By Jake Donovan

Jonathan Vidal hopes third time’s a charm as he heads back to the venue that has hosted his last two defeats. The super flyweight contender returns to the ring March 13, facing Ricardo Rodriguez at the A La Carte Pavilion in Tampa, Florida.

The bout headlines live on Telemundo. 

Vidal (18-3, 10KOs) fights for the first time since falling short in the Telemundo Super Flyweight Tournament finals last October. The 25-year old Boricua suffered a 4th round knockout at the hands of Daniel Lozano at the A La Carte, which also the site for his previous loss when he dropped a decision to Antonio ‘Tostado’ Garcia a year ago – almost to the day, come fight night. 

His 2014 campaign also came with its share of high notes. An 8th round knockout of Juan Kantun – Vidal’s lone win on the year – registered as the highest rated bout in the history of Boxeo Telemundo. The 2014 summer season premiere served as the centerpiece of what was a banner year for the series as a whole, outpacing all other Spanish-speaking networks in the ratings for its boxing content, and also topping ESPN2 Friday Night Fights in the summer ratings. 

Rodriguez (10-2, 3KOs) is coming off of a 10-round decision win over Edwin Rodriguez last October on the final Boxeo Telemundo card of the year. The 25-year old from Mexico City will fight in the United States for the fifth time in his past six starts. 

TICKET INFO
Doors open at 7:00 PM with the first bell at 8:00 PM. Six more fights round up the card. Telemundo Network will televise the main event at 11:35 PM EST live in the US. Claro Sports will televise to all of Latin America. 

VIP Tables and tickets are already on sale by calling (813) 309-9991. The event is being presented by Tuto Zabala, Jr., All Star Boxing, Inc in association with Shea Bailey Promotions. The A La Carte Event Pavillion is located at 4050 Dana Shores Dr. in Tampa, FL, Tel: (813) 831-5390.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox