BoxRec

"I'm going to rise up for my people," and with this phrase in mind, Puerto Rican Olympian Felix "El Diamante" Verdejo begins his daily routine of training on course to the coveted encounter for his people.

The scheduled appointment in the ring will take place on Saturday, November 10 at the Mario 'Quijote' Morales Coliseum in Guaynabo.

At 25 years old, Verdejo, with a record of 23-1 and 15KO's, is looking to be reborn in the hands of an experienced staff of professionals who continue to polish this Puerto Rican diamond, convinced that he has a promising future after suffering his first career defeat earlier this year.

The opponent of Verdejo as part of this "Night of Champions DIRECTV" will be Mexican boxer Yardley Armenta Cruz from Los Mochis (24-11, 14KO's), who arrives directly from Sinaloa, Mexico.

Diamante Promotions and DIRECTV join together in a live broadcast called "Night of Champions."

Verdejo wants to achieve a statement win in front of his people.

"I want to taste the victory together with my people, my nation. I'm going to succeed in Puerto Rico," Verdejo said.

Puerto Rican prospect Felix Verdejo (24-1, 16 KOs) returned in style with a second round knockout win of Mexico's Yardley Armenta Cruz (24-12) at the Mario Quijote Morales Coliseum in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.

A solid left hook sent Cruz down to the canvas, and he was unable to regain his senses.

For Verdejo, who had not fought for eight months, it was the victory that he need to regain some of his confidence.

The last time Verdejo saw action was back in March, when he suffered a tenth round TKO defeat at the hands of Antonio Lozada at New York's Madison Square Garden.

Verdejo's future was unclear after tasting his first career loss. There was several lackluster performances in the past, and he lost a guaranteed world title shot after suffering injuries from a motorbike accident while hanging out with friends.

"After taking a loss, one gets more serious. You learn from a loss," said Verdejo. "Thank God and Puerto Rico for the support."

After suffering that defeat to Lozada, he made several changes to his team - like adding on veteran coach Evangelista Cotto, who took nephew Miguel Cotto to several world titles. And he also linked up with strength and conditioning trainer Memo Heredia.

The next move for Verdejo is unknown.

"We have nothing planned. We were waiting to get through this fight. Now we plan to sit down with the people at Top Rank," said the boxer's manager and head trainer Ricky Márquez.