Topeka resident Reyes "Rey" Sanchez (6-0, 2KO) will play the biggest game of his career at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.

As part of the main card, Sanchez will face Nico Ali Walsh (2-0, 2 KO), grandson of the legendary Muhammad Ali, in the four-round televised opener. This will be the first of the four games, and the lightweight competition between the three world champions Vasily Lomachenko and former world champion Richard Comey ended that night.

For Sanchez, he started the sport later than most people at the age of 16, and after the pandemic, it was a long journey, but since he picked up a pair of gloves, he has been in prepare for.

Sanchez started trying boxing at the age of 16. He played two amateur matches in the first two months and won 1-1. Then he got a job and slowly stopped going to the gym.

He didn't take up gloves for six years, when he was 22 years old. To work, he, his wife Wendy and their youngest son David moved to Topeka from Dodge City, where he grew up.

"I like boxing, training and actual fighting," Sanchez said on Tuesday, leaving for New York on Wednesday. "I don't know why I didn't pick it up earlier. I'm always attracted to it. I'm glad I finally returned to it."

Now 29 years old, with two children, daughters Eliana and Valentina, Sanchez said that the original plan was to gain some work experience and move elsewhere. However, they ultimately like this area.

After working as a welder in the night shift during his first year at Caterpillar and having no time to participate in extracurricular activities, he was transferred to a day shift.

"I had extra time during the day, and on the first day I found dangerous fire boxing," Sanchez said. "I just walked into the gym and it started like this. I walked in and never left."

John Smith has always been Sanchez's coach. Smith said he let the boxers pass through the wringer to see if they could withstand the heat.

"I'm not wasting my time. If I can let you down, you won't come back and waste my time," Smith said. "If I can't let you down, you might be a potential customer, and that's what happened. He just kept going, man.

"Until today, he has never given me a cross-eyed, a swear word or a'Damn it, coach, we must do it again?' Never."

Sanchez participated in the amateur circuit for about two and a half years.

In the amateur tour, wearing a headgear and thicker gloves, the points system is different.

Although there are no prerequisites for calling himself a boxing professional, Sanchez said he wants to respect the sport and win it.

In his spare time, he won most of the games. His best performance was winning the Kansas City Golden Glove Championship in 2015 and finishing second at the 2016 Circus World Championship. That is the largest amateur championship in the world.

Smith said that he has brought 20 boxers to the Circus World Championships, but he has never emerged from the first or second round.

"He got me into the finals," Smith said of Sanchez. "I'm proud, and I still do."

Sanchez knew he was ready to become a professional player.

"I have played against many people who have won national and regional championships many times," Sanchez said. "I learned a lot from fighting with them. I learned a few things from each of them, which helped me a lot in my career."

As a professional player, Sanchez has faced stronger opponents twice in 2016, twice in 2017, once in 2019, and once in 2021.

"We want him to be a real fighter," said Smith of Sanchez. "That is our goal. To do this, you have to be real. You can throw a can of tomato at a person six times, or you can get better over time."

Throughout the summer, Danger Fire began sending clips of Sanchez to Top Rank, the leader of a boxing promotion that set up fights.

"Top Rank sent us to Mexico because we hadn't fought a war before COVID," Smith said. "They want us to be relevant. It's not easy, but we won the battle and this is how we are here."

After winning that October battle, Top Rank immediately asked Danger Fire about a potential match.

Unable to enter the gym, Sanchez exercised in the basement of his home, which was a temporary gym he was building.

"As long as you work hard, it doesn't matter where you exercise," Sanchez said. "We don't have any fancy gyms, and now we have Great Life. It has everything you need, and we have been working hard ever since."

Sanchez and Smith also exercise at Seaman High School, running in the stadium and exercising on the track.

Last Saturday, when the gym where they were going to exercise was closed, they went to the Capitol, where they exercised on the stairs for two hours.

"This is not a gym, but a group of people with dreams," Smith added.

But as things stopped all over the world, there was an idea to walk away.

Sanchez was in school at the time, taking an online course to obtain a bachelor's degree, with the goal of obtaining a bachelor's degree. He knew he had to choose between finishing his studies or learning boxing.

At the age of 29, he said that he knew the boxing window was about to close and he could return to school at any time. After talking with Wendy, he chose boxing.

"I will be left,'What if?' If I don't pursue it," Sanchez said. "I want to set an example not only for my children, but also for everyone-especially my children-so that they will pursue their dreams no matter what. If I don't do this myself, I will Can't expect them to do this."

Sanchez pointed out the support from his family.

"It means the whole world to me," he said. "I want to make them proud and do my best every time, win or lose or draw."

Smith said it was difficult to stick to this route, and the only reason he returned to the boxing ring was because of Sanchez.

Sanchez resumed training at the beginning of the year. When he received a text message from Reid about seven weeks ago, he was at work, telling him that they had fought with Marsh.

"I took time off, and I am grateful that my job allows me to do this," Sanchez said. "This is the first time I do such a full-time job and live like a professional boxer. Oh, man, I can get used to this."

At work, he will get up at 3:30 in the morning and arrive at Wamego before 5 o’clock. After a 10-hour shift, he will drive to Topeka’s gym, train for 90 minutes, go home at about 6 pm, have dinner, and then prepare to go to bed. Do it again.

"There is not much time to do anything," Sanchez said. "It pays off. These are the sacrifices you have to make."

Two exercises per day are allowed during off-duty hours. In the morning, he would go for a run, swim or ride a bicycle, and then boxing in the evening.

The opportunity to represent his family, Danger Fire and Kansas on a big stage, this is the crystallization of his blood, sweat and tears for this sport.

"Since I started, I have been waiting for this moment," Sanchez said. "I'm not sure if it will happen, but seven years later, some of my dreams are being realized."

Smith said he was proud of Sanchez.

"Riding with this kid means a lot," Smith said. "He deserves it."

Sanchez said that only the opportunity to participate in the game is not enough.

"I want to win on the big stage and move on, not just play once," he said. "I want to do good things and win people's hearts, and they want to see me back. Representing Kansas means a lot to me."

Contact Seth Kinker at skinker@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @SethKinker