‘It’s mine for the taking’: Richard Torrez Jr confident ahead of Sanchez clash

On May 23, at the Pyramids of Giza, Richard Torrez Jr faces Frank Sanchez in an IBF heavyweight eliminator on the Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven undercard. This could well be the fight of the night, with the winner moving on to bigger nights. The entire card will stream live on DAZN Pay-Per-View. Torrez Jr recently spoke to The Ring, where he previewed his upcoming showdown with Sanchez, and recognised the tactics Agit Kabayel implemented against Sanchez in 2024.

Richard Torrez Jr vs Frank Sanchez set for May 23 clash

Richard Torrez Jr (14-0, 12 KOs) and Frank Sanchez (25-1, 18 KOs) face off in an IBF heavyweight eliminator. A showdown with Oleksandr Usyk seems unlikely, as the Ukrainian has yet to mention Torrez Jr. or Sanchez as a potential future opponent.

Sanchez defeated Ramon Olivas Echeverria last time out, which was a much-needed win after his stoppage loss to Kabayel. Torrez Jr beat Tomas Salek in his most recent bout, which followed up his career-best win against Guido Vianello.

Looking ahead to his impending fight with Sanchez, Torrez Jr made it clear he intends to implement elements of Kabayel’s win against Sanchez:

“I think Frank’s a great fighter,” Torrez told The Ring. “I think being able to just compete with him and be on the same stage as him is really gonna showcase where I’m supposed to be at. And I think my style does well against Frank – my pressure, my tenacity and my grit toward the end of rounds is gonna be something that’s gonna be a little troubling for Frank. I think Frank is gonna do very well in the first three rounds, but we get through that, I think it’s mine for the taking.”

“Kabayel is an incredible fighter,” Torrez said. “He’s almost like the boogeyman of the division right now, you know? And so definitely being able to see how he did, his tactics against Frank, that’s something I’m gonna be looking at. But we are different fighters, we fight differently.

“I think I bring a similar type of pressure, but in a different manner a little bit. Mine’s a little bit more jittery. Mine’s a little bit more on the edge type of thing. Kabayel is more just asserting pressure that he keeps up the entire fight. But I think I can use a lot of the tactics Kabayel did in this fight as well and give it all that I’ve got.”

“I think Kabayel is an amazing body puncher, a body snatcher for sure,” said Torrez Jr. “But anyone is susceptible to body shots as well. And being able to see Frank has that huge stature that he has – I think he’s gotten bigger over the years, more muscular and a little bit more sturdy, and I think that’s gonna play into the body shots even more.

“Because it’s gonna be harder for him to block some of these shots, it’s gonna be hard for him to move as much as he wants to move and just to be able to go out there and just assert myself with just head and body shots, I think it’s gonna be a great way to finish off that fight.” 

Glory in Giza full fight card

• Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven, 12 rounds, for lineal/WBC heavyweight title
• Hamzah Sheeraz vs Alem Begic, 12 rounds, for vacant WBO super middleweight title
• Shakhram Giyasov vs Jack Catterall, 12 rounds, for vacant WBA “regular” welterweight title
• Frank Sanchez vs Richard Torrez Jr., 12 rounds, IBF heavyweight eliminator
• Mizuki Hiruta vs Mai Soliman, 10 rounds, for Hiruta’s WBO women’s super flyweight title
• Daniel Lapin vs Benjamin Mendes Tani, 10 rounds, light heavyweights
• Basem Mamdouh vs Jamar Talley, 6 rounds, cruiserweights
• Sultan Almohammed vs Dedy Imprax, 4 rounds, lightweights
• Mohamed Mabrouk Yehya vs Michael Kalyala, 4 rounds, middleweights
• Omar Hikal vs Ali Sserunkuma, 4 rounds, welterweights

Stay with Big Fight Weekend for coverage of the Glory in Giza card, including results and video highlights, and post-fight analysis.