The Vault: John Ryder showed world class credentials to edge Daniel Jacobs

John Ryder takes on the considerable challenge of Jaime Munguia on 27th January. ‘The Gorilla’ looks to rebound from his May 2023 loss to Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez for the undisputed super middleweight championship.

A win over Munguia would certainly put him closer to the front of the queue for another title challenge. But a victory over the 42-0 former light middleweight world champion is by no means a foregone conclusion. In fact, Ryder is 12/5 to get the job done as it stands. 

But Ryder is no stranger to a tall order. Few gave the Islington man a chance in 2022 when he welcomed Daniel Jacobs to the capital. The two-time world champion had been one of the standout figures at middleweight over the past decade. Jacobs had enjoyed reigns with the IBF and WBA title belts, racking up victories over Sergio Mora, Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Caleb Truax and Peter Quillin along the way. Even his defeats had often been impressive. Few had given ‘Canelo’ and Gennady Golovkin as much trouble as Jacobs was able to.

But few have given Jacobs the trouble that Ryder did in February 2022. As the Brit heads into another night spent as the underdog against a high-profile former world champion, we take a trip into the vault to look back at the split decision victory that stands as his finest win to date.

The start was a cagey affair, with Jacobs edging the first round behind the jab. Ryder struggled to get his own southpaw lead through, though some late body shots gave him some encouragement. The second round saw only sporadic success for Ryder. He landed a decent short left but Jacobs’ right hook was the punch of the session.

The same could be said in the third. Jacobs’ control of the range meant it was his long rights that left the most impression. The tide began to turn in the fifth. You’d be hard pressed not to see it as a Jacobs round, given his precise lead work. But a short right from ‘The Gorilla’ was arguably the punch of the fight so far. The jolting shot spurred Jacobs into action, as both men opened up in the best flurry of the five rounds to that point.

Ryder took encouragement from his moments of success, trying to bully the former world champion back in the sixth. Jacobs showed tremendous bursts of hand speed to keep his man at bay, the highlight being a solid straight right. Ryder constructed his best three minutes of the fight thus far in the seventh stanza. Jacobs tried to open up and caught an uppercut for his troubles. A big right hook and two solid lefts followed. ‘The Gorilla’ swung for both head and body as Jacobs covered up.

The new rhythm of the fight was firmly established by now and once again Ryder drove Jacobs back at the advent of the eighth. A short right on the inside followed by an overhand with the same fist had Jacobs looking troubled. Follow-up punches put the exclamation mark on a big round for the Londoner. The ninth was more of the same with a big right-left combination sending Jacobs’ head on a violent tilt. A late rally from the American was curtailed by a firm Ryder left hook. 

Jacobs probably edged the next session on speed alone, belatedly getting wise to Ryder’s pressure game. A lovely shoulder-roll defence saw Jacobs avoid the biggest shots, though a nasty right cross got through late from Ryder.

The last two rounds were messy, with tiredness leading to cagey tactics and clinches galore. Ryder’s energy inside probably did enough to snatch these rounds, but you certainly wouldn’t have argued with one going the other way.

Many people did argue with the decision as a whole. Opinion was divided on whether Ryder had done enough to warrant his split nod. Any notion of home-cooking was eliminated, when it was the sole Brit among the three judges, Marcus McDonnell, who awarded Jacobs the contest. But some still disputed the verdict.

In truth, this fight could have gone either way. The rounds either side of an absorbing middle portion were tactical and untidy. The opening two and closing two rounds could have conceivably been awarded to either boxer, with the remainder less pendulous than those cagey sessions.

But Ryder got the win, something for which he deserves immense credit. ‘The Gorilla’ went toe-to-toe with a world class fighter and came out on top. His determination and refusal to quit bodes well for the Munguia outing. As does Ryder’s ability to adapt his gameplan when his first-choice tactics aren’t working. This fight will challenge Ryder, for sure. But he has proven in the past that he relishes a challenge.

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