Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez v John Ryder: Can Briton cause one of the biggest shocks in boxing history?

Ryder (right) volition situation Alvarez for the IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO and Ring Magazine super-middleweight titles

John 'The Gorilla' Ryder enters the lion's den connected Saturday night, hoping to tame the king of the boxing beasts, Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez.

Fighting successful Mexican Alvarez's location metropolis of Guadalajara, a triumph for Ryder would spell down arsenic the top overseas triumph for a British combatant and a colossal daze successful boxing history.

The likelihood are stacked against the 34-year-old underdog. Alvarez is the look of boxing: a four-weight champion who is warring connected location ungraded for the archetypal clip successful 12 years.

Add to the premix the 50,000 fans expected to capable retired the Estadio Akron connected Cinco de Mayo weekend, the day of Mexico's triumph implicit the French astatine the Battle of Puebla successful 1862, and the task becomes a large woody harder.

But Ryder insists helium volition not beryllium overawed by the juncture and is manifesting an upset.

"Every nighttime I laic there, beryllium there, visualise it - speaking it into existence," helium tells BBC Sport. "It would beryllium an astonishing feeling. Especially being successful his location municipality connected specified a prestigious event.

"This is cleanable timing for me. I consciousness similar I'm mature successful myself. My boxing quality is astir apt the champion it's ever been."

From doorman to golden-ticket Alvarez bout

Ryder (left) is Matchroom Boxing's longest serving progressive combatant and is trained by Briton Tony Sims

On the thrust from Guadalajara airdrome to the metropolis centre, you spot Islington-born Ryder's look plastered crossed billboards promoting the fight.

It is an bonzer travel for a combatant who conscionable a fewer years agone was subsidising his income by moving arsenic a doorman astatine a London nightclub.

"I've got to beryllium thankful to the radical who did judge successful maine due to the fact that astatine times I didn't judge successful myself," Ryder says.

"Maybe that's portion of the issue. Self-belief successful boxing has got to beryllium entity high, successful and retired of the ringing and successful beingness successful general. But it's determination now. I'm relishing the opportunity."

Ryder is the fortunate recipient of boxing's aureate summons - a lucrative combat against the biggest pay-per-view prima - and plans to walk a information of the career-high payday connected buying a caller location for his spouse and 2 young children.

Nicknamed 'The Gorilla' aged 16 for his spot and toughness - helium is simply a reserved antheral who stays retired of the headlines and doesn't prosecute successful trash talk.

He admits being a "Canelo instrumentality boy" successful the past and shies distant from criticising his opponent.

"You extremity up with ovum connected your look if you're similar that," helium says. "We tin shingle hands earlier and after.

"It's a hard capable athletics without each that. I don't request to hatred you to privation to bushed you. I'd alternatively instrumentality to my chill head."

'My grounds is misleading'

Ryder mislaid his lone different situation for a satellite rubric successful a adjacent points decision by Briton Callum Smith (left)

Ryder has mislaid 5 of his 37 nonrecreational bouts but is successful the signifier of his vocation aft awesome wins implicit American Daniel Jacobs and chap Briton Zach Parker to go the WBO interim champion.

Two of those defeats came astatine middleweight, with Ryder saying helium was drained astatine the weight. His different losses were adjacent points determination defeats by Rocky Fielding and erstwhile champions Billy Joe Saunders and Callum Smith.

"I bash deliberation it's misleading," Ryder says of his boxing record. "A batch of the British fans spot the enactment I've done but different fans are not looking astatine these and watching them, they're conscionable seeing the results.

"I get it but that's wherefore I've got to triumph their hearts and amusement them what I'm each about."

It was the 2019 defeat by Liverpool's Smith that boosted Ryder's world-level credentials and accrued his profile, with galore observers feeling Ryder was unfortunate not to beryllium awarded the determination and Smith's WBA 'Super' title.

"In hindsight, it's astir apt the champion happening that could person happened to me," helium says.

"If I had won that nighttime my vocation astir apt would person been implicit by now. For maine it extended my career.

"I'm present present for each of the marbles. That was lone for 1 belt. I'm present present for each 4 belts and to go undisputed."

Can helium dethrone 'Brit Basher' Alvarez?

There person been stellar overseas performances from British fighters: Tyson Fury's triumph implicit Wladimir Klitschko, Alan Minter's triumph against Vito Antuofermo and Lloyd Honeyghan stopping Don Curry to sanction a few.

But a Ryder triumph implicit aboriginal hall-of-fame prima Alvarez whitethorn good trump them all.

Former European champion Matthew Hatton was the archetypal of 7 British fighters to person been defeated by Alvarez, including Saunders, brothers Callum and Liam Smith and Amir Khan.

"They telephone him the Brit basher, don't they? I stake he's got a Union Jack successful his gym," says Ryder.

Hatton, who mislaid each circular to Alvarez successful 2011, has been impressed by Ryder's caller resurgence. He says the challenger indispensable artifact retired the crowd, but feels it volition beryllium a pugnacious inquire successful dethroning the champion.

"I'm a large instrumentality of John Ryder. He's got amended and amended passim his career," Hatton adds. "He's suffered defeats, travel back. Seems mentally precise beardown and I'm definite he'll relish it.

"He's conscionable got to wholly hide astir the assemblage and ore connected the occupation astatine hand. But adjacent erstwhile helium does that, it's inactive a big, large job. He's got everything going against him."

Ryder - a lifelong Arsenal instrumentality - is hoping a triumph could lure Alvarez to the Emirates Stadium for a blockbuster rematch, but suggests decision could pb to retirement.

"It's clip I enactment immoderate clip into my family," helium says. "Spend much clip with my kids. Maybe get married. Let them cognize they are a priority.

"How galore times tin you spell to the well? This is my aureate opportunity. I was harshly judged successful the Callum Smith combat erstwhile I should person go champion.

"This is clip for redemption. I haven't got years to rebuild."

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