“Here’s the problem that I have with TNT,” journalist Steve Kim said on the 3 Knockdown Rule podcast. “One of their executives said, ‘We have quality control. We can red-light a fight, not just green-light them.’ I wouldn’t have taken Knyba. I wouldn’t have taken this fight. I don’t get it. It’s a heavyweight. It’s Andy Ruiz. Why not put up a better fight? This is a main event.”
Kim described it as a probable showcase designed to give Ruiz a knockout and create the impression that his career has been transformed. After more than two years away, Ruiz needs a manageable opponent, but that does not automatically make Knyba suitable for a nationally televised main event.
The matchmaking looks worse when compared with the chief support fight. Vito Mielnicki Jr. against Austin Williams is a competitive middleweight contest in which either man has a realistic chance of winning. The co-feature carries more uncertainty than the heavyweight headliner, reversing how a strong televised card should normally be constructed.
Stylistically, Knyba also looks selected to complement Ruiz’s strengths. The 6-foot-7 heavyweight fights upright and operates at a methodical pace, giving the shorter Ruiz opportunities to slip inside and release his fast combinations. His size creates an impressive visual, but his approach may help Ruiz produce exactly the kind of knockout Matchroom wants. Knyba has never beaten any notable fighters during his five-year pro career.
That cautious matchmaking is understandable given Ruiz’s inactivity. He has fought only three times since losing his titles to Anthony Joshua in December 2019, and his last appearance produced a sluggish majority draw with Jarrell Miller in August 2024.
Matchroom recently signed a recognizable former champion, but it also inherited a part-time fighter whose commercial value cannot withstand another poor showing. A dominant performance on Friday would give the company footage of a fast, powerful, rejuvenated Ruiz to use when pursuing a lucrative bout against a champion or another established heavyweight.
Facing Knyba provides the height and appearance of danger without bringing the same competitive risk as Joseph Parker, Daniel Dubois, Fabio Wardley, or Frank Sanchez. The aim is not necessarily to establish that Ruiz can defeat one of those men. It is to rebuild his image and sell the idea that the 2019 version has returned.
A similar strategy followed Matchroom’s signing of Edgar Berlanga in 2023. Berlanga was matched against Jason Quigley and Padraig McCrory before receiving a major payday against Canelo Alvarez. Had he been required to face David Benavidez or David Morrell first, his chances of reaching the Canelo fight would have been considerably lower.
The same treatment may now be reserved for Ruiz. Promoters routinely guide fighters toward profitable opportunities, and Matchroom is protecting its investment. TNT is the party that presented itself as more than a passive broadcaster by asserting the authority to reject unsuitable fights.
Approving Ruiz-Knyba sends an early message about those standards. If a former champion facing an opponent knocked out in three rounds eight months ago qualifies as a main event, TNT’s red light may be much harder to find than its executives suggested.
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