John Ryder is being groomed by Tony Sims to one day succeed him at his Essex-based gym.

Ryder retired in January aged 35 after being stopped by Jaime Munguia, but did so having spent his finest years as a fighter under Sims, and to the extent that in May 2023 he not only challenged Saul “Canelo” Alvarez for the undisputed super-middleweight title but accelerated suggestions the Mexican is in decline by so admirably recovering from a heavy knockdown and ignoring a heavily bleeding nose to reach the final bell.

That the retired Kevin Mitchell, having fought under and then served under Sims as an assistant trainer, has plans to become an independent trainer has contributed to the creation of a position for Ryder at a time when the respected Sims is considering his long-term plans, and to that end Ryder is adjusting to the conclusion of his career as a fighter by learning a new occupation while he pursues his trainer’s seconds licence.

“I had my interview with The [British Boxing] Board [of Control], so I’m just waiting for the letter to say I can proceed,” Ryder said. “It’s all systems go. I’m in the gym every day with Tony, helping him with the lads and ladies and keeping busy. 

“It probably won’t be for a while yet. The sooner the better for me, but I can’t rush.

“Tony gave me a fantastic career. He was by my side throughout and it’s an honour to work alongside him and be in the same gym as him, so for the foreseeable I’ll definitely be by his side and it’ll probably [eventually] be more a case of Tony moving on and me taking the reins, as such.

“He wants like-minded people to take charge, and in the mean time he’ll mentor us and guide us, and turn us into good trainers. But he’s not going to be in boxing forever, and he’s going to look to take a back seat at some point, so we’ll somewhat take over. 

“I’m out the house early in the morning [but] I’m not back as late. I’m managing my time a bit better. But there’ll be times when I’m not so good at managing the time, because there’s a gym full of fighters to train and the dates will be back to back and you’ve gotta be more hands on. But at the moment I’ve got a lot more time on my hands. I’ve got a good work-rest balance, and plenty of time with my family as well, so I’m happy.”

Sims’ leading fighter Joe Cordina defends his IBF super-featherweight title against Anthony Cacace on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on the undercard of the undisputed heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, and when Ryder was asked if he had started to miss life as a fighter, he responded: “I have. The doubts have crept in. 

“The problem is, when you’re in boxing you’re so focused on living in the future. ‘I can’t wait for this fight date; can’t wait ‘till this fight’s done.’ You kind of look back and think to yourself, ‘Why didn’t I enjoy it more at the time?’.”