Wilfredo Rivera (right) went head-to-head with WBC welterweight titleholder Oscar De La Hoya on December 6, 1997. (Photo by Jon Levy/AFP via Getty Images)
Wilfredo Rivera was a mainstay in the white-hot welterweight division in the mid-1990s-early 2000s. During that time, the talented Puerto Rican challenged for a world title on three occasions against two superstars – Pernell Whitaker (twice) and Oscar De La Hoya – and fought several other big names of the era, including Shane Mosley and Fernando Vargas.
Rivera was born on May 4, 1969 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. His early years were particularly difficult.
“My mother raised us alone, and there was no ASUME (state-sponsored child support). My father was not obligated to give us (assistance) and we went hungry,” Rivera told The Ring. “To make matters worse, my mother is schizophrenic, and when they put her away, they split us into different houses and I didn’t hear from my brother or sister again until Mom came out to get us. I suffered from abuse; everyone gave me eyelashes to make me respect them, and on top of that they punished us and barely gave us food.”
The youngster found boxing by accident when he was 8 years old.
“My father took me and my brother to live in the house of an older brother (of his) which was right next to a boxing gym,” he recalled. “As I was playing around, I realized that there was a noise, like volleys of shots, and out of curiosity I went to see what it was. I entered – there were men hitting a big bag, others jumping rope, others lifting weights. A world unknown to me and apparently nice.
“I started going every day, and coach Don Eusebio saw my interest in learning and being part of his team of boxers. I had my first fight with him and I won.”
Rivera (left) defeated former 140-pound titleholder Lonnie Smith in 1993 en route to winning a welterweight tournament at the Forum in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Holly Stein/Allsport via Getty Images)
Rivera had a successful amateur career, winning national titles from youth to senior level and representing Puerto Rico in four international tournaments, winning a bronze and a gold medal.
He won a tournament to qualify for the Seoul Olympics in 1988. However, the Puerto Rican Boxing Federation chose another boxer to compete in his weight class.
Rivera, who went 51-6 as an amateur, turned professional at 18 as a junior lightweight, scoring a fourth-round stoppage over fellow debutant Ivan Centeno in April 1988. He won five more fights and was then matched against future lightweight titleholder Leavander Johnson. . At the end of four rounds, the fight was decided as a draw.
Rivera moved up in weight as his body matured. He maintained his undefeated record and impressively won three fights against Ariel Chaves (RTD 6), former junior welterweight title holder Lonnie Smith (UD 10) and veteran fighter Stephan Johnson (UD 10) en route to the top spot in the Budweiser 147- pounds to achieve. tournament at the Forum in Inglewood, California, in 1993.
Pernell Whitaker made a big impression on Rivera during their two fights. (Photo by Al Bello / Allsport via Getty Images)
“I won the welterweight tournament which was supposed to give me the opportunity to fight for the title within or before six months, and it wasn’t until 1996 that I got it,” he revealed. He says he was also supposed to receive $50,000 and a Grand Marquis car, but those rewards were also elusive. “They only gave me $5,000 and I never saw the car. Some charlatans!”
Car or not, Rivera has the no. 1 ranked fighter in the IBF, WBA and WBC. The opportunity to become a world champion in one of boxing’s showpiece divisions arrived in the form of WBC title shot and pound-for-pound no. 1 Pernell Whitaker. They would face off in April 1996 on the tropical Caribbean island of Saint Martin, with the fight broadcast on HBO.
“Saint Martin, it was a beautiful adventure, its charming beaches and pleasant weather. Very similar to the town of Loiza in Puerto Rico, where we also have beaches and even rivers. It was an unforgettable experience.”
Although the extremely talented Whitaker was the pre-fight favorite, Rivera had youth on his side and boxed the fight of his life.
“You’ll notice that I dominated him in his box because I did the same thing to him that he did to all of his opponents – fight him – and it frustrated him,” said Rivera, who had a tough match of 12 rounds lost. decision. “(He) headbutted (me) maliciously and caused a deep wound on my forehead. I was bleeding from the second round until the end. The referee bothered me throughout the fight and even deducted a point from me.”
Whitaker claimed that a case of the flu had hampered his performance, and due to the proximity of the first fight, they met in a direct rematch in Miami in September 1996.
“I was the aggressor and I (was) pushing Whitaker backwards all the time, and not because he was boxing. Even when he fought me, my body shots hurt him and he started complaining,” Rivera said. “I knocked him to the ground three times because I felt strong, even though the referee Frank Santore Jr. many (wrongly) not (rendered a score) for two of the three tees, in obvious favoritism and following instructions from their promotion. bosses.
“In the last few rounds, Whitaker already looked tired and sore, very different from the Whitaker he always looked after his fights with the others. If the referee had counted even one more fall from the three I gave him, it would have been a draw on one card and a win for me on the other two. Still, the decision was only by a few points on the three judges’ scorecards.”
Rivera’s fight against De La Hoya was his third attempt at a world title. (Photo by Tom Mihalek/AFP via Getty Images)
Rivera licked his wounds and bounced back with four wins over the next 15 months to capture a third world title against Whitaker’s conqueror, undefeated four-division titleholder Oscar De La Hoya, in Atlantic City.
“I lost because of a lack of good preparation with Oscar De La Hoya,” he said. “There was never any certainty that this fight would happen until three weeks before the fight … and I started training very late. I was in the middle of a divorce; my ex-wife’s lawyers already asked for half! It didn’t allow me to prepare like when I faced Whitaker.
“When the boxers put the wraps on their hands, a trainer representing each corner should as a general rule be present to see the opponent’s wrapping. The De La Hoya team was present when they put the wraps on me, but one of my trainers was not allowed to see Oscar De La Hoya’s wraps! No one said or did anything.
“He cut my right eyebrow with the first blow he could give me. I got up and fought him and won rounds five, six and seven on all three scorecards, but in the eighth Oscar threw a flurry of punches, didn’t hit me with any and referee Joe Cortez stopped it for no reason. Honestly, if I was prepared like Whitaker, I would have knocked him out!”
Rivera bounced back in his next fight to win and best veteran Carlos Palomino (UD 10) before his next big opportunity came against Shane Mosley in September 1999.
“I (didn’t) have the preparation (I had) for Whitaker,” Rivera said. “I went through an unfair divorce, for which I was stripped of all the money earned, as the court freezes the accounts until the case is resolved to divide the shared assets. The divorce took four years to resolve the shared assets. For that reason, I agreed to fight for only $125,000.”
Rivera was ahead on one scorecard when he was stopped by Mosley in the 10th round.
Rivera did well on the scorecards against Shane Mosley, but was stopped in the 10th round. (Photo by Donald Miralle / Allsport via Getty Images)
He wasn’t done though, winning two fights before meeting former junior middleweight titleholder Fernando Vargas on two weeks notice in May 2001.
Although Rivera dropped Vargas early in the fight, “El Feroz” bounced back and stopped him in the sixth round.
The Vargas loss marked the home stretch of Rivera’s career, and he fought for the last time in July 2005. He retired with a record of 35-7-1 (21 knockouts).
“I retired and worked driving trucks; I worked as a security guard in warehouses,” he said. “My ex-wife took all my money and that’s why I was homeless. I ended up sleeping in my car and staying.
“The Honorable Mayor Ramón Luis Rivera Cruz of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, called me to give me the huge opportunity to work on what I am most passionate about and what I know best, which is being a boxing coach.”
Rivera, now 55, has five children, all of whom live in the US. He lives in Bayamon. He graciously took time to talk to The Ring about the best he’s fought in 10 key categories.
Fans of Sweet Pea won’t be surprised by his choices…
DEAR JOB
Pernell Whitaker: “The jab is the most important blow for every boxer. Whitaker was a southpaw and used his jabs very smoothly to hit very hard.”
BEST DEFENSE
Whitaker: “His defense was based on the ability to move around the ring, as well as good movement at the waist. A boxer who can move, punch and dodge at the same time is a tough boxer to beat, and that’s what Pernell Whitaker did. This gave him time to dodge his opponents’ blows and immediately counterattack, making himself untouchable. The guy was a defensive master.”
BEST FOOTWORK
Whitaker: “Whitaker was quick with his hands and feet and moved with ease and speed in the ring. He played with most boxers, including the great Mexican champion Julio Cesar Chavez. The footwork was incredible, the angles he would create through movement.”
FASTEST HANDS
Whitaker: “Whitaker was very fast. His speed was something else, and so were the angles he would use. And when I tried to counterattack, he would be right on top again.”
SMARTEST
Whitaker : “I’ve been boxing since I was 8 years old, and when I got in there with Whitaker, I saw a guy who knew just as much as I did, if not more. In his movements, counter attack, the ring generalship, his defense, speed… I was very impressed by the pedigree; the guy was an all-around general. I have never experienced anyone in the ring so in harmony with everything.”
STRONGEST
Shane Mosley: “Mosley was very strong. I hit him with stuff and he kept coming forward. I just felt he was the strongest all-round.”
BEST KNOW
Whitaker: “I went 24 rounds with that guy and hit him with everything. Sure, he went down, but he got back up. Despite the fact (that Felix) Trinidad knocked him to the ground; he could not complete it with knockout. That’s why Whitaker gets credit for having a jaw of steel.”
BIGGEST PUNCHER
Cassius Clay Horne (April 1995, Las Vegas): “When he hit me with a left hand, I was almost out on my feet. The pain wouldn’t go away even after I knocked him out in the eighth round. If I remember correctly, I felt the pain in my face, which got better when I finally got to Puerto Rico!”
BEST GOAT SKILLS
Whitaker: “Skill wise he was incredible. His ring generalship he would dance while boxing. He’s a lefty, but he’ll move the opposite way and throw a jab and still hit you. He body-slammed you and climbed upstairs.”
BEST OVERALL
Whitaker: “He was the very best. His conditioning was incredible, he was a lefty, he was quick, the agility, had a chin and a never-give-up attitude. Whitaker was a super champion, just like Sugar Ray Leonard was.”
Mauricio Gonzalez helped translate and make this feature possible. The Ring appreciates his assistance.
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at (email protected).
