Michel Rivera Again Impressive Saturday Night

Saturday night’s PBC/Showtime Boxing card in Minnesota was mainly about the U.S. Debut of Australian star Jr. Middleweight, Tim Tszyu. And, while he delivered with a sold decision win over veteran Terrell Gausha, a rising Lightweight on the undercard, Michel Rivera, continues to get deserved attention, too.

In the co-main event at the Amory, Rivera now 23-0, 14 KOs earned a unanimous decision victory over the previously unbeaten Joseph Adorno, 14-1-2, 12 KOs, in their 135 lb. showdown.

Following his UD over Joseph Adorno, @zarzabox02 has his 👀 on one thing. And that's a title shot 🥊🏆#RiveraAdorno #TszyuGausha pic.twitter.com/Cn6HxSShY8

— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) March 27, 2022

The bout was tense throughout, with neither fighter able to fully control the action or significantly hurt their opponent. The 24 year old Dominican Rivera’s jab was the key to his success, as he landed 72 to Adorno’s just 30 across the 10 rounds.

“That was four months of practicing in camp,” said Rivera. “I feel so good. I was looking for the knockout, but that undefeated guy is tough. I know him. He’s a power-puncher, but the aggression that ‘Ali’ has is too much. I have a good corner. A great trainer in Herman Caicedo and also Jukka Toivola. But I have talent and I made the sacrifice,” Rivera said post fight

Adorno looked to load up on power hooks in hopes of slowing down Rivera, but was unable to find the right punch to fully turn the tide in his favor. Rivera appeared to make a key adjustment during the fight, sliding close to Adorno as he loaded up for that hook, smothering the incoming assault and dulling its impact.

Rivera was consistent with the jab, throwing at least 30 in every round, on his way to a 104 to 67 overall edge in total punches landed. He also held Adorno to a 20% connect rate on his 330 punches and out landed his opponent in all but one round. After 10 rounds, all three judges saw the fight the same, scoring the action 97-93 in favor of Rivera.

“I thought it was a closer fight,” said Adorno afterwards. “I thought I won seven rounds. All he did was throw jabs. What the judges didn’t take into account was my activity and productivity. If you look at the fight closely, you will see that I hit him more times than he hit me.”

“Everybody now knows me,” said Rivera. “I say that I am the reincarnation of Muhammad Ali because I work so hard. I’m definitely ready for a world title shot.”

Saturday night was the fifth time that Rivera has appeared on a PBC card since October of 2020 and it’s the fourth time that he’s defeated a previously unbeaten fighter. Clearly, his star is on the rise and we’ll wait to see if the fighter who flashes the trunks of “The Greatest” Muhammad Ali will get a shot to headline later this year, too.