Boxing
Dan Rafael, ESPN Senior Writer 6y

Dejan Zlaticanin to face Hevinson Herrera in 'Broadway Boxing' co-feature

Boxing

Former lightweight world titleholder Dejan Zlaticanin, who lost his belt earlier this year, is on the comeback trail.

Zlaticanin is scheduled to face journeyman Hevinson Herrera in an eight-round fight at a contract weight of 139 pounds in the co-feature of promoter Lou DiBella's "Broadway Boxing" card on Dec. 14 at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill in New York.

Zlaticanin (22-1, 15 KOs), a 33-year-old southpaw, became the first world titleholder from Montenegro when he knocked out Franklin Mamani in the third round to win a vacant 135-pound world title in June 2016. However, Zlaticanin lost the belt in his first defense on Jan. 28 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas when Mikey Garcia brutally knocked him out in the third round.

"He got caught flush and a little time off was good for him," DiBella told ESPN. "He's not going in against King Kong. I want him to get back in the ring and feel good, and to get in a few rounds and shake it off. He fought a great fighter that night and got caught. Bang! It happens. Dejan hit a bump in the road. He got nailed, got knocked out and lost his title. But I still think he's a good fighter who makes good fights and who is very strong.

"I think there will be big fights for him at 135 and 140 pounds if he comes back strong. This one is to end the year on a positive note and come back next year and get back into the mix quickly. There's going to be a lot of action 135 and 140 and he's the kind of guy who can stay at 135 or do the right fight at 140."

Herrera (22-13-1, 16 KOs), 33, of Colombia, is coming off a seventh-round knockout loss in Colombia in January. That defeat ended a four-fight winning streak against sub-.500 opponents.

Junior middleweight Patrick Day (14-2-1, 6 KOs), 25, of Freeport, New York, will meet Wesley Tucker (14-1, 8 KOs), a 30-year-old southpaw from Toledo, Ohio, in the 10-round main event.

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