Justin Pauldo’s redemption tour is scheduled to begin Saturday night with a non-televised fight in Atlantic City.

The Houston-based lightweight wants to fight as often as possible in the coming months to start making up for lost time. Pauldo (14-1, 7 KOs, 1 NC) hasn’t boxed in more than two years, in part because he missed weight for what was supposed to be a televised fight against hard-hitting contender Rolando Romero in January 2021.

Pauldo, 28, made weight Friday for an eight-round, 138-pound fight versus Venezuelan southpaw Yeifer Valencia (6-1, 5 KOs), the co-feature of a Rising Stars Promotions card at Showboat Hotel.

“It feels great to finally get back in the ring,” Pauldo told krikya360.com. “It’s been a long time coming, since I’ve been out this whole two years. That’s always a frustrating thing, when you’re out the ring. I’m looking to just go in there and display my talent. I should be much more active now, especially with the management company I’ve got behind me now [Fighters First Management]. So, I’ve got the right situation and the right skill set. I’ve got everything it takes to make some noise and be at the top of the 135-pound division.”

Pauldo, a native of Orlando, was in prime position to make a statement in the lightweight division when he agreed to meet Romero in the co-feature of a “Showtime Championship Boxing” tripleheader nearly two years ago at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.

Pauldo came in almost five pounds overweight for that bout. Romero was willing to fight Pauldo at a 140-pound limit, but Mike Mazzulli, director for the Mohegan Tribe Department of Athletic Regulation, ultimately removed Pauldo from their bout because he failed a pre-fight physical.

North Las Vegas’ Romero, who was 12-0 at that time, instead stopped Philadelphia’s Avery Sparrow in the seventh round the next night.

“That had a lot to do with me taking the fight kind of on short notice,” Pauldo said. “But, at the same time, I should’ve been a lot more disciplined between fights, and then I wouldn’t have had the weight situation. I got down to the last few pounds and I just couldn’t make it. It caused some medical issues to go along with that, so I wasn’t fit to fight. But, at the same time, I’ve grown from there and I understand that I have to be disciplined year-round. That’s the main thing.”

Pauldo, who is trained by Ronnie Shields, is working without a promoter, at least temporarily, which should free him up to take any opportunity that is presented to him once he sheds some ring rust.

“Whoever the top guys are in the lightweight division, I wanna fight all of them,” Pauldo said. “I got the skills to beat any guy in the division.”

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