| Fight Name: | Nikolai Valuev vs. John Ruiz II |
| Fight Date: | 30 August 2008 |
| Location: | Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, Germany |
| Titles: | WBA Heavyweight Championship |
| Fighter1: |  Nikolai Valuev |
| Nickname1: | "The Russian Giant" |
| Hometown1: | Saint Petersburg, Russia |
| Record1: | 48–1 (1) (34 KO) |
| Height1: | 7 ft 0in |
| Weight1: | 318 lb |
| Style1: | Orthodox |
| Recognition1: | WBA No. 1 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring No. 4 Ranked Heavyweight |
| Fighter2: |  John Ruiz |
| Nickname2: | "The Quietman" |
| Hometown2: | Chelsea, Massachusetts, USA |
| Record2: | 43–7–1 (1) (29 KO) |
| Height2: | 6 ft 1 in |
| Weight2: | 239 lb |
| Style2: | Orthodox |
| Recognition2: | WBA No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring No. 10 Ranked Heavyweight |
| Result: | Valuev defeated Ruiz via Unanimous Decision |
Nikolai Valuev vs. John Ruiz II was a professional boxing match contested on 30 August 2008, for the WBA heavyweight championship.[1]
After suffering his first career defeat at the hands of Ruslan Chagaev, Nikolai Valuev had recorded back to back wins against Jean-François Bergeron and Siarhei Liakhovich, the later of whom in a WBA title eliminator,[2] to become Chagaev's mandatory. The rematch was set for 5 July, however the fight had to be cancelled after Chagaev suffered a complete tear of an Achilles tendon during his final sparring session in preparation for the defense. As a result he WBA elected to make Chagaev "Champion in Recess" due to the injury that and it's the necessary recovery time.[3] They also mandated that Valuev and number two ranked contender John Ruiz meet for the vacated title. Ruiz had also recorded back to back wins following his consecutive defeats against Valuev and Chagaev.
Sauerland Events won the purse bid with an offer of $2,106,401.[4]
Heading into the bout, Valuev was the 5-2 on favourite.[5]
Valuev kept Ruiz at a distance using his left jab, preventing Ruiz from landing more than one punch at a time.[6] Valuev was deduced a point in the 10th round for pushing Ruiz down. At the end of 12 rounds all three judges scored the bout for Valuev the cards reading 116–113, 116–111 and 114–113 (although the 114–113 was originally announced as for Ruiz due to a confused judge).[7]
Like the first match, the decision was unpopular with the live audience as some booed the outcome. Valuev said after the bout "I was quicker but he did a good job and he didn't let me fight my usual fight. I'd like to box Ruiz again". "I thought I won the fight," Ruiz said. "I don't know what was going with the scorecards."[8] [9]
After petitioning the WBA to protest against the outcome, Ruiz was made the WBA's mandatory challenger to fight the winner of Chagaev-Valuev II set for 30 June 2009.[10] As that bout was cancelled following Chagaev failing a Finnish medical test, Ruiz stepped aside as mandatory challenger so Valuev could fight former unified Cruiserweight Champion David Haye.[11]
Confirmed bouts:[12]
| align=center | Country | align=center | Broadcaster |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport 1 | |||
| ARD | |||
| Sport 2 | |||
| Polsat Sport | |||