Richard Rivera faces Badou Jack on August 20

Richard Rivera faces Badou Jack on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk vs. Anthony Joshua 2.

On August 20, live from the Jeddah Superdome in Saudi Arabia, the most anticipated rematch in recent years takes place as unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (19-0) takes on the former champion Anthony Joshua (24-2). Although the U.S streaming information has not been released, across the pond in the U.K, the fight will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office.

The card is stacked with some interesting matchups and one that involves Richard “Popeye the Sailor Man” Rivera (21-0) going up against Badou “The Ripper” Jack (26-3-3). Rivera is an unknown to the masses as he has been doing most of his work within the club circuit underneath the Star Boxing Banner. He has an opportunity to change all that if he defeats a guy like Jack which will move him up the ladder of the light heavyweight rankings.

The 31-year-old Rivera was born and raised in East Hartford, CT. He was brought to a gym called “The San Juan Center” and took a passion for boxing along with various other sports. But like many men and women who take up boxing as a sport, the upbringing is usually filled with life obstacles that are difficult to deal with. Rivera told FanSided, “We didn’t necessarily grow up wealthy. We struggled a lot of the time but grew up with some great values. My father had a lot of pride and was a tough man. Sometimes he would try to get his point across a little tougher than usual. I was the youngest of all my brothers and sisters and always felt I had a lot to prove. I have one of those typical Hartford, CT kind of lifestyles where you have to grow up rough and tough. Nothing is going to be really handed to you, and you have to earn what’s yours. And if you say you want to be the best, then you have to prove it.”

Oleksandr Usyk vs. Anthony Joshua 2 will be streamed in the U.K. on Sky Sports.

Seeing that he had some challenges growing up, the trend continued after he finished High School. Rivera fell into what he called “bad ways” while trying to make ends meat and figure out the thing called life. Rivera saw himself as a “knucklehead” who constantly got into trouble. But eventually, that lifestyle got old, and one day he decided that he had enough and something needed to change.

“I remember telling them that I was done with the drinking, smoking, and the acting up. They asked me, ‘what are you going to do?’ I told them I was going to become a boxer and take it seriously. I have trained all of my life, and I’ve had it in my family for a long time. It’s something that I am not only good at but also passionate about. It went up from there,” said Rivera. After that conversation, Rivera was all in with the sweet science and was able to get in about 50 amateur fights which included some “smokers.” Although he started late, Rivera didn’t feel rushed and thought he had a good amateur experience.

Then came his debut in January 2017 and Rivera was full of nerves that he called “a crockpot full of emotions.” Hearing a fighter’s thoughts on their debut is always interesting because it defines whether boxing is something they see as a career or for a short period of time. Rivera told FanSided, “When they called my name, and I walked out to the ring, the crowd was roaring. In my Pro Debut, I sold over 250 tickets. I had a good following, and it was there that I realized, ‘wow, people are really supporting me.’ When I heard the crowd roaring, I was like, ‘yes, this is my time,’ and when it was over, I was like, ‘oh no, I need this again. I want this forever.”

After getting the jitters of his pro debut out of the way, Rivera started to make a name for himself, and along the way, he took on the character of Popeye the Sailor Man when entering the ring for fights and doing interviews. This wasn’t by accident, and its story is quite interesting.

Rivera told FanSided, “I remember being in school, my senior year, where I just sprouted out of nowhere. I was a very little guy. My brother is 6’8”, 300 pounds solid. I was like 5’3,” and it was so bad. Although I was very small, my hands and forearms were huge. One day, my friends were just cuttin on me, and they were saying, ‘this dude looks like Popeye.’ Then at the boxing gym, we were all training, and someone said, ‘you look like Popeye.’ I was like, cool, I can run with that, and from there on out, people at the gym would call me Popeye, and it stuck. From there, I got a hat (resembling Popeyes), and at every fight, someone would give me a badge and pins. It was a name given to me, and I’m living up to it.”

Rivera will have to eat all of the spinach available to have that Popeye strength in Saudi Arabia, as he has a tall task ahead of him with Jack. When it was first announced, many weren’t aware of who Rivera was, so his promoter, Star Boxing, created the opportunity. Rivera tried to call out Jack for the last two years but was unsuccessful in securing the fight, so when his promoter came with the offer, he took it, and it was the perfect opportunity for him, given who Jack is and what he has done in his career.

Joe Deguardia, who is the CEO of Star Boxing, had this to say about the fight “Richie (Rivera) has been asking to fight (Badou) Jack for some time now. We are pleased to provide Richie with his desired fight on one of the biggest cards in boxing this year. A win against a former world champ can change Richie’s life, and we look forward to watching him fulfill his dreams on August 20 in Saudi Arabia.”

While getting ready for this fight, Rivera didn’t need to do anything different outside his regular training, as his preparations for each fight were like a championship bout. “If you look at Badou (Jack), he is a boxer, and I’m an athlete. They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but I’m here to show the new tricks. I’m really excited for this upcoming fight,” said the motivated, light heavyweight contender.

Rivera continued, “I don’t expect anything less than a seasoned veteran. He has proven himself time and time again. He is somebody that would keep somebody like me extremely honest. He is a guy that isn’t going to let up and isn’t going to make it an easy fight for me. I’m ready to go out there and take what I deserve.” Rivera doesn’t lack confidence going into this fight and feels like this is his moment to shine.

Before boarding the plane headed to the Middle East, Rivera wanted to ensure he left a message for those tuning in on August 20 who are and aren’t familiar with him. Rivera told FanSided, “I don’t think they (Rivera’s fans) are going to expect anything less than what they already know. If they have been following me, this is just the flower that is blossoming. For those that have never seen me before, they are in for a treat. I’m about to put on a show, and they will enjoy it. When they see me on that platform, they are going to say, ‘’Who is this guy?’ we need more Popeye!