Promoter Eddie Hearn says he wants to match John Ryder against David Benavidez or Caleb Plant next if he comes out victorious in his fight against unbeaten super middleweight contender Jaime Munguia this Saturday, January 27th, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
Ryder (32-6, 18 KOs) would need a solid win over a proven fighter at 168 to put himself in position for a lucrative rematch with undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
Beyond Munguia: Benavidez or Plant?
Beating Munguia (42-0, 33 KOs) won’t get Ryder’s rematch with Canelo. This guy has a fluff record, and he’s not viewed as one of the talented marquee-level fighters at 168. That is to say, Munguia is a creation by Oscar De La Hoya.
Oscar did a good job of creating Munguia, making him look like the real thing, but it’s obvious that he’s one of those fighters with a plastic record built on cab drivers and cans to make him look better than he actually is. That’s why Munguia almost lost to 38-year-old Sergiy Derevyanchenko and was staggered by 39-year-old Gary O’Sullivan.
Can Munguia Be the Stepping Stone?
“I think he’s going to get another big fight,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to ProBox TV about his belief that John Ryder will defeat Jaime Munguia this Saturday night.
“Like a David Benavidez, or Caleb Plant, someone like that,” said Hearn about who he wants to match Ryder against next if he’s victorious against Munguia.
It won’t be easy for Ryder to defeat Benavidez or Plant, but it’s possible that he could if he has the right game plan. Benavidez likely won’t entertain the idea of fighting Ryder, as he’s in the running for a clash against Canelo in May or September.
Former IBF super middleweight champion Plant (22-2, 13 KOs) would be the more realistic option for Ryder. The Tennessee native is coming off a one-sided loss to Benavidez and hasn’t fought in almost a year. The 31-year-old Plant is needy right now, and he’d likely jump at the chance to fight Ryder if he’s victorious against Munguia.
Beating Munguia will require hard work on Ryder’s part because he’s fighting a guy with good power and a high work rate. More importantly, Ryder will need to dominate Munguia in each round to get the decision because we saw in his last fight against Derevyanchenko that he won rounds that he didn’t deserve.