Former middleweight world titleholder David Lemieux, who has had multiple fights canceled because of his issues making weight, will officially move up to super middleweight for his next bout against John Ryder, which Golden Boy Promotions announced on Wednesday along with the rest of the Canelo Alvarez-Daniel Jacobs undercard.
The card, headlined by the much-anticipated Alvarez-Jacobs middleweight title unification fight and filled with many of Golden Boy’s top fighters, is scheduled for May 4 (DAZN) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Lemieux (40-4, 34 KOs), 30, of Montreal, will face Ryder (27-4, 15 KOs), 30, of England in a 12-round fight.
The fight will come five months after Lemieux was scheduled to fight Tureano Johnson on Dec. 15 in New York on the Alvarez-Rocky Fielding undercard. However, the fight was canceled on the day of the weigh-in because Lemieux was so dehydrated he had to be taken to the hospital.
“There comes a time when every fighter must move up in weight, and now is that time for David Lemieux,” Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya said. “Lemieux was the hardest-hitting puncher in the 160-pound division, and I’m absolutely certain he will be the biggest puncher at 168 pounds. John Ryder will be in for a tough fight on May 4.”
The fight will be Lemieux’s first since he destroyed Gary “Spike” O’Sullivan in the first round in September on the Alvarez-Gennady Golovkin II undercard.
“I’ve seen Ryder fight. He’s a credible rival, but I’m going to make a statement out of what I’m going to do with him,” Lemieux said. “At 168, I’m going to be the strongest that I’ve ever been.”
Ryder, who will be boxing outside of the United Kingdom for the first time, has won three fights in a row by knockout since dropping a split decision to Fielding for the vacant British super middleweight title in 2017.
“I’m fully focused on the fight with David Lemieux, but obviously there’s a massive pot of gold for the winner,” Ryder said. “There’s the potential for a fight with Canelo or a fight with (super middleweight titlist) Callum Smith, which are both huge. Lemieux is a big puncher if you stand in front of him. I’m a boxer-fighter. I’ll box him at times and fight him at other times when it suits me. Our fighting styles are sure to gel for a great fight. I’m expecting to win and to win well. I’m there to keep my mandatory (title challenger) position.”
The card will also include hotshot junior welterweight prospect Vergil Ortiz Jr. (12-0, 12 KOs), 21, of Dallas, who is moving up to welterweight only for this fight as an accommodation to opponent Mauricio Herrera (24-8, 7 KOs), 38, a former world title challenger from Riverside, California. They will meet in a 10-rounder.
Also on the card:
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Junior welterweight Pablo Cesar Cano (32-7-1, 22 KOs), 29, of Mexico, who shockingly knocked out former three-division world titlist Jorge Linares in the first round on Jan. 18, will defend his regional belt against Michael Perez (25-3-2, 11 KOs), 29, of Newark, New Jersey, in a 10-round fight.
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Former featherweight world title challenger Joseph Diaz Jr. (28-1, 14 KOs), 26, of South El Monte, California, will have his second fight since moving up to junior lightweight. Diaz, who outpointed Charles Huerta over 10 rounds in his debut in the division on Feb. 9, will face an opponent to be determined in a title elimination fight. Golden Boy had hoped to line him up against former junior featherweight titlist Scott Quigg, but he took a different fight.
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Former junior middleweight world titlist Sadam Ali (27-2, 14 KOs), 30, of Brooklyn, New York, will face Anthony Young (20-2, 7 KOs), 31, of Atlantic City, New Jersey, in a 10-round welterweight fight. Ali will be aiming for his second win in a row since returning to welterweight following his title loss to Jaime Munguia last May.
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Junior lightweight Lamont Roach Jr. (18-0-1, 7 KOs), 23, of Washington, D.C., will face Jonathan Oquendo (30-5, 19 KOs), 35, of Puerto Rico, in a 10-round regional title bout.
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Super middleweight prospect Alexis Espino (1-0, 1 KO), 19, of Las Vegas, will face an opponent to be determined in a four-rounder.