Joseph Adorno’s defeat to Michel Rivera was precisely the type of setback the previously unbeaten boxer believes he needed to remind him that he must work harder if he is going to succeed at the highest level.

The Allentown, Pennsylvania native was overconfident before the Dominican Republic’s Rivera out-pointed him in a 10-round fight Showtime televised March 26 from The Armory in Minneapolis. The 23-year-old Adorno (16-1-2, 14 KOs) has knocked out two overmatched opponents with losing records since his loss to Rivera (23-0, 14 KOs), but the junior welterweight views his 10-round bout against Hugo Alberto Roldan on Friday night as an opportunity to earn his way back toward a more meaningful fight in the 140-pound division.

Showtime will air Adorno-Roldan as the main event of a “ShoBox: The New Generation” tripleheader from Bally’s Event Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey (9 p.m. ET). Roldan is undefeated (21-0-1, 7 KOs), but Adorno represents a significant step up in class for the 29-year-old Argentinean.

“This fight is definitely an opportunity to reset my career a bit,” Adorno said. “After the loss, I look at this as my get-back. I’m determined to make up for what happened on that night [against Rivera]. I’m extremely happy that I got the call and I can’t wait for the bell to ring. I’m so excited for this fight I don’t even know how to explain it.”

Adorno gladly replaced stablemate Shinard Bunch (19-1-1, 16 KOs) as Roldan’s opponent last month once Bunch withdrew for undisclosed reasons.

“I do think Adorno is a tougher fighter than the first opponent I was supposed to face,” Roldan said in reference to Bunch. “But it’s also a good opportunity to show everyone what I can do against a fighter of this caliber. … I know my opponent is a good puncher, but I also love to fight, and I will follow my strategy and adapt to what the fighter in front of me is doing. I will work around whatever becomes available in the course of the fight.”

A refocused Adorno, who had several problems making weight when he campaigned as a lightweight, wants to show that he is a different fighter from the man Rivera beat by the same margin, 97-93, on all three scorecards.

“I learned a lot in that fight against Rivera,” Adorno said. “I learned that I need to be a little bit more active. I learned that the undefeated record isn’t everything. Everybody wants to protect it, so you want to fight to protect that ‘0.’ But I think I needed that loss.

“I needed that loss to focus more and learn that you’re not going to be perfect at all times, so you have to keep working hard. The harder you work, the better you get. Before that loss, I thought I was unbeatable. It helped me. It opened up my eyes a lot. I’m thankful for that loss. It woke me up and is the reason I’m working the way I am now.”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for krikya360.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.