On paper, it looks like Mexican challenger Gustavo Perez will go home empty-handed after he battles reigning International Boxing Federation (IBF) minimumweight champion Pedro Taduran on 3 April in Temecula, California.

Oddsmakers have installed Taduran as a massive -600 ($600 wins $100) favorite to retain the IBF 105-pound crown for the third time in the scheduled 12-rounder at the Pechanga Resort Casino.

Perez, nicknamed “Smiley,” is listed as +400 ($100 wins $400).

But American dealmaker Sean Gibbons swears Perez is a lot better than what the odds tell.

Taduran is using the Perez clash as a solid warmup to a big fight down the road as Gibbons would like to see him meet Puerto Rican two-belt holder Oscar Collazo.

“If Pedro wins, I would go to (Collazo’s promotional outfit) Golden Boy Promotions and try to put a deal in place,” said Gibbons, noting that waiting for the result of the 16 May match in South Africa between World Boxing Council champion Melvin Jerusalem and Siyakholwa Kuse would be a waste of time.

Collazo’s camp wants to revisit a fight with Jerusalem after their bout was aborted owing to promotional issues.

Besides, Jerusalem is taking a big risk by defending the title in Johannesburg where the air is thin and the chances of winning is quite low.

But Gibbons insists that the Filipino southpaw should remain focused on the task at hand.

Taduran, whose first two defenses came against Japanese Ginjiro Shigeoka and compatriot Christian Balunan, has been training in Las Vegas since the second week of January.