Canelo Alvarez is going home to fight in Mexico for the first time in more than 11 years.
The reigning WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring super middleweight champion puts his undisputed crown up for grabs when he faces off with John Ryder at Akron Stadium in Guadalajara, Mexico on May 6.
The card will be broadcast on pay-per-view in United States and Canada on DAZN, which made the announcement about the fight on Tuesday.
“I feel really happy to be coming back in May, because following my surgery, I was unsure of when I’d be coming back,” Alvarez said in a statement. “Returning to the ring and coming back to fight in Jalisco, where I’m from, makes me especially happy. And in John Ryder, I’m facing a very competitive fighter.”
Alvarez is set to fight as part of the weekend’s Cinco de Mayo celebration and compete in his native country for the first time since November 2011, when he defeated Kermit Citron by fifth-round TKO to retain his WBC light middleweight title.
Since then, Alvarez has gone on to become one of the biggest stars in combat sports and face a laundry list of legends. Most recently, Alvarez earned a second win over Gennady “Triple G” Golovkin, which put him back on track following a unanimous decision loss to Dmitry Bivol in a failed attempt to move up to light heavyweight to capture another title.
As for Ryder, the 34-year-old British boxer and mandatory WBO challenger steps into enemy territory when he faces Alvarez in May while trying to pull off a gargantuan upset. Overall, Ryder sports a 32-5 record, and currently rides a four-fight win streak that includes victories over Daniel Jacobs and Zach Parker.