Mikey Garcia V Adrien Broner: No “Money,” Mo Problems

“I ain’t worried bout nothin! NI**A I AiN’t WoRrIeD BoUt NoThIn! NI**A I AIN’T WORRIED BOUT NUFFIN! NI**A I WORRIED BOUT NUFFIN! AaAaAaAaAaAaAHHH!”

—French Montana featuring Adrien Broner, June 22, 2013, not worried about a damn thing during the ring walk to face Paulie Malignaggi… Ehhh, until the bell rang.

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Oh, this was a lot of fun. Broner said he was bringing ‘bricks to a pillow fight’ that night, before walking away like a not so Big Bad Wolf. One who huffed and puffed and didn’t blow shit down.

That was over four years ago.

A little over four months ago, Broner (33-2, 24KOs) was huffing and puffing again – for real, against an inspired Adrian Granados from Chi-Town in his backyard of Cincinnati. Broner got every deal and discount at the dealership (147 after the fight was set at 140, and 10 rounds instead of 12), and still got free tags on the scorecards. I had it 96-94 Granados. Know what that means?

NI**A BETTER WORRY BOUT MIKEY! AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!

Since his return from a two tussle with Bob Arum and Top Rank, WBC lightweight champion Mikey Garcia (36-0, 30KOs) has looked like one of the best 5 fighters in the world. He blitzed a hapless Elio Rojas at Barclays last summer on the undercard of Frampton V Santa Cruz, before turning Dejan Zlaticanin into a big sleeping pill.

He looks every bit thee problem for “The Problem” (LIVE on SHOWTIME 9PM ET, Saturday, July 29 from Barclays Center in Brooklyn) and if he solves Broner in thunderous fashion, a mega-fight with all-world Vasyl Lomachenko would probably be on deck. Broner will face a far sharper and infinitely more lethal fighter than Granados. Does all of this mean Broner can’t win? No. Camp has reportedly been solid and Broner appears extremely confident he’ll win. I’m not and here’s why.

GARCIA KO 6

I thought Broner had a legitimate case for pound-for-pound status about 5 years ago until his ego and lack of discipline got the best of him.

You can’t make it rain in the club – and -drench your system with alcohol. No matter what kind of training camp you have, the body remembers this. Like so many, I saw flashes of Floyd Mayweather in Broner. But while Floyd fought (and trained) for “Money,” Broner merely acted like “Pretty Boy” Floyd and actually thought “The Problem” could beat Money, along with any legal or financial problems tied to his immaturity.

Because of what he’s done, he’s aged in the ring dramatically, as if a fighter 35 trying to manufacture things. Mikey Garcia is a better fighter than the Marcos Maidana who manhandled a younger Broner. This is going to be ugly and brutal. Look for Garcia to drop, savage and destroy Broner in six violent rounds.

REPRESENT “BABY” BABY

Saturday night also features the return of New York’s own Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller (18-0-1, 16KOs) against savvy vet Gerald Washington (18-1, 12KOs). Miller’s exciting style, penchant for aggression and charismatic nature makes him a fan favorite– but this is a dangerous fight for him. The last time we saw Washington, he was putting together WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder before falling apart from one dubious right hand in the 5th. This is one to watch. And keep an eye on the ever blossoming new age “Hitman” in Richardson Hitchins (2-0, 1KO) also appearing on the card.