By Alfredo Jaime Gomez, notifight.com

Former champion Abner Mares (25-0-1, 13KOs) is looking for his third world championship. After winning titles at bantamweight and super bantamweight, Mares has set his sights on a the WBC's featherweight crown. A few weeks ago Mares vacated WBC title at super bantamweight and announced his plan to move up in weight to 126-pounds.

According to Mares' manager, Frank Espinoza, Abner will debut at featherweight in mid-April on U.S. soil against a yet to be determined opponent.

The WBC title is owned by Daniel Ponce De Leon (44-4, 35KOs), who Espinoza also manages. Ponce De Leon defends the title against undefeated Puerto Rican Jayson Velez (20-0, 15KOs) on March 2 in New York City.

"The green belt (WBC) is the biggest and I want another one. At this weight there are some very good opponents and I want the best, so we're train hard. The guy to beat at super bantamweight was Nonito Donaire. I challenged him several times and he always rejected me, so I decided to drop my WBC title. I want the winner of Daniel Ponce De Leon and Jayson Velez. Mexicans have great fights," Mares said.