HIS showdown with Gavin Gwynne in London tomorrow night may be the first all-Welsh British title fight in a generation, but there is certainly no room for sentiment on the part of champion Joe Cordina.

Domestic lightweight king Cordina, who also defends his Commonwealth crown at the O2, is only thinking about fulfilling his dream of becoming the world’s best.

And the Cardiff-born 2016 Olympian merely sees former St Joseph’s stablemate Gwynne as “just someone in the way” of him pursuing global honours.

“There’s going to be fireworks,” said a pumped up Cordina.

“Three names were given to me for this fight and one was Gavin Gwynne, so that’s the task at hand.

“People ask me about (European champion) Francesco Patera, but if I don’t beat Gavin Gwynne then I don’t get Patera. I will beat Gavin Gwynne.

“I don’t care if it’s a big fight for Welsh or British boxing. My goal is to be world champion and he’s just someone in the way of me fulfilling my dreams.”

He added: “It’s a big occasion and I don’t know how he’s going to handle it.

“He’s never been on a show like this before – he’s never come close.

“The occasion might get to him or he could thrive off it.

“It should be a good fight. How long it goes will depend on how he comes out.

“If he comes out trying to walk me down then he’ll be playing into my hands.

“If you’re six foot like him you’ve got to maximise your other strengths and keep it long.

“I’ve been to World Championships, European Championships and the Olympics where you can box five guys with different styles in the space of 10 days.

“I’ll be ready for whatever he brings.”

Cordina (9-0), who like Gwynne puts an unbeaten record on the line tomorrow, has been trained by Tony Sims in Essex since leaving Tony Borg’s Newport stable in early 2017. But despite being members of the same gym and representing Wales together while amateurs, Cordina says his relationship with Gwynne was never a particularly close one.

“I was with the GB squad for a good few years and only going to St Joseph’s about once a week,” he said.

“Sometimes I wouldn’t go for a month, so I’d rarely see him there when I did go.

“I’d only see him now and again, like if I had a tournament coming up and I had to do a bit of work on the pads.

“I don’t know him too well. When he turned pro, I was still in the GB squad and going for the Olympic Games.

“We never used to hang around together, but I respect him, he’s a good guy.

“His record speaks for itself, so he’s got to be doing something right. He’s no pushover.”

A European champion and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist before turning pro, Cordina is loving life with Sims, and he can’t praise his trainer enough.

“People who saw me as an amateur can’t believe how much I’ve improved since turning professional,” he said. “I think I’m learning every fight.

“It’s just technical stuff that Tony has worked on. He watches me and then walks me through things and gives me the right advice.

“I’m living in an annexe on the side of his house so he’s there with me constantly.”