Rising lightweight star Felix Verdejo, the 2014 ESPN.com prospect of the year who was on the verge of a world title shot in November, was hospitalized on Sunday afternoon and in stable condition after being involved in a motorcycle accident in his native Puerto Rico.
According to Puerto Rican police, Verdejo was taken to a hospital in the Rio Piedras area of San Juan.
"He's being treated for head trauma and lacerations to the face, head and his whole left arm, and he is in stable condition," Carl Moretti of Top Rank, Verdejo's promoter, told ESPN.com. "They have him sedated.
"We are waiting for further details on his condition. There is no reason to speculate on anything. Our prayers are with him, and we are hoping he makes a speedy recovery."
In his last fight, the 23-year-old Verdejo (22-0, 15 KOs), a 2012 Olympian, scored a fifth-round knockout of Juan Jose Martinez in an HBO-televised bout at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York on June 11, the eve of the annual Puerto Rican Day parade in the city.
He was looking at a possible 135-pound world title shot in his next fight against England's Terry Flanagan (31-0, 12 KOs) in a mandatory bout. The camps, which were ordered to begin negotiations last week, have until later this month to make a deal or a purse bid will be ordered, although that would seem to be up in the air following the accident.
Moretti said Top Rank and Flanagan promoter Frank Warren have been in the midst of negotiating the bout, which Top Rank was eyeing as the cofeature for the HBO PPV card headlined by Manny Pacquiao's return from a brief retirement on Nov. 5 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
"We were getting closer to the fight with Flanagan for Nov. 5," Moretti said. "But at this point who knows what will happen. We are more concerned with Verdejo and his recovery."
