Michel “La Zarza” Rivera (19-0) finds himself in a great position.
The rising lightweight prospect has been training in Las Vegas for a March 6th return to the ring in a Showtime televised bout.
He has also seen himself mentioned as a possible opponent for former four-division champion Adrien Broner.
The Dominican Republic native was a very interested observer of Ryan Garcia’s January 2nd knockout victory of former title challenger Luke Campbell. Garcia rose from the canvas to knock out Campbell in the 7th round. With the victory he captured the interim WBC lightweight title.
Garcia showed fortitude in getting up off the canvas but Rivera said that he also saw a lot of holes in his game.
“Ryan showed that he has good power but that he has a chin made of glass. He didn’t show very much punch resistance against a fighter like Luke Campbell who isn’t a strong puncher but was still sent him to the canvas. Ryan showed that power is one of his strongest attributes with his knockout and also showed one of his weaknesses when he went down,” Rivera told BoxingScene.com.
“The truth is that I wasn’t surprised because he doesn’t have any defense and he relies on his power. He is a good fighter but he wouldn’t beat a boxer that has speed and a bigger punch like Teofimo Lopez or Gervonta Davis or myself. I would love to get a shot at fighting him if I am given the opportunity but I want to make it clear that I believe he is a very strong puncher.”
While a shot at Garcia may not be in the cards anytime in the near future, Rivera is marching closer towards earning a mandatory title shot. Even though he is only 22 years old, Rivera hopes to fight for a title sooner than later.
“I am just waiting for a chance to fight any of the world champions. I will be ready when the opportunity presents itself,” Rivera stated.
Rivera was last in action on Halloween when he won a wide unanimous decision over Ladarius “Memphis” Miller on the Gervonta Davis-Leo Santa Cruz pay-per-view undercard.
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