John Ryder always had a sense that his number was next to be called in the Canelo Alvarez sweepstakes.
This being boxing, there was still that sliver of doubt until the day he saw everyone involved put pen to paper.
“We got the contracts through, we got them signed. That’s when it became real for me,” Ryder admitted to BoxingScene.com.
The 34-year-old southpaw from Islington, London prepared for this moment well in advance of the March 14 announcement of their undisputed super middleweight championship clash.
The bout—whick takes place this Saturday on DAZN Pay-Per-View from Estadio Akron in Zapopan, Mexico—was in discussion for months. It began with Ryder’s injury-induced technical knockout win over countryman Zach Parker to claim the interim WBO super middleweight title, which assured his place at the front of the line for Guadalajara’s Alvarez (58-2-2, 39KOs).
There was always the sense that Ryder (32-5, 18KOs) would have to hit the road for the biggest opportunity of his career. Loose talk surfaced of Alvarez potentially eyeing a potential U.K, debut as well as the possibility of the fight landing in the Middle East.
Ultimately it was decided for the fight to take place in Mexico, Alvarez’s first in more than a decade in his home country. Ryder had no problem hitting the road—this will be his fourth outside of England, all within his last seven starts. He was never going to be the cause for a letdown but still proceeded with cautious optimism until he saw everyone’s signature.
“With a fight of this magnitude, they can obviously break down at any moment,” noted Ryder, who has won four straight since a November 2019 disputed points loss to then-unbeaten WBA super middleweight titlist Callum Smith. “But we got our first draft contract and made a few amendments. They got agreed to, got it straight back, and it was signed.
“The whole contract thing was straightforward and easy. It was more a thing in the background with broadcast issues but that sorted out and it was full steam ahead.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox