LOS ANGELES (AP) — Andre Ward will fight Edwin Rodriguez on Nov. 16 in Ontario, Calif., returning to the ring after a 14-month absence.
Ward announced the bout with his fellow unbeaten 168-pounder on Friday.
Ward (26-0, 13 KOs) hasn’t fought since stopping Chad Dawson on Sept. 8, 2012. The 2004 Olympic gold medalist cancelled a bout with Kelly Pavlik in January to undergo surgery on his right shoulder.
Ward already has beaten most of the world’s top super middleweights, but Rodriguez (24-0, 16 KOs) emerged as a contender with two victories this year in Monaco, including an impressive first-round stoppage of Denis Grachev in July.
The Dominican-born Rodriguez fights out of Worcester, Mass.
HBO will televise the fight. Ward works as a boxing commentator for the network.
