He began his boxing career training with Johnny Lewis, the Australia’s most well-known boxing coach, having trained Jeff Fenech, Jeff Harding, Virgil Hill and Kostya Tszyu.
Ruelas never recaptured his lost glory, winning fights over limited competition, including a decision over journeyman Livingstone Bramble, to set up a fight with the hard punching Kostya Tszyu in 1998.