Russian giant Nikolai Valuev said he was pleased to win back the vacated WBA belt after his unanimous points win over fellow former champion John Ruiz in Berlin on Saturday night.
The 35-year-old Valuev eventually won the fight 116-111, 116-113 and 114-113 according to the three judges, despite the contest initially being declared a split decision. He replaced the injured Ruslan Chagaev as WBA champion.
"I am pleased to have won the title back again," said the Russian. "That was a hard piece of work, but we had prepared thoroughly before the fight." This was the second time Valuev and Ruiz had met in the ring at Berlin's Max Schmeling Halle and it was a second win for the Russian.
In December 2005, Valuev defeated the American on points to first win the WBA title, which he then lost to Chagaev in April 2007, but the Uzbekistani was forced to yield his belt earlier this year after an achilles tendon injury.
With a weight advantage of more than 30kgs and nearly a foot taller than his opponent, Valuev was rarely troubled by Ruiz. The Russian said he was pleased with his speed around the ring under new coach Alexander Zimin. "Owing to my new coach Alexander I am much faster and more mobile around the ring, it showed here," said Valuev, who inflicted the eighth defeat of his career on Ruiz. From the first round, Valuev controlled the contest and repeatedly hit Ruiz with his left jab. The American could rarely bridge the gap and landed few clean punches. "I am disappointed and pretty sad," said Ruiz after the fight. "Actually, I thought I won the fight, but I would like another chance to box Nikolai again."
There was some confusion after the fight as Japanese judge Takeshi Shimakawa awarded the last round to Valuev, but WBA supervisor Robert Mack misread the scores as Ruiz having won it and announced a split decision victory for Valuev. The mistake was corrected to a unanimous decision afterwards, but Mack apologised. He said: "The error was my fault, but I would like to apologise to all the fans and everyone involved." It meant the Russian could enjoy his third straight unanimous victory.