Cesar Juarez set to return on Margarito-Paez card

Cesar Juarez lost a grueling, close decision in December, falling short in a bid to win the WBO super bantamweight title against Nonito Donaire, raising his profile in defeat. Now, he's got his next fight set.

The 24-year-old Juarez (17-4, 13 KO) will return on March 5 in Mexico City, part of the card headlined by Antonio Margarito's comeback fight against Jorge Paez Jr. Juarez will be facing Alvin Bais (15-6-1, 4 KO), a 27-year-old Filipino who is 2-6-1 in his last nine fights.

"I learned a lot from the fight with Nonito Donaire and I feel I am just getting better," Juarez said. "This is the first step back to me becoming a world champion one day soon."

Juarez, who had won back-to-back fights over Cesar Seda and Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr before the tight loss to Donaire, could easily find himself back in a bigger fight later this year, as he has an exciting style and proved he can hang on the bigger stage.

The Margarito-Paez card will be televised in the United States by beIN Sports Español.