On Saturday, June 22nd, Showtime boxing will present an interesting match up between two champions. WBA Welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi will be facing WBC Lightweight champion Adrien Broner at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Besides the intrigue in the fight itself, boxing fans are anticipating fireworks outside of the ring, as both participants are also known for their ability to give a great promotion with their gift for trash talking and verbal assaults.

During the 190th edition of “On The Ropes” I had a chance to discuss the fight and the promotion with none other then the “Magic Man” himself, Paulie Malignaggi. Besides discussing the fight, Paulie also gave his views on Adrien Broner outside the ring and if he believes his antics are just an act. Additionally Malignaggi talked about the perception that Broner is boxing's next big star, if he believe he can get a fair decision in the fight and how he expects the fight to play out. Here is what Paulie Malignaggi had to say.

Jenna J: You have a very big fight coming up, you'll be facing Adrien Broner on June 22nd. How did this fight come about for yourself?

Paulie Malignaggi: I got an email from Golden Boy saying they felt interested, and I said make me an offer. It turned out to be the biggest offer out of what everybody else was offering me so, money talks you know. At that point I was like yeah, lets do it. It was almost too good to be true because I felt that was the easiest fight out of all the fights that were on the table at the time.

Jenna: OK Paulie, now that everything is officially set up, and you and Adrien have met each other face to face. What are your thoughts on him? Is he really the person he makes himself out to be or is he just trying to make the promotion?

Malignaggi: I don't know, I don't really know him that well. It probably doesn't really matter to me, I'm preparing the same way I was before I ran into him and that's still the same way. I'm putting a game plan into for him so nothing else that happens is really going to matter to really effect that. I'm gonna have fun with the promotion, I can talk trash with him back and forward, we can go do all that. Adrien Boner has to understand that he's stepping into the big league now, and he's been kept very far away from the big league, and I think there's reason for that.

Jenna: You said Broner was the weakest of all the option you were offered. Why do you believe that? 

Malignaggi: Because he's smaller, he's not battle tested. I think all the other options were never really legitimate. there were names thrown out at me like Marcos Maidana  Andre Berto, obviously Shane Mosley, Diego Chaves. They are all strong welterweights, all guys who can push you, all guys that seem to be battle tested as far as not shying away, if you hit them they are not gonna go anywhere you know. I think Adrien Broner has got a little bit of a sissy in him. I think when you start hitting him in the mouth, there's not much man in there and I'm gonna show that on June 22nd. I think if people would open their eyes, they would already see that, its already been shown in a couple of fights of his, so its not that big of a deal and it shouldn't really be a surprise when I do it to him in June. You've just got have to be able to hit him, he's very physically gifted so fighting the bums he has recently they haven't been able to touch him so with not being able to touch him, you don't bring the sissy out of him. You've got to be able to touch him a  little bit, you've got to be able to hit him a little bit, once you do that he'll do the rest he'll fall like he's a little girl.

Jenna: You said what you think of him as a fighter, what do you think of him outside the ring? He's had his fair share of problems and legal issues. What do you think about him outside the ring? 

Malignaggi: I don't judge anybody, that's his business, he can do what he wants. We look at why boxing is a niche sport, why boxing is not a mainstream sport, why boxing plays second fiddle to even MMA now in this country, why boxing plays tenth fiddle to every other sport in this country, this is the guy were trying to make into a star this is the guy boxing chose to try and make into a star, they legitimately picked him literally they picked him. He hasn't even earned his way to the top, he's fought guys like Gavin Rees on HBO, Vicente Rodriguez on HBO, Elroy Perez on HBO guys like that. So literally if we could all fight guys liken that on HBO we would all become stars because we would win and look good every time. Boxing's a funny business they pick the wrong stars they don't actually make them. Boxing already chose this guy to try and become the star, the next generation star.

This guys not marketable he's not a crossover star, the way he acts is not appealing to the mainstream media in America in general. When you look at why boxing plays tenth fiddle to everyone else and even plays second fiddle to another combat sport which is MMA in the United States, you have to look no further than what they're doing with Adrien Broner. He's not a marketable guy at all, he's not even good looking, at least start out with a guy who's good looking,. I don't judge like I said. I'm thirty three years old now at this point, I stopped trying to save boxing, I used to really love boxing, I used to love the business, and the sport and I really thought there was a lot of hope for it, but its the kind of thing where it shoots itself in them foot so why should I care. The people at the top are making money anyway so they are not going to change the system, they aren't going to change what's good for them you know, so its obviously never going to change. If they don't care, then I'm surely not gonna care.  

Jenna: Paulie, you mention that they are trying to build him into the next big star, do you look at this fight, even though you are fighting in Brooklyn, even though you are fighting in front of your home fans, you pretty much have to stop him or to win very clearly to get the decision over him because Golden Boy are promoting him as the next big thing. 

Malignaggi: Well its not even Golden Boy he's started getting decisions on Al Haymon fighters in general. Once the judges are announced, I will be looking at that very carefully you know, I kind of have a sense of who the Al Haymon judges are so to speak. I will be looking at which judges get picked for this fight and try and have my say and try and get them removed and what not if I feel they should be removed. Its that kind of situation unfortunately but like I said I'm thirty three years old, I'm not twenty two years old, I'm not gonna lose my mind over the business of the sport any more you know. Ive trained hard and I love to compete and believe me, I'm going to prove that Adrien Broner is not what he seems, I'm going to prove that Adrien Broner is not what they tried to market him as, and in June I don't think it will be very difficult to do that.

I really have not been impressed with him at all, there is physical talent there that's without a doubt, but its gonna take a lot more than physical talent to be successful at this level. He's gotten to this level on a free ride. The opponents that I mention that he's fought, we all don't get to fight those type of opponents. Think about it I Senchenko on HBO because they told me that he wasn't a recognizable name in the United States so Golden Boy couldn't bid high in the purse bid, we ended up losing the first bid and I had to go fight Senchenko in the Ukraine. Senchenko was at least a 32-0 ex Olympian, world champion. They guys that Adrien Broner has fought on HBO, you couldn't pick them out of anywhere. Not only were they not world champions they were just straight up bums wherever they found them, especially that he won the first title from and especially the guy he made his first title defense on. They are just creating a star, trying to build a star because the rules don't apply to him the same as they apply to everybody else. Its very obvious what they are doing, its very obvious that they are bending the rules with him being an Al Haymon fighter and Al Haymon really wants him to him a star as a pose to somebody else being a star. Al has certain fighters in his stable that are legitimately the real deal like Danny Garcia, but they want to take Adrien Broner. More importantly I don't think he's a star and I don't think he's a real fighter and I don't think there is a lot of man in him and like I said in June, were going to show that. 

Jenna: He is coming up 2 weight classes, so you will be the naturally bigger fighter. How do you plan to go about fighting him and how do you expect the fight to play out?

Malignaggi: I do believe its going to be hard for him to fight a physical kind of fight as well because he's not the bigger guy. A lot of times the advantage guys get on me is to try to fight a physical fight and try to take away my talents that I use, the speed, the jab, the movement. Being physical with me is what a lot the approach a lot of my opponents take. I don't think that's something that Adrien Broner is going to be able to do because he's not a bigger guy,  he's not a big guy in general so it's not so much from my physicality, its more with my opponents being physical. That's where he's going to lose out, he's not going to be able to do what my other opponents have done or tried to at least. In reality knocking out am bunch of bums still doesn't really prove to me that you can punch. We can all knock out kitchen workers at the restaurants, it doesn't really prove anything to me anything in particular  I've got a good chin, Ive fought some very monstrous punchers, I know I can take a shot from a legitimate puncher, let alone a guy who's power hasn't yet been proven in Adrien Broner so we can do it inside we can do it outside, I don't mind. This is a fight where there is really no fear for me inside or outside, there's nothing much I really feel that Adrien Broner can do to me. I have the ability to make a guy miss, I have the ability to change angles, I have a lot more ability than any other guys he's fought before. There's plenty there for me to do to bring the sissy and the bitch out of him, and that's what were going to do.