SAN JUAN, P.R. – An injury to the left hand of Puerto Rico’s Felix Verdejo suffered during training forced him to cancel his February 28 bout in Tampa, Florida. The remaining fights on the card will still take place at “The Corral” in the Sun Dome at the University of South Florida. It will also still air at 11p ET/PT on “Solo Boxeo Tecate” on the Spanish-language network UniMas.

“I was very happy because I was going to fight for the first time in Tampa, and I know that a lot of people want to see me fight there,” said Verdejo (16-0, 12 KO’s), who’d been scheduled to face Mexico’s Marco Antonio “El Kua Kua” Lopez (24-5, 15 KO’s) in the main event.

He continued: “I’ll still be in Tampa on February 28 to support my teammates [Christopher “Pitufo” Diaz and Francisco “Pechuga” Vargas], who will be fighting on the card. I know that I’ll be fighting in Tampa this year, if God permits it.”

An MRI ordered by Dr. Gaspar R Garcia showed Verdejo suffers from swelling of the metacarpal ligament tendon in his left hand. There are no fractures or tears, but Verdejo will be out of action from three to four weeks without any contact, which is why the Lopez fight was canceled.

“Unfortunately, this unexpected situation happened and we decided to take all the precautions necessary to avoid future injuries,” said Ricky Marquez, Verdejo’s trainer and manager.

"Hand injuries are unfortunately part of the temporary roadblocks that all fighters suffer regardless of their level. Felix is no different in that aspect. We hope to re-schedule him as soon as his injury is properly healed,” said Carl Moretti, Vice President of Top Rank.

Unbeaten prospect Julian “Hammer Hands” Rodriguez (8-0, 7 KO’s) and former Olympic medalist Esquiva Falcao (6-0, 4 KO’s) will still be in action.

Presented by Top Rank in association with All Star Boxing Tickets, tickets to the card can be purchased via www.Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster outlets, the Sun Bowl box office, or charged by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

Unimas will televise the card in the United States.