Welterweight prospect Nicklaus Flaz tops the bill on Saturday at the Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee, Florida, when he faces the more experienced Christian Gomez.
Puerto Rico's Flaz is 13-2 with nine stoppage wins and will be fighting in a scheduled 10-rounder, and for the third consecutive time on ProBox TV.
Flaz, ever confident, is hoping to make an impression and is ready to take his career to the next level.
“Everything – physically, mentally – and my mindset, I have a strong mindset for what I want to accomplish in the ring,” he said of why he felt he was ready for Mexico's Gomez. “I’ve just got to keep putting the work in and working hard in the gym. I’m fighting hard fights every time I go in there and I’ve got to go in there, do my job, and I’ll show I belong on top.”
The seasoned Gomez is 23-4-1 (21 KOs), and Flaz is aware of the threat posed by the heavy puncher.
“I saw a couple of fights to see what he brings, and he has a mean left hook, he has great power," Flaz said. "It’s going to be a really fun fight. You’re gonna see a good fight. There are going to be fireworks."
He added that the plan was to “stay away from that left hook of his. He can really punch with that left hook – and the uppercut.”
Asked whether his strategy was to meet fire with fire, Flaz said he was open to all eventualities.
“I can do both," he said. "In my career, I’ve been a come-forward fighter; that’s how my career started. So let’s see who is stronger than the other one. And if not, I’ve got my boxing skills, too. I can mix it up, I can box, I can counterpunch. You will see a lot of things on Saturday night.”
Flaz said that as he has worked his way up the ladder, he has pushed himself more so that he is ready for the improved level of opposition, resulting in a longer camp and longer training sessions that have been harder than they were earlier in his career.
“I’m excited, man," he said. "These are the type of challenges that I want, so that I can prove I belong on the next level. Just because I have not had as many fights doesn’t mean I don’t have experience. I put in the work. I put in the hard work to show that I belong at that level.”