By Stephen "Breadman" Edwards

The Daily Bread Mailbag returns with Stephen "Breadman" Edwards, and discusses topics such as Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor, the World Boxing Super Series, Mikey Garcia vs. Adrien Broner, the win by Jarrell Miller, the career of Zab Judah and more.

My man 50 grand. I rode with you on Mikey Garcia by decision. I have a question who had the best career out of the career spoiled underachievers Zab Judah, Andre Berto or Adrien Broner. I really can’t call it. Can you rank their careers.

Bread’s Response: Thank you bro but please don’t insult fighters. This is a tough sport and we know Broner came up short. Just try to be a little more empathetic.

To answer you directly Zab Judah had the best career out of the 3. After that I would say 2.Broner then 3.Berto. But I can say it in a respectful way without insulting any of them.

Judah was not taken care of the way Broner and Berto were. Judah had to fight a prime Kostya Tszyu, Cory Spinks, Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, Danny Garcia and Floyd Mayweather. Then if you throw in Junior Witter, Demarcus Corley and Mickey Ward. You have a Murderous Resume. Broner and Berto never had to go up against anything close to the killers Judah had to fight.

Judah won the junior welterweight title a couple of times and he won the lineal Ring Welterweight title. I know he’s considered a underachiever but he has accomplished more significant things than Broner and Berto. Could you imagine if Broner or Berto had to fight the prime or close to their prime fighters Judah did? Sometimes we repeat things without actually looking at the resumes or the fights.

I know a Judah critic will talk about all of the losses. But he was highly competitive in most of them. And in his most high profile loss. He won 4 rounds from a prime Floyd Mayweather. He also scored a knockdown that wasn’t scored. I thought he lost that fight 115-112. Only 6 men in 20 years have won 4 rounds against Maweather. Jose Luis Castillo, Oscar De La Hoya, Marcos Maidana, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.  Judah is amongst them. I couldn’t imagine Berto or Broner winning 4 rounds against a Mayweather level all time great. So Judah is my easy pick. He’s possibly a HOF.

What up, Mr. Breadman?

Who is your pick in Saunders vs Monroe Jr.?

I think Willie Monroe is a better boxer and his only loss to Triple G came only because of Gennady's tremendous punching power which Saunders doesn't have. Plus Saunders looked awful in his last fight, so I don't understand why Monroe is considered such a big underdog.

Thanks for your insight.

Konstantin from Moscow

Bread’s Response: I think Willie Monroe is a really good athletic boxer. I think on neutral ground he has a good chance of upsetting Saunders. But the problem is boxing is a business and it’s politically motivated.

This fight will most likely go the distance. Monroe is not with a powerful promoter. Saunders is an undefeated champion fighting at home. I can’t think of more than 2 or 3 times in history where a non punching fighter on the road fought a defending champion at home and got the benefit of the doubt without having a power broker behind them. Boxing is not a fair sport and Willie Monroe is a bad spot. I think he has to knockout Saunders out to win. Saunders has enough pedigree and ability where he will be at the least competitive in rounds. I hope Monroe gets a fair shake but I believe the oddsmakers know he won’t that is the reason why he’s a big underdog.

You mentioned the pressure is on Mayweather to perform and get a KO heavily favors McGregor. Consider this, why would Mayweather fight any more carless than usual because of this expectation? By the time the fight starts, the amount of money he is making from the fight is set. How he performs, as long as he wins, doesn't matter. Is he taking this fight for any other reason than the payday? He hasn't taken risks in a long time, I don't see him doing it here so he won't get bashed by the media for not meeting everyone's expectations. $100M is $100M whether he is getting boo'd before, during or after the fight. I just don't see him doing anything different in order to make sure he meets the experts expectations of a wipe out. The over 6, May by decision seems like the safest bet.

I do predict a shove from Mac puts Mayweather on his ass during one of the early rounds

John in VA

Bread’s Response: Mayweather doesn’t have to be careless to get a ko. What he has to be is more aggressive.  I agree with everything you said. Mayweather has always fought in the “a win is a win persona”. But never before has a fought someone who was 0-0. Considering the fact that McGregor is a boxing novice I think expectations are higher for a Mayweather KO.

I think McGregor can get a moral victory by being competitive. Expectations can be influential. I personally feel Mayweather KOs him mid way through the fight. I rarely predict a Mayweather ko. Let’s see what happens.

Bread I had a chance to read your prediction on this fight and it's not often I disagree. I have been very critical of AB in the past about how he approaches his fights and also in the ring. He seems to be to much of a showman and not take the fight serious enough. I sense he understands the magnitude of this fight and what it could mean for his career. Although there have been a lot of videos out showing him training I have been hesitant to make a prediction but after seeing the two at yesterdays weigh in I'm going with AB by late stoppage. I'm thinking maybe 9th or 10th round. AB's body always looks the part but I try to look at his face. His face looked really chiseled. I know it may sound crazy but that tells me that he cut the weight buy training properly and not by starving his self. The AB I seen yesterday let's me know this training camp was all business. I honestly think Garcia has bitten off more than they can chew and now they are thinking Oh Sh*t what have we gotten ourselves into. They did not think AB was capable of going an entire 8 weeks without being distracted. Pointblank they didn't think he could stay focused that long. I have to agree with AB's camp Garcia looked puggy and it's not like he is comes in chiseled but his body looks like he maybe struggled to make 140. I also have heard them say in multiple interviews this week that he would consider a move to 147... Think about that...... This kid who just moved to 135. Welcomes a jump to 140 and now is considering 147 for his next fight. I think he is having trouble making the weight and that's why they are moving up.

On to the actually fight. AB has had problems with attacking styles. It puts him on the defense and keeps him there. AB tends to let fighters get their sh*t and then he steps to them and shoots his sh*t better. Maidana and Porter are fighters who never stops shooting. They have the energy to keep attacking all night. That's not Garcia's style. He may try it tonight but I don't get the sense he can keep up a pressure fight 12 rounds. I think that Mikey will come out and take control early putting Boner behind the 8 ball. If AB can avoid Garcia straight right that he throws behind the blinding jab the first couple of rounds. Then AB will begin to walk him down and bang on him. One thing AB tends to always do is hurt his opponent at least once during the fight. I think when that time comes during this fight he will finish Garcia in impressive fashion. Either way I think it's an exciting fight. Gully from tha Rock.

Bread’s Response: What’s up bro, been a long time. I will answer both of your questions in one response right below………

I don't want to sound to bad because I went against the grain and pulled for AB and thought that realistically he had a great shot and winning the fight and stopping Garcia but after watching I have a couple of takeaways.

First I absolutely hate punch stat numbers. It's funny how those number always favor the fighter that the commentators seem to be behind. I thought that Mikey dominated the fight but he was given way more connects than he actually got. a lot of punches were glove punches but I'm not taking away from a masterful performance, just stating facts.

Second I think it's time for AB to switch his corner up and not because Stafford did anything wrong or gave bad instructions but once a fighter stops progressing under your guidance it means the instruction you are giving are falling on death ears. After about 5 rounds had past and AB had not thrown a single shot to the body I knew he was in for a long night. He kept trying to shoot the Money jab to the stomach but Mikey would take a subtle step back making even that shot less effective.  Stafford was imploring him to go to the body but he was intent on going the distance and not getting knocked out.

Third I think the Maidana loss did more to AB's mental state than anyone is acknowledging. I said it before but I think it's worth repeating since that loss he seems gun shy. Once the opponent starts firing he covers and hides instead of firing back  and most of his opponents have picked up on it. He looks like a beast in training because he has headgear on which makes him more confident to let his hands go but come fight night his protective shield is gone. I honestly like the kid I think he has a lot left in the tank but he lacks confidence and I can see right through the false bravado he spills out to everyone. Every neighborhood had the big mouth kid that always got beat up. That's AB at this point.

What's next for Mikey? He called Bud's name. How do you see that fight playing out if it's made? Also is that a PPV fight? In your opinion do we have any fights that are PPV fights that don't involve Money and Canelo?  I didn't add Pac because I think he is done.

Bread’s Response: Here is the thing. Most people are influenced more because of visual pleasure than they are unseen substance. You picked Broner for the same reason the networks fell in love with him 6 years ago. Fighters like Mikey Garcia, Mike McCallum, Alexis Arguello and even the great Joe Louis are not as appreciated as much until later. They rely more on technical skills than they do athleticism. And rely more on timing than speed. They rely on their even demeanor…

Adrien Broner is a very athletic fighter. I watched him play football on youtube and the dude is cat quick. He can even do back somersaults which is the sign of supreme athleticism. But Broner’s skill level never really developed past his peak fight of Antonion DeMarco.

Broner to me has always been an athletic, sporadic attacker. People repeat that 140 is his prime weight. But I never repeated that. 130 and 135 were his prime weights. That’s where he was a destroyer. Broner has not been lights out since 2013. The same year he left 135.

Broner was winning on physicality more than skill. Skill last longer than anything in sports. Michael Jordan was able to shoot a fade away longer than he could dunk on people. Mike Garcia relies more on skill and application. I’m not saying physicality and athleticism aren’t important but they aren’t more important than SKILL.

The boxing ring is a truth machine. Mikey Garcia is a calm, even emotion man. Broner is frenetic and boisterous. So in the ring Mikey is consistently consistent. Broner is consistently inconsistent. I know people repeat why didn’t he just move his hands. Broner does lots of things we can’t explain. I kept wondering why he simply didn’t use his jab more like he did in the 1st round which he won clean in my opinion….

Mikey Garcia boxed when he was supposed to box and pressed when he was supposed to press. Broner did the exact opposite. 

I think Mikey Garcia wants to make his money and get out of the game. He’s calling the big names. But weight jumpers have to careful. Everyone has a cap. I think Mikey’s is 140. Although we are in a short welterweight era, I don’t believe he has the physicality to deal with Thurman or Spence. The great welterweight fight for him is Danny Garcia. Puerto Rico vs Mexico. Garcia vs Garcia. Danny vs Mikey. Father Trainers. East Coast vs West Coast. I think that’s the fair mega fight for him at 147. Crawford and Thurman are too big and too athletic. Danny is a tremendous fighter but he’s not an overwhelming athlete. At some point the guy coming up in weight has to be careful. Mikey has to be careful at 147lbs.

I agree with you about punch stats. I have also noticed the fighter that has the “push” is always ahead on punch stats. Hmmm…

I don’t know if Broner needs a new trainer. Here is why. He has elite level assistant trainers in Kevin Cunningham and Barry Hunter. So he gets the other voices that are needed. Maybe he has just peaked out as a fighter and a new trainer can’t help. I’m serious when I say that. What if he gets a new trainer and the new trainer gets the same exact results as Mike Stafford. That is a likely possibility. Then what…..he goes into battle with unfamiliarity. I just don’t know. Everyone is not meant to be Floyd Mayweather. That was the comparison. Floyd processes things differently.

1) Were you impressed by Big Baby on Saturday? That was a huge win for him. I can't help but wonder about his power tho. Yes, we knew he was a volume puncher before, but I just saw 300 lbs dude unleashing his best shots at 50 lbs smaller man and... almost nothing happened. Is his power overrated? If so - should he lose some wieght? At 270 lbs you still won't be able to move him in the ring without a tractor... What are your thoughts about this win and Miller's place in heavyweight division?

2) The World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) tournament is looking great, especially in cruiserweight division. Can Usyk go all the way? Who do you think wins it all? Who can be a dark horse in each division? How do you see first fights going?

Usyk - Huck

Gassiev - Diablo

Briedis - Perez

Dorticos - Kudryashov

In SMW there are some big names missing, but there are some quality fights as well. Can Rob Brant replicate Andre Ward's success in Super Six? Will Chris Eubank jr finally prove himself at the elite level? Who do you think wins quarter finals & who can go all the way?

Groves - Cox

Eubank - Yildrim

Smith - Skoglund

Braehmer - Brant

Bread’s Response: I was very impressed with Miller. I can’t believe people were criticizing him. Miller showed some serious skill. He took something off of his punches to increase his volume. Then to keep Washington honest he would throw full force just to let him know he could hurt him. He kept beating on Washington’s hip to slow him down. He didn’t waste energy defensively by doing too much to avoid punches. He absorbed, blocked then stepped in to force Washington to move or take a beating. That was very impressive to me the 300lb man had the better stamina.

I think Miller needs to lose weight but not as much as people claim. A great dietician and 275 is as low as I would go. Those extra calories that Miller has give him increased energy. He’s big but he’s not jiggly. He’s solid. I think he’s a player in the division. A real player.

Usyk is the rightful favorite but I don’t think he’s a lock. I saw some holes in his fight vs Michael Hunter. In the 1st round I like Usyk, Gassiev, Briedis and Kudryashov to win. I think 6 out of the 8 participants have legitimate chances to win. This is a live tournament. My darkhorse is Kudryashov. Whoever he hits clean, goes to sleep.

Rob Brant is steadily improving and he has a great young trainer in Derrick James. He’s my darkhorse. I think he makes it to the finals. The problem is I think Eubank Jr. or Smith will most likely win. I’m leaning Eubank Jr.

Mikey Garcia does not seem like or look like a big puncher. But he must be. Broner wouldn’t open up too much out of fear of being kod. I noticed Garcia was allowed to wear MX Gloves the same gloves his brother said that Mayweather would not let Maidana wear. How do you rate Garcia’s power and where does he go from here. By the way great pick abd breakdown of how Garcia is actually a better boxer he’s just not as flashy.

Bread’s Response: Watch Juan Manuel Marquez vs Derrick Gainor, Julio Cesar Chavez vs Hector Camacho, Erik Morales vs Junior Jones.  Sometimes the better timed, technical fighter wins these fights. I thought so in this case.

Yes I noticed Mikey wears Everlast Mx. They are killer gloves especially if you wrap the hands correctly. Robert Garcia is an excellent hand wrapper.

I think Garcia is among the top 15 punchers in boxing. Especially if he fights at 135lbs. I also agree that Garcia’s jab, accuracy and power kept Broner from opening up. Garcia is a better puncher than Broner in my opinion.

If I’m Garcia I go directly after Jorge Linares if he wins his next fight. I think Linares is the perfect fight for Garcia. It will be competitive, have historically importance, but in the end Garcia scores a conclusive ko. Garcia in my opinion is just too accurate and strong for Linares. I am curious to see what Garica does for strength training. He did not allow himself to get pushed back by a Broner who is a strong kid. I notice that Garcia bangs a big heavybag with huge gloves on but I wonder if he does anything else for strength work. He doesn’t have an imposing physical look but he’s a strong kid. Broner tried to grab him a few times and he just wouldn’t have it.

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