Watch how he closes that distance. Slipping a jab, stepping inside and putting punches together would show coordination between his movement and his offense. Reaching with single right hands while Knyba keeps him outside would tell a less encouraging story. Fast combinations on the pads cannot answer that question.
Kabayel overcame Knyba’s strong opening and stopped him in the third round in January. Matching that finish is unnecessary, but Ruiz must establish control. If this becomes a struggle to reach an opponent Kabayel broke down so quickly, the championship talk will be difficult to sell.
His last appearance offers reason for caution. Against Jarrell Miller in August 2024, Ruiz started well before his work slowed and Miller’s pressure became increasingly effective. The hand injury Ruiz reported deserves consideration. It also means that draw provided no reassuring evidence that he can sustain his offense through a hard twelve rounds.
Friday offers a different physical test. Miller crowded him; Knyba has the size to make him work to get close. Both situations require more than a quick burst followed by a long rest.
Back with Manny Robles, Ruiz is selling renewed discipline. The trainer can improve his preparation and insist on better habits. He cannot recover the years Ruiz spent outside the ring, and sparring cannot fully reveal how he will respond when an opponent refuses to cooperate.
“Not like a lot of yes men that I had, you know, before,” Ruiz said in the training video. “That’s why I was doing my own thing. One foot in, one foot out.”
That admission is difficult to separate from his record. Since beating Anthony Joshua in June 2019, he has fought four times. Friday falls exactly four years after his last victory, against Luis Ortiz.
There is little room for a leisurely rebuild. An impressive win would give Hearn a reason to pursue something more lucrative, but commercial interest can develop faster than a fighter’s readiness. Success against Knyba would not establish that Ruiz can handle a leading heavyweight who keeps forcing him to work.
Careful matchmaking can keep the comeback alive. If continual protection is necessary, however, Hearn would be maintaining a familiar name rather than restoring a serious contender.
Even a spectacular finish leaves the question Ruiz’s history keeps raising: when does he fight again? He has already allowed victories to be followed by long absences. Another extended celebration would consume more of the time he says he wants to spend becoming champion again.
Hearn needs more than footage of Ruiz knocking somebody out. He needs a heavyweight who is ready to book another fight while that performance still means something.
Now 36, Ruiz fights this Friday, September 4 at Newark’s Prudential Center, headlining over 12 rounds on DAZN and TNT. Hearn has supplied a promotional deal and a platform. Ruiz has to show there is enough left for him not to regret it.
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