John “The Quietman” Ruiz: Being a Two – Time Heavyweight Champion, Don King, Amateur Boxing & More…

Exclusive Interview by Shannon “Dallas” Hall

When I spoke to John “The Quietman” Ruiz, he was not so “quiet” when it came to matters near and dear to the former Heavyweight Champ’s heart. The Massachusetts native of Puerto Rican decent had an amazing run as an orthodox professional carrying a record of 44-9-1, 30 KO’s. Ruiz was the first Latino Heavyweight Champion and two-time WBA Champ with hard fought battles against the likes of Evander Holyfield, James Tony, Hasim Rahman, Roy Jones, JR., and Andrew Golota. He had been boxing since the age of 9, turning pro in 1992, then finally retiring in April 2010.

Shortly after stepping down from the ring, John opened the Quietman Sports Gym in Medford, MA. The inner city gym, now running 6 years, offers Boxing along with Mixed Martial Arts and is run by his step-brother, Eddie Rivera, and BJJ master, Rob Robson. Ruiz has always been adamant about connecting with children and community, and his school is an extension of this heart and passion for both. Ruiz has three children of his own, John, JR. age 26, Jocelyn age 23, and 9 year old youngest son, Joaquin. He currently lives in South Florida with his wife, Maribelle, and still is active with his fans though social media and the gym.

About a year ago, Ruiz and his Quietman Sports Gym hosted the New England Championship Amateur Boxing Tournament, sanctioned by USABoxing. He went into the event positive and motivated to bring boxing to the community and expose the kids to fair competition and a chance to compete for honor and reward in the ring, as he had done for most of the years of his life. But Ruiz was left with a sour taste in his mouth after he got a taste of the politics involved even at the ammy level of the sport. He felt that the exchange of funds was not distributed fairly, the kids were not informed properly about the event finals, judging, etc., and it was corrupt by blackballing certain schools because of their lack of support for certain committee members. I mentioned to Ruiz that if there was this type of corruption on the amateur level, imagine how bad it must get on the professional level! I asked if he would ever try again to host something for the kids and he said that only if the Board of Directors of USABoxing were to change, presidents replaced etc., would he consider doing another show. Otherwise that was enough for him.

And speaking of corruption, Ruiz was promoted under Don King Promotions as Heavyweight Champion. I had to ask the “Quietman”, was Don King really as bad as his reputation? … Ruiz simply said, “Yes.” I could tell in his voice, that reflected the same disappointment as the USABoxing experience, that King handled things not so much on the up and up with him as well. Not only King, but John’s manager, John says he knows who he is, also fell victim to the sports corruption, and betrayed Ruiz trust in his business and career endeavors. Ruiz says if there is one piece of advice he can give to any up and coming fighter, it wouldn’t be anything about the training, it was just to get a good lawyer.

However, Ruiz was fortunate to have great trainers and coaches that were loyal and stood by his side throughout his career. He started out with trainer Junior Rivera, his stepfather, then Gabe Mari, who was there with Ruiz’s as both an ammy and pro, then he finished and retired with Miguel Diaz by his side, with his brother Edward Ruiz as his corner.

Surprisingly, in contrast to his name, the “Quietman” shows an interest in possibly commentating for the sport of Boxing if the situation ever presents itself. He said he still has that “fire” inside and a lot of fight, and opinion, left in him, and would like to be heard. The champ questions HBO and SHOWTIME on having three analysts and only one boxer commentating the fights. He made a great point that there are so many fighters that could use those commentating jobs to help support themselves and their families, and would do a much better job than simple “stat-quoters.” “Why not have people that have actually fought and know what is going on inside of the ring call the fights rather than people that have never even fought before?

In the NFL, most of the commentators are former players, so why not boxing?” He believes that for those who gave so much to the sport, the sport should give them the something back, or at least the opportunity. I agree, and also nominate Ruiz for a tryout on HBO Boxing, because THE QUIETMAN HAS SPOKEN, has a voice, and should be heard.

I don’t think anyone would argue with John as much as they would Jim Lampley or Max Kellerman. Because when push comes to shove on the commentator desk, I believe Ruiz would definitely get the edge on the fight for giving the “Final Thought.”

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