Damian Knyba Drops Andy Ruiz Jr and Takes Unanimous Decision in Newark

Andy Ruiz Jr’s latest comeback has taken a serious hit. Damian Knyba didn’t come to Newark simply to provide a recognisable former champion with a route back into the heavyweight picture — he dropped Ruiz in the seventh round and walked away with a unanimous decision after 12 rounds.

That was the big story at the Prudential Center, but it wasn’t the only upset. Eridson Garcia handed the previously unbeaten Alan Chaves his first professional defeat after putting him down four times, while Vito Mielnicki Jr produced a convincing win over Austin Williams.

Main Event: Damian Knyba Beats Andy Ruiz Jr

Damian Knyba (18-1-0) defeated Andy Ruiz (35-3-1) by unanimous decision over 12 rounds, with the judges returning scores of 114-113, 117-110 and 114-113.

The decisive moment came in round seven when Knyba sent Ruiz to the canvas. Ruiz continued and made it to the final bell, but Knyba had done enough to earn the biggest win of his career.

It’s a damaging result for Ruiz. The former unified heavyweight champion was returning with hopes of forcing his way back towards the top end of the division, but instead it was Knyba who made the statement. At 18-1-0, his own heavyweight career suddenly looks rather different.

There was some disagreement over the margins on the cards afterwards, particularly that wide 117-110 score, but not the winner: Knyba took the unanimous decision.

Vito Mielnicki Jr Dominates Austin Williams

Vito Mielnicki Jr (24-1-0) took a sizeable step forward by outpointing Austin Williams (20-3-0) over 10 rounds to retain the WBO Global middleweight title.

Mielnicki put Williams down in the opening round and never surrendered his grip on the fight. All three judges scored it 98-91, giving Mielnicki a unanimous decision and a result that should do his middleweight ambitions plenty of good. Williams was supposed to provide the serious examination here; Mielnicki handled it emphatically.

Eridson Garcia Shocks Unbeaten Alan Chaves

This one was a genuine upset. Eridson Garcia (24-2-0) handed Alan Chaves (22-1-0) his first professional defeat, winning a one-sided unanimous decision over 10 rounds to claim the vacant IBF International and WBO Latino lightweight titles.

Garcia dropped Chaves once in the second round, twice in the fifth and again in the ninth. By the finish there wasn’t much suspense left for the judges, who scored it 99-87, 99-88 and 98-88. Chaves came in unbeaten and left having been on the floor four times. Garcia didn’t just nick the upset; he thoroughly earned it.

Undercard

Zaquin Moses (8-0-0) kept his unbeaten record intact when Angel Antonio Contreras (18-11-2) retired after the fifth round. Moses had swept all five completed rounds 50-45 on each scorecard before Contreras failed to continue, giving Moses the RTD victory at 3:00 of round five.

Dennis Thompson got the decision over Jose Casillas, winning their eight-round contest by unanimous decision. The cards read 80-72, 79-73 and 77-75.

Kahshad Elliott had a much closer evening against Jean Pierre Valencia, taking a split decision after six rounds. One judge had Elliott winning every round at 60-54, another surprisingly went 59-55 for Valencia, while the deciding card was 58-56 for Elliott.

Brooke Mullen outpointed Bria Miller by unanimous decision over six rounds. Mullen took the verdict on scores of 60-53, 60-53 and 59-54.

Knyba came into the night as the opponent in Ruiz’s comeback story and left Newark with the story belonging to him. Garcia upsetting Chaves and Mielnicki’s wide win over Williams gave the card a couple more results worth remembering too.