Gamboa (left) and Salido at yesterday's weigh in

Fightfranchise.com caught up with WBA featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa with only hours to go before his big unification fight with Orlando Salido in Vegas, and the champ sounded positive about his chances.

FF: First of all how are you so close to the fight, and are you ready to rumble?
Gamboa: I feel great, thank you. My preparation was close to perfect and I am ready to beat my opponent and show the world what I got.

FF: Your match against Orlando Salido is a Unification bout. Is this your biggest fight as a pro?
Gamboa: No doubt about that. I am a world champion, Salido is a world champion. We both have a lot to lose and a lot to win at the same time. I am used to the fact that my fights get more and more important throughout my career. Of course, this is the most important one so far. And I hope for even bigger challenges and bigger fights after I win this one.

FF: If you unify the titles on Saturday, have you achieved your dream, or is this just the beginning for El Ciclon?
Gamboa: You know since I started boxing I have always had dreams, worked hard for them and managed to fulfill them. When I was a little kid I wanted to become a boxer and be on the team. When I made it to the team I wanted to become Cuban champion. When I was Cuban champion I wanted to become Olympic champion. When I had won the gold medal I wanted to turn professional. When I became professional I wanted to win a world title. When I had won the WBA championship I wanted to start a collection of titles. This is where I am right now. So far I am blessed that my life in boxing has been a story of dreams coming true. I hope it goes on like this because winning the IBF championship is surely not the end of the road for me. My next goal is to unify all world titles at 126 to become undisputed champion of the world. After that I might step up in weight to work my way through different divisions. My final goal is to be remembered as an all-time great. I want to prove that I am the best boxer in the world today.

FF: Your opponent has a really interesting record of 34-10-2 (22). What can we expect from Salido, a guy that has 10 losses on his record, 5 of which are by KO. Does he have a soft chin?
Gamboa: I certainly doubt that he has a weak chin. If you look at his record a little closer you will see that his ko-losses were all in his first 15 pro-fights when he was still very young and unexperienced fighting tough opposition. He hasn’t been stopped in 10 years and he went the distance with great fighters like Juan Manuel Marquez, Robert Guerrero and Cristobal Cruz. If you compare him and me you will find that he is coming from a completely different background than me. He turned pro at the age of 16 so he has barely any amateur experience. In the first years of his career it seems that he had to accept any fight offered to him while I was backed up by a strong promoter since turning pro in 2007. You may say that he has come the hard way and took some detours to get where he is right now while I have taken the straight way to the top. To answer your question: I expect a tough fight; but I also expect to win this one like I have won all of my 18 pro-fights so far.

Gamboa at the scales

FF: Sure he is the IBF champ and won the rematch against Cristobal Cruz, but what can we expect from Salido on Saturday? What is his strongest weapon? Explain to us a little about him.
Gamboa: Of course, my trainer and I have seen some tapes and analyzed him but to be honest I don’t care too much about my opponents strengths and weaknesses. I know that as long as I fight my own fight I will be victorious. And that’s all that matters to me.

FF: Were there any special things you did in training to prepare for Salido, or was it just the standard conditioning work and sparring?
Gamboa: I have to say that we worked even harder for this fight than for any other fight so far. I have done 120 rounds of sparring with very strong sparring partners. Although Salido isn’t taller than me he has a long reach so I have sparred with partners with long arms to see how I can get behind the jab and to the inside to do some damage.

FF: You are the main event fighter for the first time in your career. Is it too late in your opinion, or was this not an issue for you?
Gamboa: That’s not true. I have been the main event at some shows here in the USA. It’s the first time that I headline an HBO show and it’s my first time in Las Vegas. Of course, I feel that my last championship fights could have been HBO main events already but then again you have to see that this is only my 19th pro-fight. I think the way my management and my promoter Ahmet Oener have led me to the top was extraordinary. We have taken the fast track and I thank my whole team for that. I am happy that I am recognized as one of the upcoming stars in the business and I want to prove that I am a worthy main event fighter.

FF: If you win this fight will we see you facing Juan Manuel Lopez soon? I know your focus is on Salido, I understand this, but has Mr. Öner said anything about this fight? I think – apart from Pacquiao-Mayweather – this is one of the biggest clashes that can be made at the moment: a big fight with the whole world watching.
Gamboa: I know that there is a lot of talk about me fighting Lopez. I also know that he is here in Vegas to watch the fight ringside like I was at his last fight in Puerto Rico. I know that Ahmet and Top Rank are building up this clash. But I’m not too sure if JuanMa will really win his next bout against Rafael Marquez. Maybe after that fight we will discuss me fighting Marquez rather than Lopez. But to be honest I don’t care about that. I will fight whoever comes my way. I think Juan Manuel Lopez is a decent fighter but he is not the best boxer in the division. I am the best boxer at 126 at the moment. Chris John is an excellent fighter as well. And then there is Lopez and some other guys a little bit behind us.

Gamboa (left) with promoter Ahmet Oner and Juan Manuel Lopez (right)

FF: Please tell us a little bit about the private Yuriorkis Gamboa. What are you like when you are not in the ring? Are you more the quite guy who loves to sit in the garden with your family, or are you more the wild guy who loves to go out and party a lot?
Gamboa: I would say I am more the family man. I love my daughter Brenda and my little son Yuriorkis jr. I spend most of my time with them. My father and my brother are living with me as well. We are chilling a lot enjoying the good life in Miami.

FF: Do you have a special message for your fans, and your prediction for Saturday? Will it be a KO or a 12 round victory for you? What can we expect from you?
Gamboa: My trainer Ismael Salas always says: You can’t force the knockout. It ether comes or it doesn’t. So I will not promise that I’ll stop Salido. But I’m sure that I am the better fighter and that I will pass this test. The simple truth is: There will be two champions entering the ring – and I will be the only champion leaving with two belts. I thank my fans all around the world for their support and I hope to entertain them with another great performance. Thank you.

Thank you. May God always be with you, and the very best of luck for Saturday.

No related posts.