Kelly Pavlik will defend his world middleweight crown against Miguel Espino next month.

The fight is set to take place on Saturday, December 19 at Youngstown State University

Pavlik returns home to headline an all-action two-country world championship double-header.

"It's great to be back training and it's great to be defending my titles in Youngstown," said Pavlik, who has been sidelined for much of the year by various problems from a nagging staph infection in his right hand.

"Jack Loew and I are taking nothing for granted which is why we decided to set up training in Las Vegas.

"We are 110% focused on Espino and the best way to avoid the distractions of the holidays is to isolate ourselves in the desert. I'm not going to allow Espino to be the Grinch who took my world title.

"I'm very grateful for this opportunity and I intend to make the most of it," said Espino.

"All fighters dream of the chance to fight for a world title and now I am living that dream.

"I know I am the underdog in this fight but that is what is inspiring me. No sacrifice will be too large in preparing for this fight. If Pavlik takes me lightly he'll be making a big mistake."

Pavlik boasts a record of 35-1 (31 KOs), he knocked out Jose Luis Zertuche (19-3-2, 14 KOs) and Edison Miranda (28-1, 24 KOs), in world title elimination bouts, earning him the right to become Jermain Taylor's mandatory challenger.

His year-end finale, a seventh-round stoppage of the previously undefeated Taylor, to claim the world middleweight championship, was selected as the "Fight of the Year" by the Boxing Writers Association of America and extended Pavlik's two-year victory by knockout streak to nine bouts.

Pavlik defeated Taylor handily in their rematch in February 2008 to solidify his claim as one of boxing's top pound for pound fighters.

He has since successfully defended the title twice, both by knockout, against Gary Lockett and Marco Antonio Rubio, the No1 contenders and mandatory challengers for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) and the World Boxing Council (WBC), respectively.

Espino (20-2-1, 9 KOs), from North Hollywood, enters this fight riding a four-year, 11-bout winning streak -- the last four by knockout.

He returns to the ring after one of his career-best victories, a sixth-round TKO of former two-time world champion Alejandro Garcia in his last fight.