Canelo Alvarez has prided himself on facing the best of the best. However, after revealing that his next bout will take place against John Ryder, the Mexican star has been thrown under the bus. The 32-year-old pound-for-pound luminary will officially square off against the British native on May 6th, in a homecoming bout in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.

Ryder, 34, has seemingly earned his stripes. Following a highly controversial unanimous decision defeat vs. Callum Smith several years ago, the rough and rugged contender dusted himself off and went on a winning streak. With four consecutive victories under his belt, including back-to-back showings against Daniel Jacobs and Zach Parker, Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs) was awarded the WBO interim crown.

Although he worked his tail off to earn a mandatory title shot, fans of Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) have turned up their nose in disgust. Jermall Charlo, on the other hand, doesn’t believe that Alvarez deserves the scathing criticism that he’s received. In fact, according to the current WBC middleweight belt holder, Ryder is a more than respectable name.

“I think Ryder’s a good opponent,” said Charlo to several reporters. “I like Ryder. I like Ryder. At this stage, Ryder’s a decent opponent.”

For a number of years, Charlo has done his best to lure Alvarez into the ring. But, despite doing all that he could, including publicly calling him out, Alvarez has yet to placate the Houston native's wishes.

In any event, after failing to walk through the ropes since 2021 due to a combination of personal issues and declining health, Charlo (32-0, 22 KOs) is aiming for a mid-summer return. Amongst a long list of options, Charlo has made his feelings known that he would love to move straight into mega clashes against the likes of Demetrius Andrade, Canelo Alvarez, Gennadiy Golovkin, or new recent hot commodity, David Benavidez.