ORLANDO, Fla. (September 3, 2024) – The road to professional boxing has been long and winding for Christian “Buddha” Rivera. Eighty pounds and eight years since he last fought, the former amateur standout will finally make his pro debut this Friday night at Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Rivera is matched in a four-round bout against Rommell Toran (1-1-1, 1 KO), contested at a 150-pound catchweight, live on a DAZN card presented by Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions and Amaury Piedra’s Boxlab Promotions.
“I’m excited & relaxed about my pro debut,” Rivera noted. “It’s been a long journey. You only have one pro debut, which is the goal of every young fighter, and I’m super excited because it’s been such a long wait.”
Born in Milwaukee, Rivera moved to Florida when he was six, and he developed into the No. 3-rated fighter in his Junior Olympics weight class. A dozen years ago, “Buddha” developed a strong working relationship with his coach, Ruben “Puchi” Colon, who remains his head trainer.
At 17, Rivera tore his labrum (right shoulder) which spiraled him into a funk resulting in him ballooning to 230 pounds. Three years ago, he walked into the Orlando Boxing Club, where he met the owner, Tony Blanco, who now serves as Christian’s adviser.
“I lost it after my injury,” Rivera explained. “I started training a few times to fight again, but it didn’t stick until I walked past a gym after work that I didn’t know existed, the Orlando Boxing Club. And I walked into the gym because I needed to get my life together. I finally stuck with it.
“I didn’t like boxing when I was young. I was a football player. My brother was a boxer and one day at the gym, he dropped a guy three times with body shots. I was always at the gym talking crap, but I wanted to learn to box after watching my brother do that. I talked to the coaches, and I was sparring a week later. I started boxing in 2010 and had about 50 amateur fights.”
Blanco, a trainer/promoter who relocated to Orlando from Hartford (CT) during Covid, told Rivera that if he gets in shape, He will Pro-Debut him.
“I noticed that he was overweight,” Blanco remembered. “He showed up eager and my interest grew. I told Christian to prove he wanted it (box), don’t tell me, show me and he did. A lot of fighters who get so big just give up. There was no giving up for Christian, who stayed determined. I’ve been impressed by his grit and determination, and I just started advising him. He’s going to be a great fighter.”
Rivera, 26, did fight in the one-round Team Combat League (TCL) matches for the Orlando Vipers this past season, winning four of six fights. TCL fights are not included on pro records. The goal is for Rivera to eventually fight as a 140-pound junior welterweight.
Losing 80 pounds and getting back in the ring after an eight-year hiatus sounds like a movie script; Christian Rivera starts living his dream this Friday night in Orlando.
