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Friday Night Fights and ShoBox are back tonight, with FNF starting on ESPN2 at 10 pm EDT and ShoBox live on Showtime at 11 pm EDT. We're combining it all right here, because the idea of ShoBox "spoilers" perplexes me.
On Friday Night Fights, Vernon Paris (27-1, 16 KO) returns against Manuel Perez (19-8-1, 4 KO) in the main event from Detroit. Paris, 25, fought on March 13, beating a scrub in Kalamazoo in his first fight back since being annihilated by Zab Judah in early 2012. Now at welterweight, Paris is young enough to still break through as a legitimate contender, but the Judah fight really exposed him. Perez, 28, is better than his record would indicate, but he's also the type of guy Paris should handle if he's going to really do anything.
In the lightweight co-feature, Cornelius Lock (20-6-1, 13 KO) will face Lonnie Smith (14-4-3, 10 KO).
Over on ShoBox from Miami, Oklahoma, Dierry Jean (24-0, 16 KO) will take on Cleotis "Mookie" Pendarvis (17-3-2, 6 KO) in an IBF junior welterweight eliminator, for a shot at the title currently held by Lamont Peterson. The middleweight co-feature pits John Thompson (11-0, 4 KO) against Giovany Rodriguez (8-0, 5 KO).