JRE MMA Show #72 with Andy Ruiz

Joe is joined by Andy Ruiz, the first boxer of Mexican heritage to become World Heavyweight Champion.

Joe RoganhostAndy Ruizguest

Aug 1, 201958mWatch on YouTube ↗

EVERY SPOKEN WORD

130 min read · 25,937 words

0:02 – 0:24
Ruiz reflects on becoming heavyweight champion overnight
1. JRJoe Rogan
  And we're live. What's up-
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  What's up?
3. JRJoe Rogan
  ... heavyweight champion of the world.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  How's that feel, man?
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's amazing, you know. It's a big blessing. Just happy.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  Does, does it seem real?
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's still ... Yeah, of course. It's real, uh ... For the first few weeks, the first few days, I was pinching myself, seeing if it was-
9. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... if it was a dream or nothing, but, you know, I'm just really blessed to be here. Lot of big blessings.
0:24 – 1:31
Short-notice title shot: how the Joshua fight came together
1. JRJoe Rogan
  What an incredible situation, right? You got ... So, s- so, like, how many weeks out did you find out about the fight?
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, I think it was, like, a month, a month and two weeks.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Wow.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  A month and two weeks, I messaged Eddie Hearn. I told him, "You know what? Give me the opportunity." And wouldn't you know, he messaged back. Me and my girl were just all happy, like, "Whoa." It was crazy.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Wow. And you were already in camp, right?
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  So, like, wasn't like you ... they called you out of shape?
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  No, um ... No, it was after my fight against, uh, Oleksandr Dymytrenko.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, that's right. How much time did you have off to recover?
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, I just took, like, a week and a half off.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, that's nice.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  And I went back to the gym, and I was just ready and loose. So it was ... It couldn't have happened at a perfect time.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  That's amazing. Um, do you like it like that, where you just experienced a big fight so you're already kind of used to the, the being in the ring, being on television, the whole moment of it all, and then, boom, it happens again right afterwards?
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, of course. You know, 'cause I was already loose, I was already in fight mode. So especially from f- uh, having the heavyweight champion title, you know, um, the opportunity to get that, it's ... It was amazing.
1:31 – 2:08
The turning point: getting dropped, staying calm, and firing back
1. JRJoe Rogan
  It was an incredible fight, man. It was incredible.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, thank you.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  It was really amazing. What was amazing was when you got dropped, you kept your composure. You got up and then he tried to move in for the kill, and then you started landing bombs on him and dropped him. And I remember jumping off the bed while I was watching going, "Oh, shit."
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs)
5. JRJoe Rogan
  It was wild, man. It was a wild fight.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah. Uh, it was my first time getting dropped. And, you know what, um, I don't feel super hurt, you know, because I, I ... When I got dropped, he hit me with, uh, a good right hand and I took it like a champ. But, psh, I got up, man, and I just throw him bombs.
2:08 – 3:18
Why Ruiz’s style works at heavyweight: fluid combinations and angles
1. JRJoe Rogan
  You have fluid punches, man. I mean, it's, it's really interesting to watch. You, you're so efficient, like the way you throw punches. You're not, like, grunting and fucking digging. Like, there's a lot of guys that you see, there's a, a tremendous amount of energy that's expended every time they throw punches. But you, man, your punches just come in bunches. They just brr. You just fire them off, man.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, the combinations.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  The combinations that we've been working at the gym. Manny Robles, that's why I g- I had a trainer who throws a lot of combinations that's good at, uh, working speed. So I think we click really good together.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, it's such a big asset for heavyweights-
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  ... because most heavyweights, they're throwing big bombs and they're-
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  They're looking for that one punch.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm. Yep. Yeah, and you, you just pile them on, man.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  And you're throwing them at all these angles. And especially when you get in tight with dudes, you know, like, when, when you're in tight with dudes in these dogfights, your punches are coming at all these different angles. It's so fluid.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  It's beautiful to watch, man.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Oh, thank you, man. Especially with these big guys. I love fighting bigger guys, you know. Some ... One time I s- I fought a guy that was shorter than me and it, it was kinda hard. So imagine f- uh, me pressuring bigger guys and throwing these combinations. It, it works for me really good.
3:18 – 4:40
First Mexican heavyweight champion: community pride and family pressure
1. JRJoe Rogan
  It does. And you're the first ever Mexican heavyweight champion of the world.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Woo.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  (whistles)
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Man, thanks to God.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  It's crazy, man.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's crazy.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  I mean, you are in, uh, the same, uh, league as, uh, Cain Velasquez, the first ever UFC-
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  ... heavyweight champion that was Mexican.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  I mean, that's, uh, that's does, um, incredible honor, man.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm. Thanks, man. Appreciate that.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  The love you must be getting from the Mexican community. Woo.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  From all the Mexicans, oh my gosh. I can't even go to the store without taking-
15. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... so many pictures. People are in lines. They get off, uh, like, say if I'm in a drive-through somewhere, they get off, uh, of their car and try to take pictures. But it's a blessing, you know. Uh, I really appreciate all my fans, all the supporters.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  It's amazing, man. And, you know, what was really cool was, uh, the post-fight press conference when you were talking about it, where you're like, "Damn," you know, "We made it." And you were, you, you know, were saying, "We're set."
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  Telling my mom, you know.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, you were telling your mom. That was beautiful.
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah. And because a lot of people don't know that we're, we're struggling a lot even before this fight, you know. And, um, going through a lot of the stuff with, uh, Top Rank, with Bob Arum, of me not getting a lot of fights, uh, waiting, waiting, um, because I had one more fight left with them. So they, they didn't wanna let me go, so I had to pay my ... pay it off. So now-
21. JRJoe Rogan
  Thank God you did.
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  Whoops.
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Everything's turned around so quick.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah. Sorry, Bob.
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs)
27. JRJoe Rogan
  You fucked up.
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
4:40 – 6:54
Underdog perception, body type talk, and the ‘live dog’ reputation
1. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, there's a lot of dudes who were not interested in fighting you, you know.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Um, I, I, I had seen ... It was, it was one of those things where you were incredibly talented and incredibly skilled, but you didn't have the biggest name yet.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  So there wasn't, like, a lot of money in it yet.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  No.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  But there was a giant risk. And a lot of the insiders were very, very aware of this. You know, guys who really followed boxing were very aware of this. And coming into that fight, like, I had talked to a lot of people that are, like, big boxing fans, and they're like, "That dude is a live dog."
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Like, "That's a live dog." Like, w- I mean, for sure Anthony Joshua is a bad motherfucker. He's a big, giant, muscular dude who looks like Adonis.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  Big guy. (laughs)
11. JRJoe Rogan
  But they were like, "Andy Ruiz is a live dog. He can win that fucking fight."
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's 'cause when they see me, they're like, "Oh, look at this chubby kid, man. He, he's gonna get tired really fast. He's, he's gonna get knocked out." But the real people that know about boxing, they, they know the, the skills that I have, the movement.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, I could get a little bit more fit and, um, more leaner, you know, get the, the, um ... like, the extra fat, turn it into muscle. I'd love to do that, you know.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  But the thing is, people love you because you're kind of chubby. (laughs)
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, 'cause I, um, I'm me.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, it's also you, you're like, you're like, "Hey." You know, people that, like, go to the beach and don't wanna take their shirt off, they're like, "Fuck, man."
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  "Andy Ruiz is kinda built like me."
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  "Shit."
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs)
23. JRJoe Rogan
  "And he's the champ of the world."
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah. Give, give these big guys confident, you know, you know.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  It d- it makes a big deal. Like, you remember when Butterbean ... Well, Butterbean was obviously never a champ, but, you know, people used to love Butterbean.
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  The four-round champ, though. Mm-hmm.
27. JRJoe Rogan
  Because he was this big fat guy who would fuck people up.
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know what? I took a picture with, uh, Butterbean when I was, uh, like ... I think I was, like, five years old, six years old in Tijuana. He fought over there, and he was a b- a big guy, man, big guy.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  He was a tank, man.
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
6:54 – 10:06
What’s next: rematch negotiations, venues, and heavyweight boxing’s hot era
1. JRJoe Rogan
  So, you're sitting pretty right now, man. I mean, you're at the top of the heap. You're the champ, and you're... You are the most popular champ right now because you're the guy who pulled off the giant upset-
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  ... over the Olympic gold medalist, the fucking... The man, Anthony Joshua. You knock him out and, like, the... Everyone is sitting there chomping at the bit. There's Wilder, who's, you know, probably the greatest knockout artist in the history of the heavyweight division.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  And then there's Tyson Fury, and Tyson Fury and Wilder trying to figure it out. And then Tyson Fury's now in a different organization. It's, uh, hard to make the matches work now. It's like, "What happens next for you?"
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know, um, what's gonna be next is the- the rematch against me and Anthony Joshua. We're still negotiating, um, but there's definitely gonna be a rematch this year. Exciting fight. Uh, but yeah. But, uh, Wilder, you know. Uh, Wilder, we're... Me and him are on the same team. I had a- a little interview with him over there at the Pacquiao fight and really cool dude. W-
7. JRJoe Rogan
  He's very cool.
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, he's really cool. We respect each other and, um... But that- that'll be a good fight too, you know.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  Between me and him. I love that.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, I mean, people knew who he was before, but goddamn, that Tyson Fury fight put him on the map.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  What a crazy, crazy fight.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  That was a really good fight. I was there too. I was like, "Man, I wanna be in that position. I wanna be champion." It kinda motivated me, you know.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah.
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  Being there.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, you know, and then his... The- the fight with Breazeale afterwards where he- he flat-lined him.
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  Oh, yeah, yeah.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  That one punch. He's an interesting guy, man. He's so interesting. You know his story that he didn't even start boxing until he was like 20-something years old?
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  And he really started doing it because of his daughter, 'cause his daughter has medical issues. Got into the Olympic team. Won a bronze medal a year and a half into boxing.
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  That's crazy.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, it's nuts, man.
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah. But he's blessed, you know.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, blessed. Like you, man.
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm. (laughs)
27. JRJoe Rogan
  I mean, this... Is it... It- it's gotta be a crazy feeling, though. Like six months ago, you're this struggling boxer, you know, trying to make ends meet, you know, s- m- working your way up, very respected, but you don't have that big name yet.
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  And then boom, you get the opportunity of all opportunities.
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  I think that's what I needed, just the opportunity and be hungry, you know. Uh, from having nothing to wanting to want, uh, something, you know, in life.
10:06 – 13:49
Camp changes as champion: closed Mexico camp, nutrition, and ‘old school’ prep
1. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, um, th- so now going into this rematch, is there anything that you're gonna do differently? I mean, um, you know obviously now that he's well aware you're a big threat.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  You know, he's gonna think about you. I mean, I'm sure he was aware you were a threat before, but when you stopped him and you became the first guy to beat him, I mean, that- that... I mean, that changes history.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm. I think what we're gonna do, uh, um, we're- we're getting a big house over there in Mexico somewhere in the- in the nowheres, you know. So we're gonna have a clusive, uh, a camp, you know, a closed camp. So we're just gonna be really focused for this fight. We're not underestimating him or anything. Um, you know, we just gotta work hard and do it again. Show- show people what I'm capable of.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Now how much changes now that you're the- the champ? Do you have, um... Do you change anything in your camp in- as far as your strength and conditioning, as far as, uh, nutrition or...
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah. Um, long as we have all the team, you know, the stuff that we need. The nutritionist, the chef, uh, the um, the coaches, you know. The- All the- All the stuff that I need to- to win this fight, especially training, you know. That- that's the main thing. Training is the main discipline and- and, um, you know, praying to God.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  Now, um, coming into the fight with Joshua the first time, did you have a nutritionist? Did you have a strength and conditioning coach?
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  I did.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Like a coach?
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  I did have one. Um, the plan was not to lose too much weight, you know, because the guy is really big.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know, I- I wanted to be heavy so I could carry his weight and, you know, it- it worked for my favor. But I think the main thing that I'm gonna do... I might do a little bit of weights just to tighten up a little bit. Uh, but just stay busy. That's the main thing.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Do you worry about like, "If it's not broke, don't fix it." Like there have been guys before that have made changes in the way they prepare and those changes like maybe fuck with their confidence or they didn't feel as good. They didn't- they didn't perform the same way.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  No, I don't think we're gonna be changing too much of- of that stuff. You know, long as we're training, we have the good sparring, just- just exactly what we did for the last fight. I think that's what we're gonna be doing. Just more intense.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  Now do you have a guy that monitors your heart rate? Do they- do they take like logs of like what your resting heart rate is when you get up in the morning, and your heart rate variability and all that kinda shit?
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  No, they don't- they don't do that.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  No?
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  I'm kinda just old school, you know.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  Old school?
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Old school, you know. Work hard, wake up, run, train, uh...... eat good for, like, four, five days and we have our little cheat meals, you know, but, you know, just, just have a happy camp. You know, this is heavyweight camp, like I tell everybody.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  Right.
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs)
23. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah. Heavyweight camp's nice.
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  No weight cutting. Now, w- what kind of food they have you eating?
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, right now, I'm just, uh, just eating light, you know, um, sandwiches, uh-
27. JRJoe Rogan
  Sandwiches?
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... steaks, yeah. I just ate a sandwich before I came on, so.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, the beautiful thing about being a heavyweight is you don't have to worry about your weight. But, it's in terms of optimal performance-
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm. Of course.
13:49 – 20:12
Early boxing life: starting at six, amateur fights, and building muscle memory
1. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, of course, right? Now, you, you had an extensive amateur career too, man, which is, I think, a, a lot of, like, how you're so well-schooled, you know?
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know what? That, that helped me a lot, you know? Um, I first started training when I was six years old, and I w-
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Wow.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... I trained for a whole year, and when I was seven years old, I had my first amateur fight. Um, I was always this big chubby kid where, uh, there wasn't people at my age at that weight. So, I always had to fight bigger guys, you know, older guys. So, my first fight I won, but they gave it to the other guy. At 12 years old, fighting a seven year old, so ... But, I-
5. JRJoe Rogan
  You got robbed?
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Uh-huh. I got robbed. I felt I did.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  Got robbed your first fight.
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  And I, and I have the video too.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, you should put that shit online.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  That's right, yeah. Yeah.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs) Let the internet decide.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Wow. So, your first fight at seven years old. That's incredible, man. That's ... There's no substitute for that. Guys who get into combat sports young, that's the guys who have what I was talking about that you possess before, that sort of fluidity.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  The efficiency to punches. It's like you're, you develop throwing punches, you know?
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  I think it's all muscle memory, it's happe- you know, um, a lot of mitt work and just working hard, man. Working hard. And this is a sport that I love, you know? And I've been doing ... This is the only thing that I know, so thank God that it paid off.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, it's just, it's, uh, it's such an amazing story. I love a story like that. It's such a Rocky story, such a Cinderella story.
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  A Cinderella? (laughs)
19. JRJoe Rogan
  It's amazing.
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Well, yeah, everybody underestimated me. They're, they're just waiting for me to, uh, to get knocked down, and then when they, when they see me get knocked down, they're like, "Oh." And it's crazy that the announcers were, were saying, "Oh, Anthony's a great finisher. Look at how he's gonna finish him." And what do you know, I end up getting him with the, with the hook.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, it was crazy.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  How many times you watch the fight?
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, sh- probably, like, 30 times.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  30 times. And I still got more-
27. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... more to see, you know, because when he got me with the uppercut and the hook, um, I was kinda, I was kinda being on a lazy mode, you know? Uh-
29. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  ... I think I need to put my geared up more and move the head more.
20:12 – 28:43
Fame and money: jewelry, cars, Mexico trip, and staying grounded
1. JRJoe Rogan
  It is the beauty of it. Now what is it like, like getting accustomed to all this recognition? Now I know you got this new ice, you got a AR hanging from your neck. (laughs)
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Oh yeah. (laughs)
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Spending a little of that heavyweight championship money.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, I owe a jeweler.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, man, dude, you're- I mean, it- you've- your whole life has like shifted. Like what does that feel like?
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  It- it feels good, you know, just getting the stuff that I always wanted, you know, seeing a lot of famous, uh, people, having nice stuff, you know. And, uh, thanks to God now I could just get it for myself and for my family, for my kids, my mom.
7. NANarrator
  (instrumental music)
8. JRJoe Rogan
  What kind of car are you driving now?
9. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, I have a Rolls-Royce outside.
10. JRJoe Rogan
  Ooh.
11. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs)
12. JRJoe Rogan
  Dude, you stepped right up.
13. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
14. JRJoe Rogan
  You didn't even fuck around. You didn't even try a BMW first.
15. ARAndy Ruiz
  (laughs) No, I already had that before.
16. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
17. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
18. JRJoe Rogan
  What were you driving before you won the title?
19. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, I had a Porsche, I had a Porsche Panamera.
20. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, those are nice.
21. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, they're-
22. JRJoe Rogan
  But it's not a Rolls-Royce.
23. ARAndy Ruiz
  No.
24. JRJoe Rogan
  Rolls-Royce is a king car.
25. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know what? The, the car that I love right now and I bought for my, for my fiancee, Julie, uh, it's the new G Wagons, the 2019s.
26. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, man.
27. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's so beautiful, man, inside.
28. JRJoe Rogan
  Those are the shit. Yeah, my wife has one of those.
29. ARAndy Ruiz
  So beautiful, yeah.
30. JRJoe Rogan
  They're the shit.
28:43 – 37:49
Belts, legacy goals, and concerns about PEDs and testing
1. JRJoe Rogan
  That's beautiful. Now, Joshua is the first fight. And so this will take place in December. And given if you win, what would you like to... Who would you like to face next? 'Cause it looks like it's gonna be a while before they could sort out Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder.
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm. Um...
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Because of contractual shit.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Uh, when I win and, and ƒ°C osquede win, uh, for the rematch, uh, I would love to fight Tyson Fury, man. Tyson Fury. I know Wilder, uh, Wilder's there too. He has the belt that, that I want, you know.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  'Cause I want the WBC belt.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  Why do you want that belt?
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  Because I'll be undisputed if I have that belt, you know. I'll have all the belts, um, in the heavyweight division, and I'll, I'll be the, the new king. Um-
9. JRJoe Rogan
  So what do you, what do you have now? You have WBA...
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  I have the WBA, WBO, IBO, and IBF.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  Damn.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  I know.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Damn.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's crazy. I should've brought them too, man.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  You should've. Do you wa- Do you, do you have them laid out on your bed?
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  No, they're actually in my, in my dad's house.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs) Wow.
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  They're actually right there in my dad's house.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  Must be bizarre just looking at them, right?
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  They are, man. It's... I was crying, man. Like I said, I was still pinching myself for, for weeks.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  I can only imagine.
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  I would imagine it's gonna last years-
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  ... before it really, really sinks in. So, uh, Tyson Fury seems, to you, to be, like, the, the best matchup after that?
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  Tyson Fury, I think he's, he's one of the biggest names out there, you know.
27. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, I, I like Dyl- Dylan White. So, you know, he was coming up.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  But...Um, he got caught up with-
37:49 – 51:40
Influences, trainers, the Parker loss, and building the right team
1. JRJoe Rogan
  Now, when you were coming up, um, who, who were you influenced by? Like, who were you a big fan of?
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, of Chavez. You know, all the Mexican fighters, Morales, Barrera. I got to meet, um, uh, Barrera. It was my first time. It was a good honor, over at the Pacquiao fight. Uh, you know, Mike Tyson, um, you know, all the, all the big guys. All the Mexican guys as well too.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, um, so, you're 29. So when you were ... When you first started out, who, who was, uh, who was big?
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  Fernando Vargas. He was my favorite fighter, man.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, right.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  Fernando Vargas.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  I hung out with Fernando on a plane once.
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  A lot of good shit.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, me too.
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  I used to have the, the same haircut as him. My, my-
11. JRJoe Rogan
  (laughs)
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  I, I painted my, my hair. It follows crazy.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, no. He was a bad motherfucker. He was a lot of fun to watch.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  Didn't he ... He had some reality show he was doing for a while too, right?
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, he was doing it with him and his family.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  What is he doing now? Do you know?
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  Um, he's training fighters.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, is he?
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  And, and his kids too. They're really talented. Um-
21. JRJoe Rogan
  Where at?
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  In Vegas.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  Oh, okay.
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  They're in Vegas, yeah.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  Nice, nice.
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  Really ... Uh, really good people. Nice guys.
27. JRJoe Rogan
  Um, Oscar De La Hoya. Are you a fan of his?
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, Oscar De La Hoya too. Mm-hmm.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah. There's, uh, I mean, there's so many great Mexican fighters. If you think about one country that produced amazing boxers, I mean, Mexico might be the top of the heap.
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
51:40 – 58:07
Altitude camp strategy, career risks, retirement plans, and future promotions
1. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah. Nice. Um, did you like training at altitude at Big Bear? Was that the first time you had trained at altitude?
2. ARAndy Ruiz
  No, I kind-... I went there a few times and, you know, I like it.
3. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
4. ARAndy Ruiz
  You know, the first few weeks is- is hard, you know.
5. JRJoe Rogan
  Mm-hmm.
6. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's really hard, you get tired fast and... Um, but I did like it.
7. JRJoe Rogan
  But when you come back down to sea level, you- you feel the benefit?
8. ARAndy Ruiz
  I- I feel the- the- the benefit, the... I can last more, you know, get more oxygen in your body, your brain.
9. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah, for sure. Now, um, when you go to Mexico, do you know what altitude you're gonna be up up there?
10. ARAndy Ruiz
  It's gonna be high in altitude too.
11. JRJoe Rogan
  'Cause there's like a point of diminishing returns. So people feel like once you get above like 6,000, 7,000, 8,000, the idea is that you can't work hard enough 'cause there's just not enough air.
12. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
13. JRJoe Rogan
  Like, they think that 5,000 is like the perfect line.
14. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
15. JRJoe Rogan
  There's- there's a lot of weird... There's- there's... You know, people have had different philosophies when it comes to training at altitude. And now many people feel like you should actually live at altitude, but you should train at sea level because they think-
16. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.
17. JRJoe Rogan
  ... that you... when you train at sea level, you could put out more output, you could do more work, and then you go and live up at altitude so your body acclimates to the low oxygen and you develop more red blood cells.
18. ARAndy Ruiz
  That makes sense.
19. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah.
20. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah.
21. JRJoe Rogan
  So have you thought about doing something like that?
22. ARAndy Ruiz
  I don't know.
23. JRJoe Rogan
  Or are you just gonna stay up there?
24. ARAndy Ruiz
  Yeah, I'm just gonna stay up there just for a few months, you know.
25. JRJoe Rogan
  Yeah.
26. ARAndy Ruiz
  And... A few months and come back down, finish- finish it up, finish the camp for like a month and go where I'm gonna fight. That, I can't say.
27. JRJoe Rogan
  Well, you're in such a great position, man.
28. ARAndy Ruiz
  Thank you.
29. JRJoe Rogan
  And you're only 29 years old, so like your athletic prime, particularly as a heavyweight, is like... You're only like three or four years away from your prime-
30. ARAndy Ruiz
  Mm-hmm.