Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez is set to defend his undisputed super middleweight championship against interim WBO champion John Ryder on May 6 in Jalisco, Mexico. The upcoming fight will be Alvarez’s first bout in his homeland since 2011 when he stopped Kermit Cintrón in Mexico City. The news was first reported by ESPN, although the exact venue has not yet been confirmed.
WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel confirmed that Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KO’s) would fight Ryder (32-5,18 KOs) next but was unsure about the date and location of the fight. Valcarcel said, “I can tell you they are going to fight, but they haven’t sent us the letter requesting sanction yet and so I don’t know where.”
Alvarez’s promoter, Eddie Hearn of Matchroom, previously stated that the fight would likely take place in Mexico. Hearn said, “Canelo really wants to fight in Mexico… every time you make that move, you have to unfortunately take it on the chin that you’re going to make a lot less money. But again, he’s doing okay. And he’ll still make a lot of money to fight in Mexico. I think he wants to take the fight to the people, and Ryder could be in the right mix for that.”
Alvarez had undergone surgery on his left wrist in October after defeating Gennady Golovkin (42-2-1, 37 KO’s) in their bout for the undisputed super middleweight title in September. The upcoming fight with Ryder will serve as a tune-up for Alvarez. If he wins, he will likely rematch with Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KO’s) in September. Bivol defeated Alvarez in a light heavyweight title fight in May 2022, and the rematch would take place at super middleweight.
John Ryder will be a significant underdog against Alvarez, who is currently ranked fourth on Yahoo Sports’ pound-for-pound rankings. Meanwhile, Ryder’s most significant win to date was a split decision victory over Danny Jacobs (37-4, 30 KO’s) in London. He also recently won in a match against domestic rival Zach Parker (22-1, 16 KO’s) who quit during their match after sustaining a hand injury,
