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Neil Parry has confirmed he will fight Romanian-born Londoner Vasile Nedelcu at Bethnal Green’s York Hall on September 21.
The Canterbury welterweight beat Fonz Alexander in a unanimous 40-36 points decision on June 8 to move his record to 6-1-1.
He is now targeting another meaningful stride towards a title shot at the end of the year when he faces the unbeaten Nedelcu at a new weight.
Parry said: “It’s my first six- rounder and it’s my first fight at light welterweight, which is 10 stone.
“I decided to drop down to 10 stone just because I’d made welterweight really comfortably and I actually feel I could be an even better fighter at 10 stone.
“I’m naturally a lot bigger than a lot of the guys at 10 stone. I’m six foot so I’ll be quite big at that weight and I feel like that will be an advantage.
“He (Nedelcu) is unbeaten and it’s a really big step up and test for me, actually, something I need.
“It’s my ninth professional fight now so I want to be moving on towards titles by the end of the year – if not early next year.
“I’ve got to look good against a tough, unbeaten opponent to progress and move on with my career. He’s hungry and wants the same as what I want.
“It’s a really good test for me to see how good I am. I’m giving it 100% now, there’s no stone left unturned. I genuinely believe I can break him down.”
Though happy with his progress, Parry is committed to polishing his expertise and putting on a show.
He added: “I feel like everything we’re working on in the gym is paying off in the ring.
“I do things in the gym and sometimes it’s hard to transfer that into the ring under the lights and with the pressure of a fight. Everything we wanted to do and were planning on doing paid off in the ring (against Alexander).”
On an area for improvement, he said: “It would be sitting down a lot more on my shots.
“At the moment I’m a counter-puncher and when I’m inside I do let my hands go and sit down on my shots quite heavily. But now I think I need to start transferring it to the whole fight instead of just being on the back foot working off the jab.
“After throwing and landing the jab I want to start putting more punches together, a lot harder and crisper.
“I want to start putting on more exciting performances, with a lot more snap and aggression to start taking people out and getting stoppages, which is ultimately what I want to be doing. I think a lot more strength and conditioning, a lot more explosive workouts.
“The most realistic aim at the moment is the Southern Area title, I feel I can win that towards the end of the year.
“I would like to get the win on September 21 and aim towards an eliminator towards the back end of the year for the Southern Area title and then fight for the title in either December or March time.
“I believe I can win that and then I’d like to aim for the English title.
“I’d like to say thank you to my sponsors Paul Lawrence from Lawson Environmental Services and George Lawrence from George Lawrence Designs. They’ve supported me since I turned professional, they stuck by me when I lost and have been there throughout my whole career.”
Tickets for Parry’s next fight are £40. Contact him at neilparry12@hotmail.com for more details.
