The middleweight division turns its lonely eyes to you.

One of the sport’s glamour divisions has been devoid of stars ever since the likes of Triple-G, Canelo Alvarez and Jermall Charlo dominated the weight class many moons ago.

Nowadays, the division’s stench couldn’t be cured with a Marvin Hagler deodorant stick. After all, the not-so-marvelous current crop of middleweight crown-holders includes a batting lineup that feels more Triple-A than anything close to resembling Murderers’ Row.

The belt-holding players include WBC champion Carlos Adames, the clear front-runner as the most accomplished fighter in the division. Then there is the 43-year-old Erislandy Lara, who has essentially defended his WBA title once a year against inferior opposition.

The IBF and WBO titles recently changed hands after the former unified titleholder, Janibek Alimkhanuly, exited the division. Alimkhanuly tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug in November, soon before he was supposed to face Lara on December 6.

Aaron McKenna picked up the vacant IBF belt this month by comfortably beating Etinosa Oliha. Denzel Bentley got elevated last month from his WBO interim title status to the full crown despite losing to Alimkhanuly four years ago.

The Ring title is vacant, but Adames is ranked No. 1. Sitting right behind him at No. 2 is Yoenli Hernandez, labeled by many as the division’s home-run hitter.

The heralded Hernandez (10-0, 9 KOs) steps up to the plate to take another swing in a wide-open weight class on Saturday night, when he’ll face Francisco Daniel Veron (17-1-1, 10 KOs). The 10-round middleweight matchup will provide chief support for the PBC on DAZN and Prime Video PPV event headlined by Rolando Romero’s first defense of his WBA welterweight title against Teofimo Lopez.

If you ask Hernandez, who’s ranked No. 1 by the WBA and WBO and No. 2 by the WBC, he believes there’s no other pugilist on the planet who’s better than him at 160 pounds.

“I’m the best middleweight in the world right now,” Hernandez said during training camp. “My hunger for glory, my desire to be champion and win every title, that’s something I don’t see in the rest of the division.”

After showcasing his ever-increasing aura in brutal beatdowns of Kyrone Davis and Terrell Gausha last time out in March, the only way the 29-year-old power-punching Cuban might be able to lure notable opponents is if he allows them to bring a bat to the ring.

Before billing Hernandez as a world beater, however, one must take a deeper look at the division. Several other upstarts are ranked in The Ring’s top 10 at middleweight, including Troy Isley, Amari Jones, Jesus Ramos and Jahi Tucker.

Fringe contenders Vito Mielnicki Jr. and Austin Williams meet in a make-or-break bout on September 4, while Ramos, the WBC interim champ, faces the mostly unknown and undefeated Kazakh contender, Meiirim Nursultanov, on September 19. The WBC has already ruled that Adames must face the winner of Ramos-Nursultanov and cannot have any other fights in between. Jones, meanwhile, is McKenna’s mandatory challenger.

“Everyone seems to arrive, get the title, and settle – not me,” Hernandez said. “I’m coming to get the title, keep it, and fight the best. Lately, nobody in my weight class wants to face the best.”

Hernandez’s scathing remarks ring true in a division that’s been missing meaningful matchups. The weight class can very well regain its luster and get deeper – and hotter – once the influx of well-known 154-pounders make their move in the division. But that may take longer than a New York minute.

For now, Hernandez has a chance to make a statement should he viciously maul Veron, just like he’s promising.

“I’m going all out, and I’m coming to win," Hernandez said. “I’m going to steal the show by giving Veron the beating of the year to show fans that I am the most complete fighter at 160 pounds.”

Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram: @ManoukAkopyan.