By Nate Beutel Niagara Gazette The Niagara Gazette Sun Aug 28, 2011, 11:57 PM EDT
NIAGARA FALLS — Niagara Falls welterweight Nick “Hands of Gold” Casal hopes a return to television can help get him back in the title picture.
Casal officially signed a contract this weekend to fight unbeaten Michael “Slick” Anderson on Sept. 30 as a part of ShoBox: The New Generation the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, Calif. It will air at 11 p.m. on Showtime. Casal’s last appearance on TV came in Jan. 2009.
“This is a very good opportunity for me,” Casal said. “It’s good for exposure. I’ve taken a little time off since a TKO in my last fight and now I’m ready to get back in the picture for a title.”
Casal, 25, is 21-4-1 with 16 knockouts, including his last victory, a third-round TKO of Martin Tucker at the Fairgrounds Event Center in April. Casal, who turned professional in 2004, suffered an injury to his right hand during the win and was forced to take a month or so off, causing the lengthy layoff.
“It was just a tendon and I’m back at 100 percent now,” he said.
Anderson, 30, is 11-0-1 with nine knockouts. Just a few weeks back, Anderson scored a first-round KO of Bernardo Guereca. His professional career began in 2007.
“There is no tape on him and I don’t know much,” Casal said of his opponent. “He’s relatively new and his record is kind of padded up with guys he should’ve beaten, so it will be interesting.”
Casal plans to continue training at his father’s gym, Casal’s Boxing Club, in the Falls before setting up camp on the West Coast for the two weeks leading up to the fight. While there, he hopes to get in some good sparring with fellow professionals.
“It’s all about strength and speed,” he said.
Ideally, Casal would like to come out of the fight healthy and with an additional win on his record. He hopes to fight two more times in 2011.
“This fight is going to put be back in contention for a regional title and then after a few more wins, the big one hopefully,” Casal said. “It’s right there for me.”
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