By Ryan Songalia
Photo © Ed Mulholland/FightWireImages.com
Dmitriy "Star of David" Salita may be the star of the Jewish community, but as of yet has failed to become the star of New York City. Still undefeated with a 26-0-1 (15 KO) record, Salita has thus far been stalled in his sojourn to prove himself to the world at large. Rough tides have set in during the last year, with his tumultuous draw against Ramon Montano and being forced to get off the canvas with Roberto Frankel drawing up question marks concerning a fighter considered to be a potential crossover star in the sport. Now, coming off two consecutive victories, Salita has recovered a great deal of the momentum he lost in 2006 and looks forward to doing bigger and better things in 2007. Dmitriy Salita and his trainer Jimmy O'Pharrow will be attending the White House Chanukah Party on December 18. I spoke with Dmitriy about the current landscape of his career, inside and out of the ring.
Ryan Songalia: What's the latest news Dmitriy?
Salita: "Trying to schedule the next fight, I am working on a few different options at this point and time."
BoxingScene.com: There were talks about you fighting Edgar Santana on a Boxing After Dark card, now word is that that may not happen. Is that fight still a possibility?
Salita: "That fight is definitely a possibility and I think that it will happen very soon. It doesn't look good for Feb 17th but I think that it's a match up that both of us want. HBO wants it and I think around summer time it is going to mature into a main event type of a situation on HBO. Hopefully it will be at the Garden."
BoxingScene.com: Have you two sparred previously? What was that like?
Salita: "Santana is a talented fighter, he is a good worker."
BoxingScene.com: Let's go back to your last fight, a unanimous decision victory over Francisco Campas. Were you pleased with your performance and was it important for you to look impressive with Santana on the same card?
Salita: "I am not completely satisfied with my performance. There were some things that I can do a lot better. I had a very good camp, this is my second fight with Harry Keith and in the next fight the training will show itself in the ring. People are going to see great performances from me in the next year."
BoxingScene.com: Word was that you would face Arturo Gatti, but that has failed to materialize. Would you like to fight him and what is stopping that bout from being made?
Salita: "Well, at this stage Arturo fights once a year. He is a great fighter, a legend of our time. I am not exactly sure how much longer he wants to fight but I would love to fight with him. He has a great name in and outside of boxing and I think beating a legend like that will do great things for my career."
BoxingScene.com: Another fight that was proposed for the February date you have with HBO was Francisco "El Gato" Figueroa. I understand that HBO rejected the fight. What do you think of Gato and would you like to fight him when the opportunity arises?
Salita: "I am very surprised that he got rejected by HBO. In reality he has accomplished more then Santana has at this moment and time. He beat some good fighters and he recently beat Joey Rios who was an undefeated prospect. As far as I know it's a fight that Santana's camp turned down. He took it and beat Rios.
BoxingScene.com: You have had a revolving door of trainers so far in your career. Oscar Suarez was working with you, a long with Jimmy O'Pharrow for some time. What is your situation looking like with regards to trainers now?
Salita: "I haven't worked with Oscar for 2 years now. He is a great guy and a very good trainer. Our schedules and location did not allow us to work with each other on a steady basis. I have been with Jimmy O since I am 13, he has always been in my corner. He serves stability and he is a very knowledgeable man. I am currently also working with Harry Keith who I know since the amateur days as well."
BoxingScene.com: Do you think that your instability with trainers has caused conflicts in the ring that have hindered your performances?
Salita: "In the perfect world I would have liked to just have one individual in my corner. If Jimmy O would be 20 years younger, he is 82, I would not need anyone else. He knows me and my abilities the best. He has always envisioned greatness in me as a boxer and that time is approaching.
BoxingScene.com: The last time you fought, you weighed in at 145 and the previous fight you weighed in at 146. Are you going to be campaigning at 140 or 147?
Salita: "Well, if the opportunity presents itself at 140 I will make it. I have been 139 pounds since I am 17 years old. That's the weight that I won the Golden Gloves and Nationals in. My body is growing so its getting harder to come down.
BoxingScene.com: The last time we spoke, you expressed interest in fighting for the WBA Junior Welterweight title. That title is currently held by Souleymane Mbaye . What did you think of his title winning effort against Raul Balbi, and what about a fight between you two? Would you go overseas to fight him?
Salita: "I think Mbaye looked very good with Balbi. He got rocked early and came back to win. Another potential champion that I would like to meet is Torres who just beat Mike Arnoutius.
BoxingScene.com: Does the negative press you've received in the last year or so bother you at all?
Salita: "It has been a hard year in and out of the ring. Some out of the ring distractions affected my performance. I have matured and grown as a boxer and as a person which will help me in the ring. People are quick to criticize, it's human nature. I know boxing and I know myself and I want to tell you the fans and the critics that this is going to be an explosive year for me."
BoxingScene.com: Borat the movie, have you seen it and what do you think about it?
Salita: "I have seen it, I think it's funny. He is a comedic genius. However the social meaning of the movie is that he shows anti-semitism and racism that unfortunately is hidden deep in parts of our society. The movie has deeper meaning than a few laughs."
BoxingScene.com: Yuri Foreman, what do you think of him as a fighter?
Salita: "I think Yuri is a very talented fighter and a future world champion. I've known Yuri for many years, he is not a flashy guy and doesn't talk trash. I can tell you that Yuri can really fight and he is going to be a force to reckon with at 154 pounds. I was at his fight and he was in total control. He fought a guy that dropped Allan Green, a super middleweight. Yuri could have stopped him before the 5th round. That is a compliment to his boxing skills and not criticism."
BoxingScene.com: Matisyahu has a new album coming out on December 26, have you heard any clips from it and what did you think of the last album (Youth)?
Salita: "I haven't heard his new album. Matisyahu is the man, I love his music. My favorite album is "Live at Stubs", every song on that CD is a hit."
BoxingScene.com: I understand that you had a nickname, "The Russian Rapper". Who gave you the nickname and why?
Salita: "That's a long story. In a nut shell, Starret City boxing club was my introduction to American Culture. I used to listen to the rap stations that were always playing music during training and after time I would rap along. I used to take mixtapes to tournaments. At one tournament a very good friend of mine John Scully heard me rapping to a Tupac song. At that time I still had a slight Russian accent. Scully asked me to throw down some rhymes. I was spitting hot fire, (laughs) but it was with a Russian accent, thus the nickname Russian Rapper. Now when I speak to Scully he always calls me Russian Rapper, but my flow is not what it used to be."
BoxingScene.com: Is there anything you'd like to say to the fans who have supported you?
Salita: "I greatly appreciate the support of my fans, it means a lot to me. We are going to have a great year filled with victories and exciting knockouts. Thank you."