Saúl “El Matador” Rivera is a boxer from Puebla and an architecture student at the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP).
He has managed to represent the state and has added various triumphs for his sports effort, which he combines with his student life.
His greatest wish is to be a world boxing champion, but without neglecting his title as an architect. In fact, both parties have combined them with discipline, effort, and some sacrifices, since they must dedicate the necessary time.
As an amateur boxer he participated in 22 fights, of which he won 21 by knockout. Now, as a professional, he will face Andrés Galindo at the BUAP Arena, on Saturday, April 30, where the Asia-Pacific champion Hironobu Matsunaga and the experienced Jhony, “Vaquero”, Navarrete will also fight.
The boxer’s taste for this sport began when he was a child, because he used to visit gyms with his father, who practiced it and took him to exercise while playing. Later, he began to watch boxers on television and imitated them.
“It also helped that my dad was a professional boxer and had his photos; All of this lit a spark in me for this sport and when I got into the ring for the first time to spar, I liked the sensation and that adrenaline so much that little by little it won me over and when I least thought about it I was already very committed” , expresses the BUAP student.
Meanwhile, about his inspiration in boxing is Carlos Zárate, considered one of the great knockouts of all time and who is also his godfather, something he considers an honor.
And he adds that, in the “flyweight” category, he would like to face “El Gallo Estrada”, another boxer that he admires and respects.
“My ideal night will be when I get to fight for the world title; there I would like to see my people and the university community supporting me, having them, even though sometimes I am far away, has been very gratifying because they put their hopes in me”, says the boxer.
Likewise, he assures that outside the ring a great attraction for art, hence his decision to study Architecture. Well, he even sees it as another opportunity to succeed, it’s part of the philosophy of life that sport has instilled in him: “to be the best in each of the things you do, in sports, in study and in life, as human being”.
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In his taste for art, the inclination he feels for historical buildings stands out, for those great constructions that shape other times, cultures and wonders of the world.
In this sense, Saúl Rivera also refers to the cultural richness of his place of origin, Puebla, where the expressions of the baroque and cultural fusion have various manifestations, among them the talavera technique, one of his favorites, with which he will seek to merge his construction designs.
Translate done by: Luba Michelle García Vega
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