"Training camp's going good, man. I'm feeling strong; my weight's down. I'm just staying sharp right now...a lot of people will be watching my fight [against Carlos Molina] because everybody know what my Big Bro gonna do. He's been doing it for a long time, so they know what's expected out of him...I know they watching because I'ma put on a show...You gonna get that rugged A.B., man. I ain't finna play. See, I wasn't doing no interviews or taking no pictures before the fight, but you know I had to give my man Ben that exclusive. This will be the very first and the very last interview before the Carlos Molina fight," stated multi-division world champion Adrien Broner, who spoke exclusively to FightHype.com about his upcoming return to the ring on the May 3 undercard of Mayweather vs. Maidana. You don't want to miss what he had to say about his loss to Marcos Maidana, his clash with Carlos Molina, and much more. Check it out!
BT: What's good, Twin?
AB: What's up, Ben?
BT: You tell me! How's training camp been going for May 3rd?
AB: Training camp's going good, man. I'm feeling strong; my weight's down. I'm just staying sharp right now.
BT: So getting down to 140 hasn't been a problem at all?
AB: Nah. It ain't like I'm a 180, 170-pounder. I'm naturally a 150-pounder when I walk around. Once I get in shape, man, once I start training, I can make 35 if I want to, but they'll say I'm being a bully then.
BT: Are you looking forward to going down to a lower weight class where you'll have the advantage of being the bigger, stronger guy?
AB: I mean, you know, I'm always feeling good going into the ring and going into the fight, man. It is what it is; 140, 147, it don't make no difference.
BT: Looking back on the fight with Maidana, was there anything you took away from that performance? Was there anything that you learned from that fight or do you look at it as just a bad night at the office?
AB: Um, it might have been a bad night, you know what I'm sayin', but it's not about that bad night. It's how you come back after that bad night.
BT: Prior to training for that fight, you were coming off of a long tour, kickin' it with the likes of Lil Wayne and T.I. Floyd made some comments regarding advice that he's given you about that. Do you personally think there's anything that you could have done differently to better prepare for Maidana?
AB: I was okay. I was straight, 100%. I was ready. Look at the fight. You can look at the fight and see I was in shape. I fought to the end. You know, a guy out of shape wouldn't have lasted that whole fight and fought that whole fight the way I fought it. I didn't fight it running. I fought it coming forward, strong, and I stayed strong. He got the best of me that night. After being in that fight, there's a lot of things I could have done different, and the second time around, I'm going to do a lot of things different, man. It'll be the same AB, but it'll be a different outcome.
BT: You asked for and were ready, willing, and able to do the immediate rematch with Maidana, but obviously he had a bigger offer to fight Floyd. Was that frustrating at all when you found out that you would have to wait your turn for a shot at redemption?
AB: What people don't understand about boxing is that it's not just a sport; it's also a business. So I'm actually happy for Maidana. He just had another child brought into this world, so he's doing what's best for him. Why not go fight my Big Bro where he can make double the amount or triple the amount he was going to make fighting me? He made a business move; that was a business decision. And me taking a loss just opened up another big fight for my Big Brother, so I understand. I'm not worrying about that fight. At the end of the day, after that fight and after my next fight, I still got a chance to fight. I can fight Maidana his next fight or the fight after that; I can always fight Maidana. So, you know, I'm just worrying about myself and making sure that Adrien Broner is happy.
BT: Obviously you're fighting on the undercard of Floyd's pay-per-view event. Do you feel any added pressure to look good or to steal the show?
AB: To be honest, a lot of people will be watching my fight [against Carlos Molina] because everybody know what my Big Bro gonna do. He's been doing it for a long time, so they know what's expected out of him. But someone being as young as I am and taking a loss this early in my career, it can be tough to come back the way I'ma come back, so, you know, they watching me real close. Any fight that Adrien Broner is on is a hell of a fight. It don't matter who I fight. I can fight a cab driver and it's going to be a big fight because Adrien Broner is fighting. So I know they watching because I'ma put on a show.
BT: What kind of fight are you expecting from Carlos Molina?
AB: It don't matter, man. He can come in there rough and tough like he's a strong Mexican coming forward; I mean, you know what I'm sayin', I've seen these tough guys before. As long as I just stay on my A game, I'll be okay.
BT: There's a lot of sub-plots to your fight. You're coming off of your first loss, you're fighting on Floyd's undercard, and he's fighting the guy that beat you. On top of that, you're fighting Carlos Molina, whose last fight was against Amir Khan, who also happens to be fighting on this card. I'm sure a lot of critics will be eager to scrutinize your performance. Is there any concern that you're kind of a no-win situation if you don't do something spectacular, like knock him out?
AB: The most important thing for me to do is to get the victory. That's the most important thing, no matter how my victory comes.
BT: You know what it's like to be in the ring with Maidana. What kind of a fight are you expecting between him and Floyd?
AB: Maidana, I gave him the toughest fight of my life on my worst night. That was on my worst night. You know, things happen for a reason. I've been trying to think like, "How the hell did that guy beat me," but God works in mysterious ways, so I just let it go. It is what it is. I already know what Big Bro is gonna do. He's gonna stay focused and do what he gotta do.
BT: During your conference call, you made it clear that people shouldn't expect you to be more humble...
AB: (Cutting in) Hey, for somebody to say Adrien Broner should be more humble, a broke motherfucker made that up. I'ma still be AB. I don't care. We okay. We still young, flashy, rich and famous. We okay. One thing you can say about Adrien Broner, I'm a warrior. You can't take that away from me and any time I step in that ring, I'ma be ready and I'ma be ready to fight to the end. I've seen Marcos Maidana lay out and stop a lot of guys, but he couldn't put me out on my worst night. You know, I'm not really here to dwell on the past. The past is the past. He got a fight coming up with my Big Brother. My Big Brother is going to do his thing like he always do and I'ma do mine. I'ma start off the show and he gonna finish it.
BT: Woooooo! We'll leave it at that. Give me some closing thoughts! Let the fans know what they can expect when you step in the ring with Carlos Molina!
AB: You know, man. You gonna get that rugged A.B., man. I ain't finna play. See, I wasn't doing no interviews or taking no pictures before the fight, but you know I had to give my man Ben that exclusive. This will be the very first and the very last interview before the Carlos Molina fight. And I'm not taking no pictures with him. At the press conference, I will be letting it known I'm not doing no interviews and taking no pictures, and I'm stepping off just like that, and I'll take pictures after the fight. So if you want to take a picture with me, it's after the aftermath.
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