BOXING fans were quick to notice a specific detail with the ring ahead of Saturday’s super-middleweight bout between Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and John Ryder.
Canelo successfully defended his undisputed super-middleweight crown on home soil following a stunning display at the Akron Stadium.
He won the bout by unanimous decision with scores of 120-107, 118-109 and 118-109.
But some boxing fans claimed that he was at an advantage before the fight had even begun.
Prior to the first bell, eagle-eyed viewers noticed that the size of the ring was unusually small.
One person tweeted: “This ring size for the Canelo fight is the SMALLEST ring I’ve ever seen! It looks like children should be fighting in it!”
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Another added: “Agreeing To This Ring Size With Canelo Is Suicide.”
A third claimed: “Gonna be short night for Canelo with that ring size.”
While a fourth wrote: “Canelo Alvarez should benefit from small ring. John Ryder won’t have anywhere to hide inside Guadalajara’s 18-foot ring.
“Alvarez is always comfortable fighting in close proximity to his opponents, and the smaller ring size means Ryder will have less room for error.”
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The standard size of a professional boxing ring can range from 16 square feet to 24 square feet.
Canelo is known to prefer a smaller-sized ring.
In May 2021, the Mexican got into a dispute with British boxer Billy Joe Saunders over the proposed 18ft ring that was set to be used in their super-middleweight bout.
Saunders, who likened the 18ft ring to a “phone box”, threatened to walk away from the fight altogether unless a bigger one was confirmed for the fight.
The issue was eventually resolved when the pair agreed on a 22ft ring.
The 18ft ring certainly suited Canelo on Saturday.
The 32-year-old dominated the fight and dropped Ryder in round five, but the Brit fought back to go the distance despite sustaining a broken nose.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
