Francisco "The Wizard" Palacios will have a tough task at hand when he comes off a two year layoff to battle heavy-handed Epifanio Mendoza September 20 at the Mela Room in Orlando, FL.
Originally from Barranquilla, Colombia and currently based in Miami, FL, Mendoza has 39 victories, 34 of which came by way of knockout. In 2011, he scored a major upset when he knocked out highly regarded and undefeated Olympian Carlos Negron inside of three rounds. Prior to that, he scored first round knockouts over unbeatens Tukonbo Olajaide and Ruben Williams. A true ring warrior, Mendoza's also battled world champions Chad Dawson, Jeff Lacy and Beibut Shumenov along with BJ Flores, Lateef Kayode, Rakim Chakhiev, Umberto Savigne, Amir Mansour, Sullivan Barrera, Yunier Dorticos and Jordan Shimmell.
"Epifanio Mendoza is a very dangerous opponent and some are questioning why I'm taking on such a risky guy when I've been out of the ring for two years," said Palacios, an Orlando resident who is now training under the watchful eye of John Scully. "My goal is to win a cruiserweight championship next year and facing a tough challenge in my comeback fight should show everybody how serious I am about making it to the top."
Palacios, 21-2 (13 KO's), and Mendoza meet for the USBU cruiserweight belt in the eight round main event of World Wide Elite Entertainment's "The Comeback".
Promoted by World Wide Elite Entertainment, tickets to "The Comeback" are $25 for general admission, $45 to sit ringside and $500 for VIP tables of 6 with bottle service included. They're on sale by calling 561-702-7068. All ticketholders over the age of 21 are invited to a special post-fight party hosted by DJ Erick at the Mela Room, located at 9677 S. Orange Blossom Trail in Orlando.
Fans can follow and interact with Francisco on Twitter @Wizardpalacios.