John ‘The Gorilla’ Ryder 32-5 (18) is already contemplating retirement ahead of his challenge to undisputed super middleweight king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez 58-2-2 (39) at Estadio Akron in Zapopan, Mexico on May 6.
“Yeah potentially. It all depends on the manner that you lose,” Ryder told Mirror Fighting. “If you go in there and have a close fight, then there will be big nights out there for you. But for me it is just about weighing it up from there on in. Is it worth your time, is it worth your body and is it worth the sacrifices?”
English southpaw Ryder, 34, knows he hit the jackpot by landing the fight against the Mexican superstar, saying it was something he never dreamed of.
“Becoming undisputed champion would be unbelievable,” he said. “We have been lucky enough to have undisputed champions here like Josh Taylor and Katie Taylor and some other female fighters. For me it would be beyond my wildest dreams. I don’t think I ever dreamed of becoming undisputed and having all the marbles.
“It will be a great story if I can pull it off and obviously I don’t intend to go over to Mexico and lose. It would be something special for sure and a motivational story for others to follow in the future I am sure.”
Ryder believe Alvarez could be overlooking him.
“He says all the right things at times but then other times he slips up,” Ryder said. “Sometimes he talks of [David] Benavidez and a rematch with [Dmitry] Bivol, but I hope he is fully focused on me and giving me the respect that I deserve. Because I am planning on coming to Gaudalajara and causing an upset on May 6. Don’t go making any plans for September yet because chances are you will be rematching me.
“We have seen people mix it up and try to outbox him and ultimately he gets there in the end. I have got something he hasn’t really seen before and I have planned and trained with my all to come away victorious on May 6.”
The fight is a homecoming for the 32-year-old Alvarez, who has not boxed in his home country since 2011.
“I feel very excited after 12 years of not coming home and being able to bring back everything I have achieved during all these years, the truth is that I feel very happy and proud,” Alvarez said.
“It is not easy to make an event like this. It is not easy to make a fight of this magnitude. In the end, what I wanted is possible, I wanted to fight here in my land, Jalisco, and am very happy to be here.
“I had many offers to fight in many places, but I never thought about it. I always wanted to come here, return to my land, return as the best in the world. It is a pride to be here, I do it with my heart, giving people the opportunity to see me fight here motivates me a lot.
“The first thing I want is for people who can’t buy a ticket or who can’t go to Las Vegas to have the opportunity to see me here in Guadalajara and to be able to donate a part of the money to a foundation here in Guadalajara. We are going to do this event.”
