BUFFALO — If Friday night’s fight was truly the Road to Redemption for Nick Casal, that road wasn’t glitzy, but it kept the Niagara Falls light welterweight headed in the right direction.

Casal (20-4-1, 15 KOs) struck his opponent early then stayed strong throughout in winning a unanimous decision in an eight-round bout against Chris Fernandez before an announced crowd of 1,800 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center.

In green trunks with the phrase, “Kid Kayo” at the belt, Fernandez seemed determined to dictate the pace through the first round, but the tactic didn’t work. Casal, instead, cut Fernandez above his left eye before the first round was complete and the Salt Lake City product had a large gash that needed attention between rounds.

“I wasn’t expecting him to throw so many combinations. He threw one punch after another, I’d block one or two, but he kept coming with four or five at a time. I couldn’t handle it,” Fernandez said after. “I fell behind. And it’s his hometown. I knew that.”

After that, though, Fernandez (18-8-1, 11 KOs) started to gain some momentum. Although he didn’t win many rounds — the bout was scored 79-73, 80-72 and 79-73 by the three judges — Fernandez started to trade punches with Casal for long stretches and the local crowd grew a little weary.

“Unfortunately, his style was holding me,” Casal said. “I adjusted at the end of the sixth and did better.”

Both had low shots in the seventh, first Fernandez — which drew a warning from the referee — then Casal, who knocked his opponent to the mat. Casal followed with a flurry of combinations that had Fernandez reeling and both came out swinging in the final round.

“Fernandez is a tough guy,” said Casal’s manager and father, Ray Casal. “He needed to see the late rounds against a tough guy. That’s how you move up the rankings. If he blows this guy out in two rounds, everybody’s happy, but he needs the work.”

In Box Rec’s ratings for American light welterweights, Casal ranks 35th while Fernandez was 45th. Casal is currently ranked No. 9 by the North American Boxing Association.

“I’m pretty happy with the progression. This is two wins in a row, we’re back on track,” Ray Casal said.

As for Fernandez, this ended a streak of two straight first-round knockouts.

“I gave it all I got. I fought as hard as I could,” he said. “I gave everything I could.”

In earlier contests, Buffalo’s Excell Holmes and Joe Montoya fought to a draw in the opening bout. Both came in 1-0 with a knockout, but the fight swung back and forth with both fighters sporting banged up faces by the end of the four rounds. ... In a super lightweight bout, Broderick Antoine won a split decision over Geoffrey Spruiell, although the nod came as a surprise to most in attendance. ... Buffalo’s Lionel Thompson thoroughly dominated Michael Montoya in a four-round light heavyweight bout. Thompson won by a 40-36 count on all three cards. ... Guillermo “The Vampire” Sanchez of Buffalo came out with a flurry, knocking down Jose Guzman of the Bronx in the first round of their eight-round New York State Super Featherweight title bout. Guzman rebounded, however, and took the fight the distance. Sanchez moved to a perfect 11-0 , however, by winning a unanimous decision. ... In a wild fight, Dorin Spivey won a TKO over Meacher Major “Pain” to secure the NABA Lightweight belt, as the fight was stopped 52 seconds into the fourth round. Spivey followed by calling Buffalo his “home away from home.”

Contact sports editor Tim Schmitt at 282-2311, ext. 2266.