Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez has often spoken of his desire to box in various countries, in an attempt to take his brand global and to increase his already huge popularity. And one of the places Canelo says he would be interested in boxing is the UK. In this regard, John Ryder might have won even more than he thought with his big upset victory over Danny Jacobs.
Ryder, 31-5(17) won the WBA super-middleweight elimination bout with Jacobs last night, and Hearn has gone on record as saying the 33 year old would be “the perfect opponent” for Canelo if the pound-for-pound star did fight in the UK.
“Saul obviously wants to fight in the UK,” Hearn said. “He’s got his plans prepared and nearly locked in for this year. But I think if he wants to fight in the UK, he’s got the perfect opponent. You know, I don’t think any other super-middleweights in their country have standout victories like that. John Ryder just beat Daniel Jacobs.”
It would be huge for British boxing if Canelo fought in the UK; and it would be a dream come true for Ryder if Canelo picked him as his dance partner. Ryder’s trainer, Tony Sims, said he hopes Hearn can entice Canelo into facing his fighter over here.
“I’m just hoping Eddie can lure Canelo to the Wembley Stadium now because you know Canelo wants to fight in the UK,” the trainer said. “And obviously he hasn’t had an opponent lined up until now. But he’s got one there in John Ryder.”
As of right now, we await Canelo’s next fight – with the 31 year old still weighing his options. Canelo will fight in May and then again in September, both times in the US. But who knows, just maybe Canelo will fight in the UK next year, and maybe John Ryder will get the single biggest fight of his 12 year pro career. If this fight did happen, Canelo would of course be a big, big favourite to get the win. But don’t try and dampen Ryder’s spirits right now! The win over Jacobs is big; a fight with Canelo would be humongous for the London man.