for the eagerly awaited rematch has not yet been announced with the likes of New York, Los Angeles and UAE rumored to host the bout.

But Joshua wants to run it back in Cardiff where he has fought twice during his professional career.

"Walking out in Cardiff in front of 70, 80, 90,000 people screaming and rooting for you to win, that type of energy that goes through your body is unstoppable, and I think that could give me that little bit of edge I need to win those belts," he added.

"After I lost, I said 'man, am I good enough?' But then I asked myself, if I lack in skill, I'm going to build up my fitness, if I lack in fitness, I'm going to build up my skill. Where I'm not so good in, I'm going to add in different aspects and that way I can become a full 360 fighter."

Will 'AJ' regain the heavyweight world titles? Let us know what you think.

Topics: Boxing News, Joshua News, Anthony Joshua, Boxing, Heavyweight, Fight News

Nasir Jabbar

Nasir Jabbar is a journalist at SPORTbible. He graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA in Media Communications. He's a combat sport aficionado, and has contributed to MMA websites AddictedMMA and CagePotato. Nasir has covered some of the biggest fights, while interviewing the likes of Conor McGregor, Darren Till, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. He's also an avid Bristol City fan.

@https://twitter.com/NasJabbar