Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez sealed a unanimous decision win over John Ryder with scores of 118-109, 118-109 and 120-107 in Mexico; a rematch against Dmitry Bivol could be next for the undisputed super-middleweight world champion
Sunday 7 May 2023 11:34, UK
Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez floored John Ryder but had to settle for a hard-fought unanimous decision victory over the brave British challenger in Mexico.
The Mexican star dropped Ryder in the fifth round, although he could not deliver a knockout in his homecoming fight and received the win on points with scores of 118-109, 118-109 and 120-107.
Canelo stayed on course for a rematch against Dmitry Bivol, who defeated him on points in their WBA light-heavyweight title fight last May.
More than 50,000 fans watched as Canelo remained the undisputed super middleweight champion Saturday night, in his first fight in Mexico since 2011.
Alvarez broke Ryder's nose, cruising to the victory in the end to improve to 59-2-2.
"I hit him too much in the head and he did not go down," Canelo said at ringside after the fight. "I've always said it, when they fight me, they give their 100 per cent, it gets complicated because they usually give me the fight of their lives."
Ryder, who is is 32-6, said suffering the damage to his nose in the second round played a major role in having his four-bout winning streak stopped.
"He's probably past his best, he could not get me out there, he wanted to stop me and could not do it," Ryder said at a press conference. "It could have been a little different without the problem to my nose, it took me a few rounds to get adjusted."
Saturday's bout was Canelo's first fight since he had surgery on his left wrist last March. Before the fight, he said the injury slowed him down in his previous four fights, including his loss to light heavyweight champion Bivol a year ago.
After getting a hard-fought victory over Ryder, Canelo has his eyes set on a rematch against the Russian in September.
"That's what we are aiming for, but we will see", added Canelo.
In a fight that was touted as the 'King is Coming Home', the sold-out crowd at Akron stadium in Guadalajara – just 25 miles away from Juanacatlan, the small town where Canelo grew up – screamed deliriously during the whole fight.
"It was different, I've fought in stadiums before, but tonight was very different. The vibe of the crowd was awesome, I'm very thankful," he said.
A slow-paced opening burst into life when Canelo connected with a straight right and Ryder started bleeding from the nose.
The Mexican kept pressing the action in the fourth round, landing body shots, and then sent Ryder to the mat with a right hook to the chin.
Ryder made Canelo uncomfortable in the fifth and landed a few shots on the face of the Mexican, but Alvarez landed another right in the ninth. Ryder stumbled, but rallied and answered with a shot that shook the Mexican.
Ryder, with a bloodied face, closed the fight well in the last two rounds, but it was not enough to get the upset.
On the undercard, Julio Cesar 'Rey' Martinez (19-2) knocked out Ronal Batista (15-2) to retain the WBC flyweight title.
