(Photo courtesy of @boxxer Instagram)
British Cruiserweight, Richard Riakporhe once again displayed incredible punch power in an IBF title eliminator against Fabio Turchi after forcing a stoppage from the opposition corner just 1 minute and 41 seconds into round number 2.
Richard Riakporhe quickly showed the Italian that he would be a difficult opponent in the first round after maintaining a jab, keeping his opponent from getting any shots away.
Richard turned up the pressure from the start of the second round, throwing right-handed shots in the midst of the continuous jabs, before unleashing a powerful left-handed punch into the body of Turchi, prompting him to drop to the canvas.
Although Turchi showed a lot of determination to return to his feet before referee, Steve Gray reached the count of 10, it was the corner who ran into the ring with the towel after seeing their fighter still visibly hurt from the shot.
Riakporhe expressed his confidence in his ability whilst speaking to Sky Sports Boxing after the fight. “I landed a good shot and I’m building up the reputation that I’m now the body snatcher.
“I keep telling everyone, I’m the fighter. I’ve had four fights in nine months and want to go out again later this year”
BOXXER promotor, Ben Shalom reiterated and backed up Riakporhe’s words by saying,
“No-one wants to get in the ring with Richard Riakporhe. I was asked who is the biggest puncher I’ve seen and I said Richard and they laughed.
“We have a superstar. We want to see him develop in the right way and I’m so happy for him”
Shalom went on to say that he believes his fighter can fight for a world title this year and states that ‘Richard Riakporhe will be a World Champion.’
This win maintains the Britons unbeaten boxing record and extends it to 15 wins and 0 losses, with 11 of those wins coming by way of knockout which sets up a shot at World Championship gold, with a few options for Richard and Ben Shalom to choose from.
Should he take the IBF route, he would face current Champion, Mairis Briedis, who is scheduled to fight the Australian Jai Opetaia in July. Briedis is a proven fighter from Latvia with a record of 28 wins, 20 knockouts and only 1 loss which came at the hands of the then WBC and WBO Cruiserweight Champion, Oleksandr Usyk.
Alternatively, Riakporhe could push for an all-British showdown with 29-year-old WBO Champion, Lawrence Okolie who is 18(14)-0-0 whose last bout was against Michal Cieslak in February where he won by unanimous decision.
A fight with WBC Champion Ilunga Makabu is also still on the cards despite the Congolese boxer only recently returning from a 2-year break from the ring, beating South African Thabiso Mchunu in a split decision contest.
Whichever the decision, it is clear that Richard Riakporhe will prove to be a tough test for anyone in the Cruiserweight division, making it an exciting time for Boxing fans.
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