Undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez reportedly has undergone the process of finalizing his next fight, where the 32-year-old will put his title on the line.
Alvarez and 34-year-old John Ryder are settling a deal for a 168-pound undisputed fight on May 6, according to ESPN. Reports have also indicated that while a venue hasn’t been established, a homecoming in Alvarez’s native land of Jalisco, Mexico is expected. This return home for him would mark Alvarez’s first fight in Mexico in 11 years since his knockout victory over Kermit Cintron in five rounds in 2011. At the time, Alvarez took the ring at 154 pounds.
WBO president Francisco Valcarce confirmed the rumors and clarified where it stands.
“I can tell you that they are going to fight, but they haven’t sent us a letter requesting sanction yet and so I don’t know where,” Valcarce told Yahoo Sports.
Over a decade since his last fight in Mexico, the 16-year pro is approaching a well-awaited hunt for his 59th career win.
Alvarez, at 58-2-2 with 39 KOs, last put on the gloves to conclude his trilogy with Gennady Golovkin, which ultimately served as the latest example of two things: Bottom-of-the-barrel work from boxing judges ringside, and another misleading chapter in the former Golden Boy’s very misleading legacy.
To put it simply, Alvarez has spent the better part of the last decade credited for bulldozing through subpar competition and cherry-picking fighters far beyond their prime — a formula that he didn’t invent, nor will be the last to execute.
Which brings us to where Alvarez currently stands.
Strolling along with an unwarranted level of recognition riddled with unimpressive victories plus one infamous blemish that came courtesy of a failed drug test for Clenbuterol in 2018, and Alvarez is positioned to do what he’s built his brand entirely off of. This time, he’ll “put his title on the line” against an individual who isn’t box office worthy, nor poses a threat to the caliber of what Alvarez has been glorified for representing.
Alvarez’s last loss came not too long ago in May of 2022 against Dmitry Bivol by unanimous decision. It was his first loss since 2013 versus Floyd Mayweather.
Meanwhile, Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs), like much of Alvarez’s resume, enters as the underdog representing his homeland of London. He’s gone victorious in his last four fights, but it’s hard to imagine that he’ll serve as anything more than a test of Alvarez’s recently surgically repaired left wrist. Ryder lacks both punching power and speed to give Alvarez a run for his money, which could also be said had Ryder been set to fight top-of-the-line middleweight fighters such as David Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) or Caleb Plant (22-1, 13 KOs), who Ryder doesn’t hold a candle to.
If by some miracle, Ryder pulls off the upset, you can be sure it’ll overshadow any preexisting stain that resides on Alvarez’s entire boxing career.
