Canelo Alvarez’s next fight is the one we expected.
The undisputed 168-pound champion will defend his titles against Englishman John Ryder on pay-per-view May 6 at Akron Stadium near Guadalajara, Mexico, Alvarez’s hometown, it was announced Tuesday.
The fight will be Alvarez’s first in his native country since he stopped Kermit Cintron in 2011 in Mexico City. It will be his first in Guadalajara, in the state of Jalisco, since he KO’d Luciano Cuello in 2010.
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“I feel really happy to be coming back in May because following my [wrist] surgery, I was unsure of when I’d be coming back,” Alvarez said. “Returning to the ring and coming back to fight in Jalisco, where I’m from, makes me especially happy. And in John Ryder, I’m facing a very competitive fighter.”
Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) collected the last of the four major belts when he stopped Caleb Plant in 11 rounds in November 2021.
Then came a disaster for one of the sport’s biggest stars, a wide decision loss in his bid to take Dmitry Bivol’s 175-pound title in May of last year. That was his first setback since he also lost a one-sided decision to Floyd Mayweather in 2013.
He rebounded by outpointing rival Gennadiy Golovkin in their third fight September, after which Alvarez underwent surgery on his injured left wrist.
Ryder (32-5 18 KOs) is the WBO’s mandatory challenger. The 34-year-old Londoner has won four consecutive fights since he was outpointed by Callum Smith in 2019, including a split decision over Daniel Jacobs in February of last year.
He followed the victory over Jacobs by stopping Zach Parker after four rounds in November, although Parker had to quit because of a broken hand.
Alvarez easily outpointed Smith in 2020.
“There’s no denying that Canelo is one of the greats, and I’ve got a lot of respect for what he’s achieved in the sport, but I fully believe this is my time fulfill my dream of becoming a world champion,” Ryder said.
“I’m not going over there for a holiday. For me this is purely business and my full focus is on going into his backyard in Guadalajara on May 6 and bringing those belts back with me to the U.K.”
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