Former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson gave Andy Ruiz Jr. some tips on dealing with his rise in popularity.
Ruiz became a national treasure in his homeland when dethroning Anthony Joshua to become the first top division ruler of Mexican descent.
The 30 year-old dropped Joshua four times during a seventh round stoppage at Madison Square Garden in June.
Since then, Ruiz has endured a whirlwind few months, with honors and exposure coming left, right and center.
Beginning the conversation on Tyson’s ‘HotBoxin’ Podcast, Ruiz opened up on rejected a photo with a certain fan who called him out on it.
Mike Tyson to Andy Ruiz Jr
“It’s a big blessing, this is what I’ve been waiting (for) and dreaming about my whole life. There’s just a lot of happy people. Everybody that comes up to me, everyone’s happy but it does sometimes get annoying. Everybody wants pictures, you can’t keep everyone satisfied,” Ruiz told ‘Iron’ Mike.
Talking about a time he was in his hometown with family, Ruiz added: “I was with my kids, I couldn’t take a picture with the person and I guess he got mad and put it on social media.”
At that point, Tyson stepped in to give Ruiz his unique take on how to deal with fans.
“This is how I look at it right. Take a picture with this guy and it’s over. You don’t have to see him no more. He won’t bother you no more.
“He may say thank you. That’s why I make it my objection to disarm confrontation and take the picture.
“From my experience, I know people get that way. He hasn’t been champ long enough to realize but people get that way, they get their feelings involved because this is what they think.
“This is what I thought; if he doesn’t give me something’s wrong with me, it’s not him it’s me. Am I dirty, am I smelly, am I ugly? Why don’t they want to take a picture with me?
“You have to understand these people feel like they own you because in a way they did make you. So they have that feeling, that attachment to you.”
BLESSED
Ruiz replied: “But at the end of the day, they’re the fans, exactly. If me or my daughter, she saw Justin Bieber or somebody, my daughter’s going to be like ‘Wow, I want a picture.’
“I’m trying to please everybody, trying to be the nice guy you know, it’s all big blessings and I love my fans and all my supporters,” he concluded.
Follow experienced boxing news source World Boxing News on Facebook.
