Hugo Ruiz may be a former world champion with a noticeable size advantage over his February 9 opponent Gervonta Davis, but he will be coming to the fight as a major underdog.
Depending on where you look, Davis is as much as a -5000 betting favorite while Ruiz is a +1400 betting underdog heading into their WBA "Super" super featherweight title. At first glance, Ruiz's physical traits, being several inches taller than Davis and having a longer reach, could help him in their fight. But what else does Ruiz have in his arsenal that would make him think he can pull off the upset?
On a recent media conference call, Ruiz spoke to Fightful and talked about why he believes he can defeat Davis.
"I’m very hungry. I want to of course be a champion at 130. Those are the other attributes that I have besides what you stated. The height advantage that I have I feel very comfortable at 130. Sampson has taken me to be a champion at 118, 122. I’m close to 126 but also this is a big challenge for me I understand that, but besides the height, it’s the hunger that I have to be champion at 130," Ruiz said.
The fight between Davis and Ruiz was made last week as Abner Mares, Davis' original opponent, had to undergo emergency surgery for a detached retina.
You can listen to Ruiz talking to Fightful in the video above. Davis vs. Ruiz will headline a Showtime Championship Boxing telecast from the Dignity Health Sports Park, formerly StubHub Center, in Carson, California on February 9. Other fights announced for the telecast are Sharif Bogere vs. Javier Fortuna and Mario Barrios vs. Richard Zamora.
