Antonio DeMarco vs Miguel Roman Set For March 17 in Mexico

Antonio DeMarco will make the first defense of his WBC lightweight title on March 17 in Los Mochis, Mexico, facing veteran brawler Miguel Roman, reports Miguel Rivera. Televisa has the TV rights.

DeMarco (26-2-1, 19 KO) pulled off a comeback upset of Jorge Linares on October 15 in Los Angeles, storming back from a huge deficit on the scorecards to brutally knock out the Venezuelan in the 11th round. It was the true highlight of the Hopkins vs Dawson card, and regrettably was seen by very few people on that bomb of a PPV effort.

Roman (37-9, 28 KO) is a tough, exciting fighter who makes for fun fights. He'll be a big underdog here, and deservedly so: At 5'5", he'll be giving away five inches of height, and he's really more of a featherweight than a lightweight, and not good enough to move up well in weight, probably.

He's also never beaten any of his better opponents, never had a night where his determination was the deciding factor against a superior fighter. I suppose that could still happen, but it's becoming less and less likely. He's still young, but he's an old 26 because he's taken a lot of shots in a lot of fights, and he doesn't get knocked out.

After this fight, if he is successful, DeMarco will have to rematch Linares.