Via Barry Holbrook: John Ryder weighs 167 pounds, while Zach Parker weighs 167.3 lbs in his fight for the vacant interim WBO super middleweight title this Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London.
(Image credit: Queensberry Promotion)
While that is yet to be confirmed, there is a high probability that the winner of the Ryder-Parker match will face the undisputed super-middleweight champion. Canelo Alvarez Next May in America
Ryder (31-5, 17 KOs) will have a better chance against Canelo if he wins on Saturday night than Parker (22-0, 16 KOs).
“We will do the work on Saturday night. John Ryder said to ID Boxing. “It’s for the best at the moment,” Ryder said of his fight with Parker.
card weight
Hamzah Sheeraz 159.3 lbs vs. River Wilson-Bent 159.7 lbs
Sam Noakes 134.6 lbs vs. Calvin McCord 135 lbs
Dennis McCann 121.4 lbs vs. Joe Ham 121.5 lbs.
Pierce O’Leary 139.5 lbs vs Emmanuel Mungandjela 139.9 lbs
Tommy Fletcher 201 lbs vs. Jiri Krejci 197.6 lbs
Sonny Liston Ali 145.9 lbs vs. Georgi Velichkov 144 lbs
Ryder is not worried
“I give him [Parker] full credit. He’s 22-0, and he hasn’t made a single mistake yet. Look, he didn’t mix it on the level that I have. I’ve played against champions, former champions and future champions.
“He was relatively unchallenged,” Ryder said of Zach. “He won against Vaughn Alexandr [17-6-1, 10 KOs), who has been up at light heavyweight, but it a career middleweight. Marcus Morrison is a career middleweight. We’ll see.
“He says I’m small for a super middleweight. We’ll see on Saturday night. I rate the opportunity of going against bigger opponents. Listen, he’s not the biggest I’ve fought, so I’m not worried,” said Ryder about Parker.
“Obviously, the David Benavidez vs. Caleb Plant fight is going ahead. I think for myself moving ahead, this was the best opportunity. There were talks of the Munguia fight, but the prospects of the WBO interim title really trumps that.
“It’s a good opportunity. Go and get the win on Saturday night. There are still other big fights to make for this title. Everything is tied up at the moment, but in time, it can change. In the meantime, you can still make some defenses with the [WBO] provisional title,” Ryder said.
“I think I’m pretty good, and I’m underrated. I’ve got a lot to gain in this sport. Watch this space come on Saturday night,” John Ryder told Behind the Gloves about his fight with Zach Parker for the interim WBO super middleweight title this Saturday.
