Promoter Eddie Hearn says British fighter John Ryder is catching undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez at the perfect time, with him coming off left wrist surgery and less than an impressive year in 2022, with his fights against Gennadiy Golovkin and Dmitry Bivol.
Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs) will be challenging Canelo (58-2-2, 39 KOs) on May 6th on DAZN PPV in front of what Hearn believes will be a crowd of 50,000 fans at the Akron Arena in Guadalajara, Mexico.
If Ryder is able to wreck Canelo’s homecoming in front of his Mexican fans, it would be a huge blow to him.
Although Hearn says Canelo had no choice but to fight Ryder because he’s his WBO mandatory, he’s been chosen selected for tune-up purposes to give him a certain win before his rematch with Dmitry Bivol next September.
“I think it’ll be the best atmosphere we’ve ever seen,” said Eddie Hearn to Fighthype about the Canelo vs. Ryder fight in Guadalajara, Mexico, on May 6th.
“I got the impression the other day that Saul was very proud bringing that even to his people and the passion that we’re seeing. We see that even in the small shows. Sometimes we do 2000 in Mexico. It’s some of the best atmospheres.
“50,000 at the Akron stadium is going to be incredible, and it’s going to be a great fight as well. Of course, John is the underdog in the fight. Canelo is pound-for-pound, one of the best in the sport.
“I’ve worked with him [Ryder] for ever ten years. This is absolutely everything for him. His blood, sweat, and tears, ups and downs and he’s on a tremendous run. He beat Danny Jacobs, he beat Zach Parker, and he’s the interim [WBO] champion and the mandatory
“Saul has to fight him. He didn’t pick him, and I know what this brings to him. I know how tough he is, and he’ll give it everything on May 6th.
“The Billy Joe Saunders and Callum Smith are two fights that could have gone the other way [in Ryder’s favor]. A lot of people thought he beat Callum Smith. It was in Liverpool. The Billy Joe Saunders fight was a long time ago, but very close.
“John is a world class fighter, and he’s not coming over to Guadalajara to take a payday. He’s coming there to win.
“It could be great timing [for Ryder], especially coming off surgery, but Canelo is very good. Yes, he’s been carrying an injury, but now he no longer has that injury. So you can debate it either way.
“It was amazing,” said Hearn when asked about the first Canelo vs. Ryder press conference. “When Saul was speaking, he was looking down at his family and friends, and you could see how excited and happy he was to bring an event.
“It must be an amazing feeling to bring an event back to your people after fighting in America for so many years. I think he’s very proud and the atmosphere is going to be incredible.
“Half but certainly not London,” said Hearn when asked how much less Canelo will be making by choosing to fight in Mexico rather than the U.S. or elsewhere against Ryder.
“Some of the offers we had, he’s taking half the money, which is unbelievable. It affected me. What happened was the first round, it was more. When we went back and said, ‘no,’ it kept going up. I kept going back.
“In the end, they [Canelo & Eddy Reynoso] told me to, ‘stop, shut up. We’re doing it.’ Look, Saul has a lot of money, and sometimes that’s not an issue. It’s still quite unusual.
“I’ve not seen a lot of fighters that say, ‘I’ll take a lot less to do it at home. This is my sixth fight exclusively promoting Saul. Obviously, I had Rocky Fielding, Danny Jacobs, Callum Smith before that, but actually promoting the shows.
“I’ve always said, ‘You’ve got to do a fight in Mexico, and it’s happened. It makes me laugh,” said Hearn when told that a lot of fans think Canelo is over-the-hill. “He just fought Billy Joe Saunders for a unification, Caleb Plant for the undisputed, Dmitry Bivol and Gennadiy Golovkin. It’s like, ‘I think he’s on the slide.’
“He was carrying a horrific hand injury that he boxed his last two fights with. Let’s see what happens this year. John Ryder is a tough mandatory, and then he wants Dmitry Bivol, which, according to some people, was a stupid fight to take, and he wants it again because he got beat. So we’ll see.
“That’s what he wants. That’s what he told me to do. I’m not sure Saulwants to do that,” said Hearn about the possibility of Canelo making Dmitry Bivol come down to 168 for the rematch.
“If Saul did that, people would accuse him of trying to change the goalpost in the fight. I wouldn’t be surprised if Canelo said, ‘No, 175, same.’ That’s a big disadvantage, a big disadvantage.
“At the moment, my instructions are, ‘John Ryder, the mandatory, and Dmitry Bivol,'” said Hearn when asked if Canelo is interested in fighting David Benavidez. “He would have no problems fighting David Benavidez.
“Obviously, he has the Plant fight coming up. If he wins that, I think he puts himself in a great position to fight Canelo. If he fights on emotion, no, but I expect him to win the fight,” said Hearn when asked if Benavidez will defeat Caleb Plant.
“Canelo was pretty special in that fight [Plant]. He broke him down, beat him up, and knocked him out. Let’s see if David can do the same.
“I don’t know. I seen him punching and seems great,” said Hearn when asked how Canelo’s surgically repaired left wrist is. I never knew the severity of the injury, because it’s always been hush-hush.
“I would see him getting things done, very close to the fight with ice & compression. When you find out about it, you go, ‘Oh.’ That’s obviously something that has been bothering him for a long time. Now it’s good, and we’ll see the performance,” said Hearn about Canelo.
