Damian Knyba drops Andy Ruiz, wins decision at Prudential Center
Damian Knyba scored the biggest victory of his career Friday night, dropping former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. in the seventh round on the way to a unanimous decision at Prudential Center.
Knyba won by scores of 117-110 and 114-113 twice, improving to 18-1 with 11 knockouts. Ruiz fell to 35-3-1 with 22 knockouts.
The 6-foot-7 Knyba used his height, reach and movement to keep Ruiz at distance for much of the fight, while Ruiz struggled to consistently work his way into punching range.
Ruiz, 36, still showed flashes of the quick hands that helped him score his career-defining upset of Anthony Joshua in 2019, but his advancing footwork was noticeably slow throughout the bout. A knee brace was visible on Ruiz’s right knee as he followed Knyba around the ring and had difficulty cutting off his escape routes.
Knyba was able to work behind his jab, land from the outside and tie Ruiz up when the shorter former champion managed to get close.
The biggest moment came in the seventh round when Knyba connected with a series of right hands that badly hurt Ruiz near the ropes. Ruiz remained on his feet as Knyba continued landing clean shots and appeared close to forcing a referee stoppage before another succession of right hands finally sent Ruiz to the canvas.
The knockdown may have actually helped Ruiz survive the round. Had he remained standing while continuing to absorb unanswered punches, the fight appeared in danger of being stopped. Instead, Ruiz received the benefit of an extended count and was able to recover enough to make it through the round.
He survived the distance, but Knyba remained in control behind his jab for much of the second half of the fight.
The defeat represented another setback for Ruiz, who was fighting for the first time since his majority draw with Jarrell Miller in August of 2024. Ruiz has fought only four times since losing his heavyweight titles back to Joshua in their December 2019 rematch.
For Knyba, the win could have significance beyond his own heavyweight standing.
The Polish-born heavyweight, who lives in New Jersey, has been developing a following in the state for several years and has made multiple appearances at Prudential Center. His fights have regularly drawn vocal support from New Jersey’s Polish-American boxing community, giving promoters another potential local attraction to build around.
Knyba has spoken previously about wanting to follow the path of former light heavyweight and cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek, who became Prudential Center’s most reliable boxing draws behind strong support from Polish fans in the region.
Adamek, who turns 50 in December, was in attendance in the front row to watch Knyba’s big victory in person.