Adrien Broner. What’s his Problem?

Magic man experiencing some problems. 

Adrien Broner thought he was going to knock out Paulie Malinaggi. He didn’t come close. He connected cleanly on multiple occasions and “rocked” Paulie, but Paulie wasn’t rocked senseless in the sense that he was “rocked out”. That’s right – English is my first language.  Broner did look like he was holding back– perhaps more conservative than usual on his debut at welterweight. But nevertheless he didn’t do the business convincingly. He over-promised and under-delivered. Womp womp. 

Most people, including myself, thought that Broner was going to really be a dangerous opponent for Malinaggi. I had premonitions of a brutal humiliating knockout for the proud and emotional Brooklynite; I never thought the weight would be a problem for the Cincinnati Kid. Broner’s power seemed so devastating at lightweight that I was sure he would bring it with him to 147. Pacquiao managed it and do we honestly think that Pacquiao wouldn’t have knocked out Malinaggi. (If you’re looking for logic – Malinaggi was pummeled by Hatton and we all know what Manny did to Hatton.)

Brooklyn go hard

Broner caused some swelling on Paulie’s face but Paulie’s face swells in a stiff wind. The Problem just wasn’t that impressive and Paulie held him off by keeping very busy with fast hands and accurate jabbing. Paulie boxed well, lost a split decision and then publicly denounced the entire boxing hierarchy in a trademark anti-establishment outburst. (More on that another time.) Broner normally starts slow, observes his opponents for a couple of rounds then takes over and overwhelms the opposition. It’s an exciting progression to watch in a fight.  But that didn’t happen on Saturday night because Malinaggi didn’t let it.

Paulie is a self-confessed light puncher. But he hurt his hand in the fight (again). This could have even been avoided had he not aimed consistently for Broner’s chest, which was guarded in that Mayweather-esque style by Broner’s crossed arms. Hitting elbows cannot be good for your hands. My point is Paulie could have angled his punches up a few inches and caused more damage. What boxing experience do I have that validates my constructive criticism for a 15-year veteran? Hey, I have a perfect record 0-0-0. Paulie did well but a tight split decision was a fair result because Broner looked frustrated but never in trouble, connected with power shots and was never “rocked”. In fact, it seemed like deep down a split decision respectable loss is what he envisaged. He just didn't want to be embarrassed and New York judge Tom Schreck's 117-111 constituted embarrassment. 

Mayweather helps the aged. 

Broner may be 23 but he gave a distinctly immature post-fight interview. He had all the swagger of a man who had just scored a knock-out. He said Paulie ran, it’s called “boxing”, he bragged about taking Paulie’s girlfriend, this isn’t Days of Our Lives, and claimed that he won decisively – not according to the judges. He also had his hair brushed – that was funny as recently as his last fight. If Floyd Mayweather really is his role-model, he may consider emulating Floyd’s performance and post-match sportsmanship towards his opponent (yes I am choosing to ignore Victor Ortiz and Larry Merchant- gates) Those 2 qualities are what redeems Floyd enough to keep the fans coming back to see him. It’s just enough of a reprieve to keep him in business. Sure fans hate him but he is an elite athlete performing on a unique level and at the end of the fight he says some nice things about his opponent. It puts us at ease. That’s not a fighter’s job but it keeps the lights on.

All in my grill. 

Broner shaded a beatable opponent and then was a dick. All through the promotion Paulie took the bait, rose to it and retaliated in kind. They bickered. Malinaggi wanted to clear the air at the end, Broner didn’t. Big whoop –  life goes on. But Broner is now a welterweight champion and will have to defend his belt against harder hitting, colder and more unflappable opponents. Marcos Maidana, for example, will neither understand nor be impressed with these kinds of shenanigans. He will simply take your head off.

 I was a massive Broner apologist before this fight.  He’s fun, sports is entertainment and he is entertaining plus his selection of grills are outstanding. He is the heir apparent to Floyd Mayweather in the way that he is very good and I want to see him get his ass handed to him but love him or hate him Floyd EARNED his braggadocio. Corrales, Castillo, De La Hoya, Gatti, Judah, Hatton, Marquez, Mosely, Cotto. That is a phenomenal resumé. I don’t hate Broner now or think he’s bad for boxing. I am simply recognizing that he gave a performance unworthy of his own hype and exhibited bad manners. Poetically enough, when Broner finally does bite off more than he can chew, Paulie will be the Showtime announcer with the platform to gleefully comment, unanswered, on how the Problem was solved.