Former heavyweight world champion Andy Ruíz Jr. defeated Californian Chris Arreola by unanimous decision in twelve rounds to win the WBA heavyweight eliminator in Carson, California.

After twelve rounds of action, the judges’ scores were as follows: 117-110, 118-109 and 118-109, in favor of Andy Ruiz Jr.

The first half of the fight was full of surprises, Andy Ruiz came out determined to finish the actions from the first round, but in the second round Arreola surprised him with a right cross to send him to the canvas and putting in check the triumphant return of the Mexican, who could survive under the pressure of “Nightmare” who connected again between the third and fourth, but Ruiz’s jaw assimilated everything, and allowed him to survive and improve during the fifth and sixth rounds.

The second half of the fight was different, Ruíz came out more cautious, using combinations and hunting his opponent without despairing. Arreola was still in the game and tried to put his opponent in trouble, but he no longer had the same strength and at times complained of discomfort in his left arm, but still finished the fight like a warrior and did not succumb to the pressure of Andy who was seeking to knock him out in the closing round.

Ruiz put an end to 1 year and 4 months of inactivity with this victory. In his previous appearance he had fallen on the cards to Anthony Joshua in the second bout held in December 2019 in Saudi Arabia.

The “Destroyer” improved his record to 34 wins, 2 losses and 22 knockouts. The experienced Arreola dropped his record to 38 wins, 7 losses, 1 draw and 33 knockouts.