Felix Verdejo: Puerto Rico's next great boxing superstar?

NEW YORK - First there was Felix Trinidad. Then there was Miguel Cotto. Is Felix Verdejo the next in a long line of Puerto Rican heroes?

The budding star makes his HBO debut Saturday against fellow undefeated fighter Ivan Najera at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade, a rite of passage for any boxer from the island who hopes to cross over.

The lightweight's blend of speed, power and deft footwork make him one of the best prospects in the sport. His magnetic smile and affable disposition combine to form the recipe for a mainstream star regardless of nationality. Now, Verdejo (17-0, 13 KOs) needs to start proving it in the ring against tougher opposition.

"It's a very important step in my career and this fight on HBO, it's a transition in my career and it's going to be a great show," Verdejo told Paste BN Sports through camp member Jason Marquez. " … It's incredible for people to compare me to such big stars, and it just motivates me to work harder every time in the gym."

One of those stars is the aforementioned "Tito" Trinidad, the Hall of Fame boxer who is a legend in their homeland. The former three-division champion is a mentor to Verdejo and has groomed the 22-year-old to follow in his footsteps. They even share the same million-dollar smile.

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"He supports me a lot, him and his family, he called me before we left Puerto Rico to congratulate me and wish me luck for this fight and we talk some times," Verdejo said. "When I was growing up, Tito was huge in Puerto Rico and a friend of the family was a cousin of Tito's and took me to meet him."

"El Diamante" got into boxing at the age of 9 after repeated scraps with fellow youngsters - scraps Verdejo says he always won - prompted his grandfather to bring him to the local gym. Verdejo was a member of a "poor, humble family with a lot of wishing to get ahead in life." His father couldn't work due to bouts with epilepsy and his mother was as an office assistant.

Verdejo spent his days playing baseball - his favorite sport to this day - when he wasn't at the gym. He still watches a ton of Major League Baseball, and this week had the opportunity to meet his favorite player, New York Yankees outfielder and fellow Puerto Rican Carlos Beltran.

"Everyone likes my style of fighting, but also I'm just a humble, simply guy that likes to work hard," Verdejo said when asked what attracts fans to him. He's attempting to learn English and flashed his limited command of the language at Thursday's news conference, saying "I want to give you good fight. That's all my English for now."

As long as Verdejo continues to give good fights, that will be the only talking he'll need to do to continue his ascent. His promoter, Bob Arum, believes he indeed has the next big thing from Puerto Rico.

"I think he can be sensational," Arum told Paste BN Sports. "I think he can be more popular than either (Miguel) Cotto or (Felix) Trinidad with Puerto Ricans. Trinidad is his idol and his mentor so he emulates Trinidad and he acts a lot like Trinidad with the big smile and everything.

"I think he has all the goods as a fighter and he's going to be absolutely a huge, huge attraction. And eventually the biggest fight out there that I can make a couple of years from now is (Vasyl) Lomachenko against Verdejo in the lightweight division. They had a helluva fight in the amateurs."

All Verdejo has to do is continue to win, and, of course, flash his magnetic smile.