By Vince D’Writer: When Michael Williams Jr received a phone call for a fight opportunity, it was an offer he couldn’t refuse, and as a result of his accepting the offer, on February 25th Williams Jr is set to face former four-division world champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner (34-4-1, 24 KOs) at the Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia.
Broner’s initial opponent was Ivan Redkach, but Redkach pulled out of the fight due to his promotional issues. Veteran boxer Hank Lundy signed on to replace Redkach, but a week later, the 39-year-old Lundy was informed he wouldn’t be able to challenge Broner due to his contractual conflict and his pending suspension by the California State Athletic Commission.
Lundy put himself in a position to be suspended when he pulled out of his scheduled February 4th fight because of a cut, but then he proceeded to sign on to fight Broner for a bigger payday. After losing two opponents within a two-week period, Adrien Broner is now set to clash with a man who has an opportunity to produce the upset of the year.
Fighting out of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Michael Williams Jr started boxing at the age of 9 years old. As an amateur, he won the USA Boxing Regional championship, and he completed his amateur boxing career with a record of 35-13.
He made his transition to the pro ranks back in February 2018 when he scored a 3rd round TKO victory over Raquan Best. He would go on to step in the ring a total of 19 times and walked out of the ring with 19 straight victories, but in December 2021, he would experience his first encounter with adversity.
It was a rough night for Michael Williams Jr when he entered the squared circle to face undefeated super lightweight prospect John “El Terrible” Bauza. Things instantly took a turn for the worst when Bauza connected with a counter right-hand shot that sent Williams Jr down to the canvas in the opening round of the fight.
In the 2nd round, Bauza landed a solid left hook that sent Williams Jr back down to the canvas. Once again, Williams Jr was able to get up, but unfortunately, in the 4th round, Bauza scored two additional knockdowns, and then he landed a big left hook which produced the fifth and final knockdown of the bout.
After a disappointing performance against Bauza, the 23-year-old Michael Williams Jr would bounce back four months later by scoring a 3rd round TKO victory over Julio Buitrago. Now Williams Jr is less than a month away from sharing the ring with a man who has faced extremely high-level competitors such as Shawn Porter and Manny Pacquiao.
When the Broner vs. Williams Jr fight was announced, some fight fans scrutinized the matchup. They viewed Broner’s new opponent as a cherry-pick due to the fact that they formed an opinion of Michael Williams Jr skill level based on his performance against John Bauza.
Michael Williams Jr (20-1, 13 KOs) acknowledges his performance against Bauza was subpar, but he attributes the bad showing to his body being weakened. The welterweight prospect had to cut down to the super lightweight limit, and when he got down to 142, he felt like he was done, but he knew he had to bite down and lose the last 2 pounds in order to make 140.
It is possible that the weight cut may have affected Williams Jr, but despite the weight issue, he displayed some defensive deficiencies that were alarming. Hopefully, his coaches Michael Williams Sr and former four-division world champion Roy Jones Jr have helped him correct those flaws.
On the offensive side of things, Williams Jr is athletic, has good length, and possesses a well-rounded offensive skill set. He knows he’s going into the fight with AB as the underdog, but he feels confident, and he plans on pulling off the upset by boxing smart and outworking his opponent.
Michael Williams Jr has 20 career victories, but only 2 of his wins came against opponents who held winning records. If he is able to win this welterweight bout on February 25th live on BLK Prime, it will be a candidate for upset of the year. During an interview with Breakin Beats Podcast, Williams Jr spoke about why fans should order the Broner-Williams Jr pay-per-view.
“Well, you got the fans that want to see AB lose. If you want to see AB lose on February 25th, y’all tune in, man. Like I said, it’s going to be a show. The whole 10 rounds, if it goes 10 rounds, it’s going to be a show. If you want to see good boxing, AB lose, AB get upset, just tune in, man…just tune in.”