A restructuring year for the All-Star Boxing family includes a fresh start for one its prospects.

Derrieck Cuevas is set to end a two-year layoff—almost to the day—as he headlines an ESPN Knockout show Friday evening from Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The 28-year-old from Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico faces streaking knockout artist Esneiker Correa (15-2-1, 13KOs) in a scheduled ten-round junior middleweight contest.

“We’re excited to see what the future brings for Derreick,” Felix ‘Tutico’ Zabala Jr., owner and president of All-Star Boxing told BoxingScene.com. “He had a setback in his last fight and had to fix some things in how he approaches the sport but he’s ready for a new start to his career.”

Cuevas (23-1-1, 15KOs) has been out of the ring since an upset six-round split decision defeat to Damian Ezequiel Bonneli on December 4, 2020. It was a considerable letdown as he’d become a considerable draw in the South Florida region, including four appearances on the long-running but now defunct Boxeo Telemundo series.

Correa has fought up and down the scale but has grown accustomed to ending things in a hurry. The 24-year-old Venezuelan has scored eight straight knockouts since a 2018 split decision defeat to Jackson Marinez.

Cuevas’ return coincides with a transitional period for All-Star Boxing after NBC Universal opted to not renew Boxeo Telemundo—the sport’s longest running televised series prior to 2022—after its final show last year. Zabala has since partnered with ESPN Knockout, which carried several of his past Telemundo cards as the Latin America feed and who has continued the relationship this year.

That journey leads to All Star Boxing branching out to the Atlanta market, working with Boswell Promotions—founded and headed by former heavyweight contender Cedric Boswell—to present this show. It’s the next step in All Star’s rebranding process—and the first in the rebuilding of its once promising welterweight prospect.

“This is a great opportunity for Cuevas,” noted Zabala. “We told him that it wouldn’t be an easy fight even for his first one back in the ring. It’s also a big chance for Correa (whom All Star Boxing also promotes), so both guys will have to rise to the occasion.”  

WEIGH-IN RESULTS

Derrieck Cuevas (23-1-1, 15KOs), Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, 151 pounds vs. Esneiker Correa (15-2-1, 13KOs), Miami via Los Teques, Venezuela, 147 pounds—10 rounds, junior middleweight

Chann Thonson (12-0, 9KOs), Brossard, Quebec, Canada, 135.1 pounds vs. Aello Mesquita (21-8, 19KOs), Guaruja, Brazil, 136 pounds —8 rounds, lightweight

Roddricus Lisvey (11-1-1, 8KOs), Atlanta, 154.3 pounds vs. Jorge Munguia (14-16, 6KOs), Houston via Tegucigalpa, Nicaragua, 154.3 pounds—6 rounds, junior middleweight

Justin Goodson (6-0, 6KOs), Duluth, Georgia, 125 pounds vs. Weusi Johnson (3-24-1, 0KOs), Wilmington, Delaware, 126 pounds—8 rounds, featherweight

Antonio Todd (13-6, 7KOs), Atlanta, 165 pounds vs. Larry Smith (13-51-2, 9KOs), Derry, New Hampshire, 160.2 pounds—6 rounds, middleweight

Darin Austin (8-0, 7KOs), Riverdale, Georgia, 176.6 pounds vs. Tavorus Teague (6-33-5, 3KOs), Bakersfield, California, 171 pounds—6 rounds, light heavyweight

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox