THE waiting is almost over for WBA Interim featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa as the red-hot Cuban gets the opportunity to add Orlando Salido?s IBF belt to his collection tomorrow night in Las Vegas. But the Palms Casino showdown is just the latest stage of Gamboa?s masterplan to dominate the division.
?It’s very easy,? said the 18-0 (15) speed demon. ?Once you have won your first world title you are looking for the second one; the next step is to unify all of them to become the undisputed champion. After that you can set new goals and look at other divisions. I want to prove that I am the best and I want to step into the ring with the best. Assuming that the world champions deserve to hold their titles they are the best. So this is what I want. Once I have destroyed Salido I hope to get my hands on [WBC ruler] Elio Rojas. Then I will go on from there.?
Going on from there should include a highly anticipated showdown with power-packed WBO king Juan Manuel Lopez, a fight that has long been talked about by fans and industry insiders alike. ?El Ciclon de Guant?namo? (?The Guant?namo Cyclone?), a former Olympic gold medallist, is eager for the fight to take place.
?I know that lots of people are talking about me fighting Lopez and I have nothing against that,? Gamboa stated. ?Just bring him on, I am ready to go. To be honest I don’t know whether he can actually beat Rafael Marquez [on November 6] who is a living legend. Then again I don?t care that much. I will take on whoever wins that fight.
?I feel that I am becoming better and better with every fight and I know that I can still improve when I have to. Both Lopez and Marquez are great fighters and I?m sure that they would bring the best out of me. But let?s not talk too much about the future. I have to focus on Salido first and that is what I am going to do. We can talk about everything else after that.?
While Yuri is focusing on aggressive Mexican Salido, he does not expect the IBF title-holder to derail his grand plans. Gamboa has enjoyed a fantastic training camp under the expert tutelage of trusted trainer Ismael Salas.
?We set up our training camp in Tampa for the first time,? Gamboa revealed. ?We had perfect conditions there. I did 120 rounds of sparring with different partners; one of them was Javier Castro from Mexico.
?I have known Salas since I was a little kid. He used to train my father back home in Cuba. He was at the gym when I hit the heavy bag for the first time. Although we hadn?t seen each other for a long time after he left Cuba until we were reunited in 2008; we connected again immediately. I totally trust his advice and I appreciate his professional attitude. I feel that he is bringing the best out of me and I am very thankful that I have an experienced coach like him in my corner.?
Gamboa has a healthy amount of respect for Saturday?s opponent but will concentrate more on his own strengths rather than any weaknesses in the Mexican.
?To be honest I never care much about my opponent,? Gamboa confessed. ?Of course, my coach has showed me several tapes of his fights and we have an exact gameplan and know how to win this fight. But everybody is weak when a cyclone is blowing them away.
?But, of course, I will not underestimate my opponent. This is my first world title unification bout. Salido is a w
