Michel Rivera Medina, commonly known as "La Zarza Ali", is a Dominican professional boxer who held the IBF–USBA lightweight title in 2020.
Professional career Rivera made his professional debut on 19 March 2016, just 9 days after his 18th birthday, scoring a third-round technical knockout (TKO) victory against Gregory Estevez at the Gimnasio Pedro Cruz in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.
After compiling a record of 15–0 (10 KOs), he made his U.S. debut in June 2019, defeating then-unbeaten René Téllez Girón via eight-round unanimous decision (UD) at the WinnaVegas Casino Resort in Sloan, Iowa.
His next fight came against Jose Luis Gallegos in September. At the pre-fight weigh in, Gallegos failed to weigh inside the 136 lbs weight limit and was subsequently fined $1600 by the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC), with half going to Rivera and the other half to the CSAC. Rivera won the bout via fifth-round TKO after referee Marcos Rosales called a halt to the contest before the commencement of the sixth round. After the fight, Rivera visited Gallegos in his dressing room to return the $800 he gained from the fine.
He next faced Fidel Maldonado Jr for the vacant WBC Continental Americas lightweight title on 1 February 2020, at the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. After knocking his opponent to the canvas in the tenth round, Rivera followed up with a sustained attack which prompted referee Keith Hughes to call a halt to the contest, handing Rivera his first regional title via tenth-round TKO.
Rivera won his second regional title in his next bout, defeating Ladarius Miller via ten-round UD on 31 October, capturing the vacant IBF–USBA lightweight title at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Rivera fought thrice in 2021. In his first fight of the year, on 27 February 2021, Rivera faced Anthony Mercado Raices. He won the fight by a late eight-round knockout. Five months later, on 3 July 2021, Rivera knocked out Jon Fernandez in the eight round of a twelve-round bout. Rivera finished the year with a unanimous decision win against Jose Matias Romero on 30 October 2021.
Rivera defeated Joseph Adorno via ten-round UD on 26 March 2022 at the Minneapolis Armory in Minneapolis, USA.
Michel Rivera suffered the first defeat of his professional career, losing by unanimous decision to Frank Martin on 17 Dec, 2022 at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Chelsea Ballroom in Las Vegas, USA. Rivera who dressed like his idol Muhammad Ali, was floored in round 7 by Frank Martin en route to the defeat. Rivera rebounded on 25 Nov 2023, defeating former IBF light welterweight champion Sergey Lipinets by unanimous decision.
Professional boxing record
ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes28Win27-1Nester Luna AlonsoUD10Sep 12, 2025Dominican Republic27Win26–1 Hugo Alberto Roldan10Jul 27, 2024 26Win25–1 Sergey LipinetsUD10Nov 25, 2023 25Loss24–1 Frank MartinUD12Dec 17, 2022 24Win24–0 Jerry PerezUD8Oct 15, 2022 23Win23–0 Joseph AdornoUD10Mar 26, 2022 22Win22–0 Jose Matias RomeroUD10Oct 30, 2021 21Win21–0 Jon FernandezKO8 (12), Jul 3, 2021 20Win20–0 Anthony Mercado RaicesKO8 (8), Feb 27, 2021 19Win19–0 Ladarius MillerUD10Oct 31, 2020 18Win18–0 Fidel MaldonadoTKO10 (10), Feb 1, 2020 17Win17–0 Jose Gallegos5 (8), Sep 21, 2019 16Win16–0 Juan Rene TellezUD8Jun 26, 2019 15Win15–0 Carlos Daniel CordobaTKO2 (8), Jan 26, 2019 14Win14–0 Yankiel LeónTKO8 (10), Jul 16, 2018 13Win13–0 Jampier OsesTKO7 (8), Feb 24, 2018 12Win12–0 Manuel BotisUD8Dec 22, 2017 11Win11–0 Luis Ernesto JoseTKO2 (8)Sep 14, 2017 10Win10–0 Luis RosaTKO1 (6), Jun 24, 2017 9Win9–0 Marco AcevedoUD10May 22, 2017 8Win8–0 Luis NinoTKO4 (8), Dec 16, 2016 7Win7–0 Juan Rafael PolancoUD6Sep 23, 2016 6Win6–0 Juan Carlos ContrerasUD4Jun 11, 2016 5Win5–0 Aneudy MesaTKO1 (6), May 26, 2016 4Win4–0 Dionisio RodriguezTKO2 (4), Apr 17, 2016 3Win3–0 Jose Vidal Sanchez4Apr 9, 2016 2Win2–0 Eduardo JuanTKO2 (4), Apr 2, 2016 1Win1–0 Gregory Estevez3 (4), Mar 19, 2016
References