For the second consecutive bout, ex-two time WBA Heavyweight Champion John Ruiz found Germany to be an inhospitable land as the American dropped a split decision to undefeated Hamburg based Uzbek fighter Ruslan Chagaev at the Burgwachter Castello in Dusseldorf.
At stake was the top spot in the WBA rankings, a mandatory challenger position for the very same title that Ruiz lost a year ago to Nickolay Valuev in Berlin.
Employing a surprising change to the wrestling style of which he has become known for the last six years, Ruiz chose to fight Chagaev on the inside rather than grab and maul when the action came to close quarters.
The bout was a back and forth affair with Chagaev taking the early rounds behind a big punching southpaw stance but the 28 year old began to tire from the draining contest midway through the bout.
Ruiz, 41-7-1 (28), took control in the ninth and looked to be running away with the decision but Chagaev, 22-0-1 (17), mounted a furious comeback to take the twelfth and final round, which likely won him the split decision on the scorecards, 117-111, 116-112 and 114-115.
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