John Ryder Career Highlights

The super middleweight division is ruled by the pound-for-pound star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. The Mexican superstar won his last fight, which was a comfortable unanimous decision victory in his third contest against his old foe Gennady Golovkin. “Canelo” has amassed a brilliant professional record of 58-2-2, with 39 wins by knockout. The 32-year-old is set to return to Mexico and fight for the first time in 12 years, where he will go up against British fighter John Ryder on May 6, 2023. In preparation for this fight, we at Big Fight Weekend wanted to look at Ryder’s career highlights in the run-up to “Canelo’s” homecoming fight.

The Best Highlights of John Ryder’s Career

👑 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙆𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙨 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙃𝙤𝙢𝙚 🇲🇽@canelo vs. @_John_Ryder_ for undisputed super middleweight gold 🙌

Watch #CaneloRyder LIVE on https://t.co/FoiaUucafv & DAZN PPV on May 6 pic.twitter.com/4M3VBJ4pmk

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) March 14, 2023

Ryder’s Win Over Daniel Jacobs

In many people’s eyes, this will be the number one highlight from John Ryder’s career. On February 12, 2022, Ryder defeated experienced two-time middleweight world champion Danny Jacobs via a split decision in their WBA super middleweight eliminator. “The Gorilla” was favoured on two of the judge’s cards with scores of 115-113, and Jacobs taking the other card by the same score.

Also Read: Britain’s John Ryder Upset Daniel Jacobs Saturday Night

Jacobs started the fight brightly, despite not having fought since a drab win over Gabe Rosado, on November 27, 2020. “Miracle Man” used his jab to great effect, and followed up adeptly with his right hand when needed. It was a simple yet effective game plan, which seemingly built him a big lead at the halfway point. “The Gorilla” came more into the fight in round six, and continued this effective work in the seventh, when he rocked Jacobs on more than one occasion. The American seemed more than troubled at this point, with the momentum swinging to the Englishman in a big way.

Also Read: 5 Underrated Middleweights to Watch Out for in 2023

Ryder done plenty of effective work on the inside in the later rounds and dragged a tiring Jacobs into a war of attrition. The decision went to Ryder in the end, and it was thought to be controversial with many people saying Jacob’s work in the early rounds was enough for him to win. However, “The Gorilla” showed his great fitness and tenacity as the fight wore on, and according to the judges, he done enough to earn the biggest win of his career.

Moving From Middleweight to Super Middleweight

Ryder used to fight at middleweight but began to struggle to make the weight around the time of his loss to Nick Blackwell, describing the process to make 160lbs as “pure dehydration“. He then went on to lose against Jack Arnfield the following year (2016) and described in the same interview how the weight cut was harming him. “I wanted to be hit on the chin, put out of my misery and then look for something else to do. I just didn’t have the fight in me anymore”. Cutting weight is something many fighters have experienced to their own detriment.

Also Read: Canelo Alvarez Gets Life-Sized Statue In Mexico

The move to super middleweight has undoubtedly introduced us to the real John Ryder. Since moving up in weight, the Islington-born southpaw has suffered a controversial loss to Rocky Fielding and a defeat to Callum Smith, also described in some quarters as controversial. Since the loss to Smith, he has won his last four fights, earning him a shot at “Canelo”.

Ryder is a fighter with tremendous will and desire, which sees him keep up an impressive pace for 12 rounds. He fights extremely well on the inside at close quarters and picks his punches well. This is undoubtedly a chance of a lifetime for the London fighter, and he will need to be at his absolute best to even have a chance of causing “Canelo” any problems. Boxing is full of miraculous stories, and Ryder will be hoping to cause one of the biggest upsets in the sports history.