HARTFORD, קאַן. (נאָוועמבער 26, 2018) – Undefeated prospect ריטשארד “פּאָפּייע די סאַילאָר מענטש” ריוועראַ will take his act South this Friday night, when he fights Joshua Robertson אין אַ “stay busy” fight on the “Boxing Bash” קאָרט, presented by Christy Martin Promotions, at Centerstage@Noda in Charlotte, צפון קאראליינע.

ריוועראַ ווס. ראָבערצאָן, contested at a 185-pounds catchweight, will be co-promoted by Rivera’s promoter, Hartford Boxing Promotions.

ריוועראַ (8-0, 7 קאָס), the reigning Universal Boxing Federation (ובף) All America light heavyweight champion, is part of a trio that formed Hartford Boxing Promotions earlier this year, including Rivera’s manager/head trainer Tony Blanco and their partner, Michael Tran.

Fighting out of Hartford (קאָרט), Rivera has rejuvenated that market, whose rich boxing history dates back nearly a full century, headlined by International Hall of Famers Willie “Will o’ the Wisp” Pep און Christopher “Battling” Battalino. Other top-area boxers include world champion מאַרלאָן “מאַגיק מענטש” Starling, וועלט טיטל טשאַלאַנדזשערז Gaspar “El Indio” Ortega, און ישראל “גאַנץ” Cardona, און 1996 USA Olympic Boxing Team captain לאָראַנס ליים-Bey.

איצט, כאָטש, it’s Rivera’s time to shine. Arguably the hardest-hitting, most popular fighter in New England, Rivera hit Randy Campbell so hard this past April in New Hampshire that the force of his powerful right broke his opponent’s ankle only seconds into the contest.

Rivera has developed a strong fan-base throughout New England and now he’s bringing his “פּאַפּיי” persona to the South for the first time. “This is a good opportunity to expand my ‘Popeye’ brand,” Rivera said. “My last fight was in Mexico and this fight is in North Carolina. We’re on our way to going worldwide. I have a lot of family in North Carolina, Fayetteville and Raleigh, so I won’t be alone down there.

“איך גלויבן 2019 won’t be much different that my first year as a pro. I’ll be getting a lot of fights and I think that, by the end of next year, I’ll be fighting for something big. I stay in top shape in case a good opportunity comes around. I’m confident and I’ve really benefitted from being דזשאָו סמיט‘s sparring partner. This fight is about staying sharp because I don’t like having too much time off. The plan is to fight in a different part of the country, get a victory, and then remain in top shape.”

The wildly popular Rivera originally got his nickname because, when he was younger, his forearms were considerably larger than his biceps. Fighters in the gym jokingly teased Rivera about his enlarged forearms, calling him “פּאַפּיי,” and the nickname has stuck. איצט, Rivera showcases his Popeye persona in full, which has added many females and children to his growing fanbase, and he attributes his wins to eating his spinach to be good to the finish.

“Fighters today need to be more than talented,” added promoter Christy “The Coal Minder’s Daughter” מארטין, the two-division world champion who was a women’s boxing pioneer. I haven’t seen him (ריוועראַ) fight yet, but I’ve been impressed by what I’ve heard about him. He’s a great addition to our card. Rivera is a big guy with power and everybody wants to see big guys. But he’s also smart, marketing wise, by capitalizing on ‘Popeye.’ He gets it.”

Blanco connected with Martin through social media and, as he explained, things went smoothly from there to place Rivera on that card. “We want to keep Richard busy and then have a breakout year in 2019,” Blanco noted. “The beauty of Richard is that he stays busy and works hard, sometimes when he’s training by himself. Boxing is his job and I believe he’s destined for greatness.”

ראָבערצאָן (7-11, 2 קאָס), פון לינטשבורג, ווירזשיניע, has fought the likes of unified world junior middleweight champion דזשאַררעטט כערד, former USBA middleweight title holder לויס אַריאַס, and ex- WBC FECARBOX welterweight titlist טאמעס לאַמאַננאַ.

טיקקעץ זענען פּרייסט בייַ $70.00 (רינגסידע) און $35.00 (general admission and available to purchase at the venue.

דאָאָרס עפענען בייַ 6 פּ.ם. ET with the first bout scheduled to start at 7 פּ.ם. און.

כל פייץ און פייטערז זענען אונטערטעניק צו טוישן.