Many have waded in without knowing why things happened the way they did. has become too much in the four years since he lost his unified crown to Anthony Joshua in an ill-fated rematch. One thing sickeningly apparent is that since he lost his world titles and his marriage broke up, there’s a lack of care for the Mexican-American’s mental health. continues to be fat-shamed by fans and people within boxing despite being a respected former heavyweight champion. Because we all know what it’s like to be David.Andy Ruiz Jr. And it’s belief in oneself - against all odds- is what rests at the core of why we watch. And make no mistake, Joshua had the belts but that didn’t mean Ruiz didn’t enter the ring with the belief he was a champion. But as Rudy Tomjanovich said: Never underestimate the heart of a champion. Whether Ruiz can do it again in the rematch - against a better-prepared Goliath - is debatable. It’s the dance within the dance, and on nights like Saturday it’s a beautiful thing to behold. The same heart that made him a star is the same heart that got Ruiz off the mat and provided us with one of the greatest rounds of boxing in recent memory. Remember his rise was far from destined as the then 21-year-old stood in a London court pleading guilty to drug-dealing charges back in 2011. Now that Joshua has been stripped of his mystique, we get to see if he still has the belief that got him there in the first place. Now that he has both, this fall he becomes the hunted. Ruiz didn’t have the pedigree but he had belief. Maybe belief in the impossible is what really separates gods from mortals more than physical gifts or a turn of good fortune. Loose chatter from fans about what obviously was going to happen followed by disbelief of what was happening and concluding with a deep appreciation of what was witnessed. In each scenario the environment of these improbable wins were similar. I was in Atlanta when the 101-win Atlanta Braves lost 5-1 in Game 5 of the NLDS, handing the 88-win Chicago Cubs its first playoff series victory since 1908. I was in Glendale, Ariz., when the New York Giants defeated the 18-0 New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. I was in San Antonio when Mario Chalmers hit the three-pointer that sent the Kansas-Memphis championship game into overtime. Over the years I, like many journalists, have been fortunate enough to be present for a number of unexpected victories. But he showed heart and that’s a part of life as well. Periban didn’t have a fairy-tale ending, and that’s OK because that’s a part of life. It’s not always about our favorite team or fairy-tale endings. None of them, for various reasons, should have been there to begin with … and this is why we watch. Ruiz became the first heavyweight of Mexican descent to become champion. Periban made it back to the sport that he loves but he lost in his return. If that glimmer of hope didn’t exist, it’s doubtful sports would hold such a prominent place in society. So when he or she does, it gives us hope that perhaps against all odds, we can overcome the odds that are staked against us in our own lives as well. We may not root for Goliath but we don’t expect David to win either. There’s a reason why when Ruiz entered the ring, the crowd at Madison Square Garden politely chuckled and when Joshua entered, it was awestruck. We celebrate champions as gods but we identify with the Vincis and the Ruiz’s because we know what it’s like to be parishioners. Underdogs will never have the most Twitter followers or pace a league in jersey sales, but they will always be the reason why sports matter most. With a rematch expected this fall, the question of whether Ruiz can repeat the magic is almost irrelevant. We like our dynasties but we love the little engine that could - or in the case of Andy Ruiz Jr., who beat the living snot out of Anthony Joshua on Saturday night, the short, fat guys who did. Wilt Chamberlain famously said nobody roots for Goliath, and he was right.
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