Vito Mielnicki Stays Busy On Davis vs Garcia Card Saturday

Vito Mielnicki Jr. (14-1, 9 KOs) of New Jersey appears on a Gervonta Davis undercard for his second straight fight.

The impressive junior middleweight prospect faces his stiffest test to date in Mexico’s Jose Sanchez Charles (20-3-1, 12 KOs) in a 10-round bout streamed live on the Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Showtime Boxing Facebook page beginning at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.

Mielnicki vs Charles is one of seven fights leading into a four-bout Showtime PPV telecast beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT headlined by unbeaten rivals Gervonta “Tank” Davis and “King” Ryan Garcia in a 12-round, 136-pound showdown.

Referee Dave Braslow waves off the fight for a fourth-round TKO win for Vito Mielnicki in his last fight in January 2023. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions

Mielnicki said of his 29-year-old opponent: “This is my toughest opponent to date. I know that he’s been putting in the work and working hard each and every day. I know he’s gonna come ready to fight and bring his A game. We’re gonna be on our p’s and q’s and make sure we do our job and put on a dominant performance.”

Charles (20-3-1, 12 KOs), 29, of Mexico, is coming off an eight-round unanimous decision loss last December 9 at Payne Arena in Hidalgo, Texas. However, the defeat came from former 154-pound titleholder Austin Trout.

The 20-year-old Mielnicki, on the other hand, has won six bouts in a row since an upset eight-round majority decision loss to James Martin in April 2021 at the Shrine Exposition Center in Los Angeles. He admitted poor preparation was the reason for the loss, and a former world champion gave him some excellent advice that has helped him overcome that temporary setback.

Essential Advice From Lamont Peterson

Vito Mielnicki says advice from Lamont Peterson helped him prepare for his fight this weekend on the Davis vs Garcia undercard. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions

“Proper preparation prevents poor performance,” Mielnicki said. “[Former junior welterweight world titleholder] Lamont Peterson taught me that. He was in my camp after that fight and was showing me a few things, teaching me a few things just about the sport in general, and he brought up a point to me and said, ‘Proper preparation prevents poor performance.’

“Ever since that [talk], I always stand by that. I always make sure I’m the hardest worker in the ring, getting up before everybody, going to sleep before everybody, watching film, making sure my diet is right even when I’m outside of camp, and really just preparing properly. I’m making sure my body feels great the night of the fight and that I’m mentally prepared for a war. Lamont taught me that after the Martin fight. I learned that obviously in the ring that night coming off a fight where a guy that I should have beat, but when you’re not prepared to fight, that’s what happens.”

Mielnicki made his pro debut in July 2019 as a welterweight, scoring a first-round knockout of Tamarcus Smith on a card headlined by Joshua Greer Jr. vs. Nikolai Potapov at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Click here to read a NYFights piece from his earliest days. Still a growing kid, it isn’t inconceivable to imagine Mielnicki at a higher weight class in the future. However, he told NYFights that he isn’t struggling to make the junior middleweight limit.

Vito Mielnicki says he’d like to stay busy as he did in 2002. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions

“Right now, I’m definitely making weight healthy and comfortably. We do it the right way; we bring my weight down over an eight-week span in advance, and I’m not bringing down the weight the week of the fight like some guys do. But right now, I’m really comfortable at 154. I’m still growing, so we’ll see where I end up at. I feel strong; I feel great at 154 right now, so that’s my weight.”

Vito Mielnicki is one of boxing’s most active fighters. When he steps into the ring to face Charles, it will mark his fifth fight in a year. Once Mielnicki rises in status and becomes a main event star, he would prefer to maintain his same activity level but also discuss options with his team.

“I love being active; I love fighting; I love being in the gym, and I love learning. If that’s what my team thinks is best for me at the time when that time comes, then that’s what we’ll do.”