Tuesday 25 July 2017 07:45, UK
The showdown between Adrien Broner and Mikey Garcia brings two of America's elite fighters face-to-face at 140lbs. Broner might be best known for his antics outside the ring but is a four-weight world champion. Unbeaten Garcia is just behind with a hat-trick of different division successes, so here are a few pointers to set the scene...
He burst on to the scene six years ago as the 'the new Floyd Mayweather'. The pair were close friends and following suit, 'The Problem' went from super-featherweight (WBA) to lightweight (WBC) to welterweight (WBC) and back down to super-lightweight (WBA) in the space of 11 fights. In between, him and Mayweather had fallen out but he is still being promoted by the main man.
I don't care about being an underdog. I don't make my money off that.
A successful amateur career saw him turn pro and walk through all comers in a hard-hitting but measured approach. The Californian took 31 fights to be crowned a world champion, with the WBO featherweight strap to take him to a new level. His very next fight saw him add the WBO super-featherweight strap but one defence led to injuries, contractual issues with Top Rank and a falling out of love with the sport, saw him take 18 months out. The second wind saw him take two more fights to be crowned the WBC lightweight champion.
You are definitely going to see more from Mikey Garcia and Broner is going to be the one to push me.
There are no belts up for grabs, but there is plenty on the line. Broner needs a big win if he wants to stay in the elite level and show he is fully focused on the fight game. Garcia knows time is hardly on his side but he is topping the big-time bill for the first time. Win and he moves up the pound-for-pound ladder, lose he could well come again. If Broner loses it is likely to present a problem that even he can't solve.
The weight: Broner has gone up and down like a yo-yo in recent years. This one is at super-lightweight and his second from last fight saw him miss the 140lb against Ashley Theophane, which saw him stripped of the WBA world title before the fight. Broner has been training in altitude in Colorado but all eyes will be on the scales. As for Garcia, he is looking to push on after so long out but admits his goal is to go back down to lightweight and tackle Jorge Linares if he wins. He is adamant 140lbs is the heaviest he can go.
Garcia carried an awesome 80 per cent KO ratio with him but admits Broner is the toughest test of his career to date. Broner can box, climb off the canvas and finds a way to win, as long as he is tuned in. Will he switch off at any stage? Will he spend more time looking good for the cameras? Will Garcia be able to take the step up - in weight and opposition's experience - to move into that top bracket? If he loses he can probably come again, but if Broner does, is that the end of The Problem?
Katie Taylor will be making her American debut, looking to make it six out of six since turning professional. The Irish star has hit Wembley Stadium already but expect her to shine in New York. Jermall Charlo is making his middleweight debut, keen to throw his hat into the Golovkin-Canelo mix, while Brookly heavyweight Jarrell Miller will have the crowd on his side as he takes on world title challenger Gerald Washington.
The Barclays Center in Brooklyn seems to have replaced Madison Square Garden as the number one boxing venue in the Big Apple. A cauldron that holds around 18,000, Broner and Garcia will follow in the footsteps of Keith Thurman-Danny Garcia, James DeGale-Badou Jack and Carl Frampton-Leo Santa Cruz to top the bill at the renovated arena.
