By Lem Satterfield

Fabian Maidana will headline for the first time in pursuit of his third straight knockout on January 12 against two-time title challenger Jaider Parra in a junior welterweight battle at Estadio Polideportivo indoor arena, in Mar del Plata, of his native Argentina.

“It’s a big arena for about 10,000 people and it’s placed in a city that is normally full of people vacationing,” said Maidana, the 26-year-old younger brother of former WBA welterweight champion Marcos “El Chino” Maidana.

“It’s located right at the beach, and this time of year, it’s the summer time, so it’s like a tradition for people to spend some weeks there. Argentineans and also South Americans are kind of noisy and cheerful fans so I look forward to it. I hope to fight in front of a crowded arena.”

 “TNT” Maidana (16-0, 12 KOs) weighed 141 ½ pounds for his last fight in July, a one-knockdown, ninth-round stoppage of former title challenger Andrey Klimov at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

An accurate boxer-puncher, “TNT” stopped Klimov for the first time. Klimov had previously gone the distance in a unanimous decision loss to two-time champion Jose Pedraza in June 2015.

Maidana’s victory was his second in 2018 and second straight on American soil, his first being a third-round stoppage of Justin Savi at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. on the April undercard of a draw between four-division champion Adrien Broner and former two-division titleholder Jessie Vargas at 144 pounds.

“This is going to be the first time I’m in the main event, which makes it so much more thrilling,” said Maidana, whose hometown of Margarita is in the state of Santa Fe, some 700 miles from Mar del Plata.

“I am very excited to be back fighting in front of my compatriots. Provided that God allows me to win, I hope to be fighting back in America pretty soon.”

The 36-year-old Parra (32-2, 21 KOs) has a nine-fight winning streak capped by a second-round TKO of winless Jackson Torres in May.

Parra was stopped in the second round by Takashi Uchiyama in a 130-pound title fight in May 2013 and earned two of his next three wins by knockout before falling by sixth round KO to Darlys Perez in a 135-pound title bout in October 2014.

Parra poses the toughest challenge for Maidana beyond Klimov and former 140-pound interim champion Johan Perez, the man he defeated by 10-round unanimous decision in November 2017.

“Every fight is always tough. I’ve faced a former champion like Johan Perez, who was a very tough opponent,” said Maidana. “But so was my last foe, Klimov, who had never been knocked out before. But Parra is a very experienced, skillful fighter, so it’s gonna be difficult. I have to do my best against him.”

Maidana’s taller (5-foot-9-to-5-foot-6) and has a longer reach (72-to-69) than Parra, whose dimensions are similar to those of Marcos, a 35-year-old who stands 5-foot-7with whom “TNT” he has logged many rounds of instructive and intense sparring in the past.

“Parra’s a slick fighter who knows how to fight on the inside and also moves around well. I’ll probably have to chase him down around the ring, but I always try to work not thinking of the KO as I’m a boxer rather than a KO artist,” said Maidana, who, nevertheless, runs his strategies past Marcos.

“Marcos has a lot of experience on his shoulders and offers advice, even though we have completely different boxing styles. It’s always very important to be able to rely on a person like Marcos – especially if it’s your brother.”