Sports: A triumphant return to ring for Worcester fighter Jose Antonio Rivera Above, Jose Antonio Rivera pummels Larry Smith in their fight at the Palladium in Worcester Friday night/elizabeth Brooks photos There were some questions surrounding Jose Antonio Rivera s return to a boxing ring for the first time in seven years. Were the reflexes sharp enough at 45 years old? There was bound to be ring rust, but how much? And was his head tough enough? OK, maybe not the last question, but, if there was any doubt, yes, the former three-time, two-division world champ s head is plenty tough enough. So tough, in fact, that the first opponent the man known as El Gallo fought since 2011 broke his right hand with a punch to his head.
Jose Antonio Rivera, right, lands a straight right punch. According to veteran Larry Smith, the injury happened in the fifth round of the scheduled eight-round middleweight bout at the Palladium in Worcester. Two rounds later, a little more than a minute in, Smith simply turned away from Rivera, walked toward his corner and took a knee. Rivera appeared to be well in control of the fight at that point, and won by technical knockout. I broke my hand hitting him in the head, said Smith, who entered the fight at 10-37-1. His last two losses, however, were unanimous decisions that came to opponents with a combined record of 57-10. I tip my hat to [Rivera]. I think he s great. He s a great fighter. He came out and executed his game plan.
Jose Antonio Rivera, left, moves in on Larry Smith. Rivera, now 42-6-1, and just one bout shy of 50 for his career, had to shake off seven years of ring rust. He acknowledged being a little slower. Conditioning, however, did not appear to be a factor. Rivera never seemed to be gasping for air and, even into the seventh of the schedule eight-round match, was still moving forward on Smith and landing hard combinations to the body and head. As the fight went on, Rivera looked more and more comfortable in the ring. He also never seemed hurt by any of Smith s punches. Rivera said he did not know until Smith told him after the fight that he had broken his hand on the former champ s head. That s a first, he said with a laugh. As for his first fight in seven years, Rivera said, I shook off a lot of rust. I told you [Smith] wasn t an easy opponent.
He was testing me early. Once he saw I was there for the long run, he finally gave in, and that s the most satisfying win for a fighter. It s like a chess match, a power of wills going against each other, and eventually someone s going to win. Jose Antonio Rivera up close with Larry Smith. How did he feel in his comeback after such a long layoff? A little rusty, a little slower, but just as tough, Rivera said. Always just as tough. Told he looked like he was starting to settle down around the fourth round, Rivera said, That s when I start warming up. I m a 12-round fighter, originally. You ve got to be ready for long run. Next up for Rivera is expected to be a November fight in Worcester. There has been talk of a possible title shot, but Rivera said he would likely fight one more time before that.
Rivera was fighting as part of a card called Homecoming, which featured several Worcester boxers, some fighting for the first time in their hometown. The event, co-promoted by Rivera s own Rivera Promotions Entertainment, which he runs with is son, A.J. Rivera, and Granite Chin Promotions, raised money for spina bifida. A.J. Rivera was born with the condition. He was originally scheduled to make his pro debut the same night as his father s comeback, but was not medically cleared. A large and vocal crowd was clearly on Rivera s side Friday night, and had the backs of other Worcester fighters as well, including Kendrick Ball Jr. and Khiary Gray, both making their Worcester debuts. They fight for Rhode Island promoter Jimmy Burchfield, who let them appear on Rivera s card. Both were coming off losses and both made giant statements on Friday, each scoring first-round TKOs in their respective bouts. Gray, now 16-4, stopped Antonio Chaves Fernandez of Brockton, 9-34, a little over two minutes into the first round of their middleweight clash with a nasty right hook. Fernandez engaged in a lengthy argument with the referee after the fight. It was the second straight time Gray beat Fernandez. The last win also came by TKO. I was thinking, he was talking a lot, saying he was going to be in better shape and ready for the fight, Gray said. I wanted to prove tonight he s still not ready for me. The big shot from Gray came moments after the crowd started chanting his name. He admitted the fan support was a factor. It motivated me because they believed in me, Gray said, adding his first Worcester fight was amazing. Ball, 10-1-2, dropped Fabian Valdez, 2-4, with a right-hand
shot to the body in the first round of their super middleweight fight. Valdez remained on his knees for several minutes after taking the hit. Ball had knocked Valdez once previously with a right hook to the face. Letting out several loud shouts of This is my town!, Ball climbed the ropes and basked in the cheers of fans after the win. When I first came out, there was a little pressure, Ball said. I took a deep breath [and went on with the fight]. It feels great, he said of the win, because the biggest concern was how would I feel after [my last] loss. I felt good. In other action, undefeated junior middleweight Wilfredo Pagan of Southbridge, 5-0, continued to impress at 38 years old with a third-round TKO of Engelberto Valenzuela, 11-15. Pagan stopped Valenzuela with a solid left uppercut to the chin that dropped him to his knees. The referee, patting Valenzuela on the back, stopped the fight. Junior lightweight Edwin Rosado of Worcester, 1-8-1, fighting for the first time after a lengthy layoff, came up short against Springfield s Joshua Orta, making his pro debut. Orta stopped Rosado in the third round by TKO, with Rosado suffering a nasty cut above his eye. Another Worcester fighter, Eslih Owusu, also made his pro debut. The recent Worcester Technical High School grad scored a unanimous decision over veteran Bryan Abraham, 6-31-2, and looked impressive in doing so. In the first fight of the night, Springfield s Jose Angel Ortiz, 5-13-1, won by TKO over Patrick Leal, 0-5, of Somerville.