Mikey Garcia unanimously outpointed Adrien Broner on Saturday night to remain undefeated.
Garcia controlled his first fight at 140 pounds, particularly with body shots he was able to sneak in below Broner's defense, and won 117-111 on one card and 116-112 on the other two.
A former champion in three lower weight classes, Garcia (37-0, 30 KOs) never seriously hurt Broner but dictated the action for most of the 12 rounds, landing nearly twice as many punches according to post-fights stats.
Broner (33-3, 24 KOs) lost a fight he probably needed to win to prove he is worthy of still being considered one of boxing's headliners and capable of beating some of the sport's best. It was better than some of his recent performances, but not good enough against a fighter of Garcia's caliber.
"At the end of the day I'm still a four-time world champion at four different weight classes and I'll still be in the history books," Broner said.
Broner, who turned 28 on Friday, had won titles in three divisions by 23 and later added a fourth. But losses and lethargic performances even in his wins, along with legal problems outside the ring, stalled his career that once rose so rapidly.
Garcia, 29, had stopped 19 of his last 21 opponents. He had to settle for just beating Broner, but perhaps his knockout power will return if he drops back down in weight.
Garcia cracked Broner with shots all over in the seventh, his most dominant round of the fight, but Broner actually began to perform better from there.
There was no title at stake — they fought for a manufactured prize called the WBC Diamond Belt super lightweight championship — but it was clearly a big bout for both. Garcia was able to beat the biggest name yet he's faced, which should help as he seeks the mainstream attention that's so far eluded him.
But Garcia frustrated him with his movement and made it hard for Broner to follow up any time he did have any good moments.
"It was 'Tom and Jerry,'" Broner said. "I had to catch the mouse."
