Eddie Hearn says Canelo Alvarez wants to “make a statement” against John Ryder this Saturday night to show the boxing world that he’s still the same fighter he’s always been. This is the wrong opponent for Canelo to make any kind of statement.
The perception fans have is Canelo has returned to his cherry-picking ways, selecting a beatable fighter in Ryder while avoiding the killers David Benavidez, David Morrell, and Demetrius Andrade.
Unfortunately for Canelo (58-2-2, 39 KOs), it’s going to require a strong performance from him against Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs) to change the minds of the people that are beginning to see cracks in his facade after his loss to Dmitry Bivol and his near-defeat against a faded 40-year-old Gennadiy Golovkin in 2022.
If Canelo wins, he’s likely to challenge Bivol for his WBA light heavyweight title in September. Canelo has ruled out letting Bivol face him for his undisputed 168-lb championship, saying he feels he’d get no credit for beating him at this weight.
Some fans think Canelo doesn’t want to lose his four titles because they think he’s using them to bolster his sagging credibility.
Canelo will defend his four super middleweight belts against Ryder this Saturday night on DAZN pay-per-view at the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara, Mexico. The event sells for $54.99 on PPV for DAZN subscribers.
“There’s a lot of pressure on him this week. You look at him and think, ‘Is this just a celebration for Canelo,’ which it is and how serious. Then you get to the head-to-head, and I see it in his eyes,” said Eddie Hearn to Secondsout about Canelo Alvarez’s fight this Saturday night against challenger John Ryder in Guadalajara.
“He knows it’s a big fight and knows he’s a big favorite,” Hearn said about Canelo. “John Ryder will bring everything. I think there’s more pressure on Canelo in this fight to produce a great performance.
“There are people that say, ‘Oh, his [Canelo] 2022 wasn’t so good. He lost to Bivol, and a poor performance against Golovkin, and had surgery. Is this the start of the end?’ I think he wants to come out and make a statement on Saturday night.
“John Ryder has worked for this kind of opportunity his whole career. He’s had bad decisions, decisions that could have changed his life in another direction. I promise you; he will give it all up on Saturday, John Ryder, to win this fight.
“He doesn’t care about the money. He’s worked his a** off for years for this opportunity, and he will bring the fire. He will come. Sometimes you see fighters against Canelo that will just do enough to lose on points.
“Not John Ryder. He’ll sit on his chest, he will bring the fight, and it may be a dangerous tactic, but that’s his best chance in this fight. That’s where he performs best when he’s up close, so he needs to make it a dog fight, and he will give it everything on Saturday night.
“He was certainly carrying an injury for a long time, and they don’t let you know about those injuries,” said Hearn when asked if Canelo is starting to show weakness in his game since last year.
“When I go back to his room, and I see his wrist, ice, and compression, you just think to yourself, ‘How long has this been going on?’ You could tell in his last two fights [against Gennadiy Golovkin & Dmitry Bivol] that he didn’t box with the same confidence, and I think he’s good to go now, and he wants to make a statement,” said Hearn.
