Andy Ruiz Jr has said he does not plan on ‘killing’ Anthony Joshua in their heavyweight rematch but that he would not mind hitting him with a ‘punch’ from God.
The Mexican-American stunned the boxing world when he knocked Joshua down four times before stopping him in the seventh round of their heavyweight world title fight in June.
Ruiz will put his three belts back on the line in the rematch when the rivals clash in the desert of Saudi Arabia on December 7.
In a post on his social media handles on Thursday, he also explained what he told Joshua when they came face-to-face during their recent promotional tour.
He wrote: “No, I don’t plan on killing nobody, God wouldn’t want that, but I’m sure he wants me to win and prove everyone wrong.
“Everybody still doubts me, saying it was God’s lucky punch but I told Joshua in his face that it was a punch from God because I’ve been praying and wishing for this opportunity my whole life and I took advantage of it.”
Ruiz was given little chance of upsetting Joshua when he stepped in to replace drug cheat Jarrell Miller at six weeks’ notice.
But having stunned Joshua, he was contracted to defend his belts against the 2012 Olympic champion.
