Abdullah Mason will make the first defense of his lightweight title in front of a novel but favorable boxing audience.

Mason will get his first true hometown date when he defends against former titleholder Joe Cordina on July 4 at Cleveland State’s Wolstein Center, promoter Top Rank announced Tuesday in a press conference at Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The card will be broadcast on TNT and DAZN in the U.S. and on DAZN worldwide as part of their inaugural “The Fight” monthly live boxing series.

The 22-year-old Mason, 20-0 (17 KOs), is boxing’s youngest current male belt holder. He won a 12-round unanimous decision over then-unbeaten Sam Noakes in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this past November. Previously, Mason fought in Westlake (a Cleveland suburb), but the Cordina fight will mark his first in “The Land.”

“Top Rank’s had a long history of building guys in their hometown,” said Carl Moretti, Top Rank’s vice president of boxing operations. “There’s nothing better.”

Cleveland arguably hasn’t hosted a fight card of this magnitude since 1975, when Chuck Wepner famously knocked down Muhammad Ali, which ultimately ended in an Ali stoppage win – but also served as Sylvester Stallone’s inspiration for the “Rocky” franchise.

Also in the Mason-Cordina event will be featherweight titleholder Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington’s defense against Rene Palacios in the co-feature; Cleveland native and U.S. Olympian Tiger Johnson facing Christopher Guerrero at welterweight; Deric “Scooter” Davis taking on Carlos Ramos at lightweight; and two of Mason’s brothers – lightweight Abdurrahman Mason and junior lightweight Ibrahim Mason – in separate fights on the undercard.

“July 4 is the homecoming that my brothers and I have been anticipating since before we turned pro,” Abdullah Mason said. “I’m ready to experience all of my city’s support in one building, and I have an appetite for smoke.”

Cordina, 19-1 (9 KOs), is a 34-year-old from Cardiff, Wales, coming off wins over Gabriel Flores Jnr and Jaret Gonzalez Quiroz since falling in a stoppage loss to Anthony Cacace last May that cost him his junior lightweight strap. The win over Flores – in Flores’ hometown of Stockton, California – is particularly notable under the circumstances.

“This is a massive test for me, but it’s one that I’m more than capable of coming through with flying colors,” Cordina said. “Abdullah Mason is a very good fighter, and he’s going to do big things in boxing, but I’m going to mess up the homecoming. I’m looking to come over, rip the title away from him, and take it back to the U.K. It’s a massive fight for boxing, and I’m looking to become a three-time two-weight world champion.”