Jessie Vargas to face Aaron Herrera on December 15

Former WBO welterweight titleholder Jessie Vargas will make his Premier Boxing Champions debut on December 15, when he returns to the ring after a 13-month absence to face Aaron Herrera.

The bout will be a PBC on FS1 main event.

Vargas (27-2, 10 KO) last fought in November 2016, when he lost his title to Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas in an HBO pay-per-view main event. The previous March, he’d beaten Sadam Ali for the vacant belt, which came nine months after Vargas lost to Tim Bradley.

Now 28, Vargas will look to rebuild his career in a new stint under the PBC banner, after leaving Top Rank.

Herrera (33-7-1, 22 KO) is a “young veteran,” a 28-year-old who’s lost the step-up fights in his career, but he’s tough, knows what he’s doing in the ring, and makes sense as a return opponent for someone PBC will want to get into the title mix in the welterweight division.

The show has a couple more notable names set for action, too.

Welterweight Diego Chaves (26-2-1, 22 KO) will be back for a 10-round fight with Jamal James (21-1, 9 KO).

Chaves, 31, has won three straight tune-up type fights in 2016-17, following a run where over four fights in 2013-14, he lost to Keith Thurman and Brandon Rios, and should have lost to Tim Bradley, but was given a very controversial draw.

James, 29, beat Jo Jo Dan in his last outing, after a loss to Yordenis Ugas in August 2016.

Junior welterweights John Molina Jr (29-7, 23 KO) and Ivan Redkach (20-3-1, 16 KO) will also do battle. The 34-year-old Molina was last seen in December 2016 in a losing effort to Terence Crawford. Redkach, 31, is a former prospect who is 2-3-1 in his last six fights.

The show will also feature a prospect battle at 126 pounds between Stephen Fulton (11-0, 5 KO) and Adam Lopez (8-0, 3 KO).