If Adrien Broner wants a good fight, there are plenty of guys who will give him one
Adrien Broner is a quality fighter. He proved that on Saturday in a split decision win over Paulie Malignaggi, where he jumped from lightweight to welterweight and won the WBA title.
He's not remotely in the class of his idol, Floyd Mayweather Jr., though. That was evident on Saturday almost from the opening minutes.
Broner has a lot going for him, but he's much more hittable than Mayweather, and at the top of the food chain, that's always a bad thing. Broner doesn't punch in combination particularly well, and he doesn't always set up his shots smartly.
He said after beating Malignaggi that he would host a fan vote, asking who he should fight, even though Golden Boy Promotions president Richard Schaefer said it would likely be Marcos Maidana.
But given that Broner could still fight at lightweight, here are 10 guys, from 135 to 147, who would make a good match with him.
LIGHTWEIGHTS
There aren't many lightweights who would be able to hang long with Broner. The division doesn't have the kind of multi-dimensional talent that will be needed to beat Broner, or at least give him a good fight.
The one guy who might, Yuriorkis Gamboa, has struggled recently.
Gamboa lacks discipline, he loses focus and he has basically zero fundamentals. But he's a marvelously gifted athlete with speed, quickness and power. A fight with Broner might be one that would get the juices flowing for Gamboa and spur him to a better performance than we've seen of him recently.
How it would go if they fought: Gamboa would be dangerous because of his power, but he leaves himself far too open and Broner is a good finisher.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium.
Odds of seeing Broner-Gamboa: Low.
SUPER LIGHTWEIGHTS
There are a lot of good 140-pounders and many of them are controlled by Golden Boy Promotions. Thus, there is a realistic chance of a lot of the fights being made.
Danny Garcia is one such opponent. He's a quality fighter, holds the WBA and WBC belts and has the kind of style that should combine with Broner to make for an entertaining scrap. The public is desperate to see him fight Lucas Matthysse -- and I agree -- but there is difficulty getting that fight done. Garcia is, like Broner, an Al Haymon client and there is question as to whether Haymon would do that.
How it would go if they fought: Despite Garcia's sterling record, there are many who believe he's vastly unproven. Yet, Garcia has fought a higher level of opposition than Broner and has looked good in wins over the likes of Amir Khan and Zab Judah. Broner's defense would be tested by Garcia, but the feeling here is that Broner's faster hands and quality offense would rule the day.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium-to-high
Odds of seeing Broner-Garcia: Medium
Zab Judah would be another good match for Broner. Judah has lost his bouts when he's stepping up to the highest level, but he is a highly skilled fighter with power, quickness and experience.
How it would go if they fought: Judah would likely box well in the early going and have Broner on the run. But in every big fight, Judah seems to make a big mistake to allow an opponent back into it or to take over. So Broner would probably adjust and beat Judah down the stretch.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium
Odds of seeing Broner-Judah: Low-to-medium
The hard-core boxing fans would love to see Lucas Matthysse get his shot at Broner. There are fewer hotter boxers right now than Matthysse.
How it would go if they fought: Matthysse has proven vulnerable to good boxers, and so Broner would likely use his jab and lateral movement to keep Matthysse off balance. Broner would be in constant danger from Matthysse's power, and he couldn't afford the lapses he's shown in other fights.
Public interest in the bout if made: High
Odds of seeing Broner-Matthysse: Medium
Mike Alvarado is coming off a stirring win over Brandon Rios and doesn't have that mega-fight he wants, as Top Rank chose to pit Rios with Manny Pacquiao instead. He'd be a great match for Broner, though.
How it would go if they fought: It would depend on Broner. He could make it an easy night if he fought a smart, disciplined fight and didn't try to get flashy and pull off any crazy moves. But Broner considers himself a showman and that would create a big risk against Alvarado. Alvarado would put tons of pressure on Broner, who hasn't proven yet he can handle a lot of pressure.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium-to-high
Odds of seeing Broner-Alvarado: As low as it gets, with Broner with Golden Boy and Alvarado with Top Rank.
Lamont Peterson, even after getting stopped by Matthysse, would be an interesting option for Broner. He still has the IBF belt and Broner could try for it on the theory that he pulled a Henry Armstrong. He's never lost the lightweight belt, just won the welterweight title and by beating Peterson, would own a third belt at the same time, essentially.
How it would go if they fought: Peterson doesn't have the speed or the boxing skill to make life difficult for Broner. Broner would be able to take risks and, once he caught him, would probably be able to finish it.
Public interest in the bout if made: Low-to-medium
Odds of seeing Broner-Peterson: Low-to-medium
WELTERWEIGHTS
Marcos Maidana is the man most likely to get the next shot at Broner. That's per the man who puts the deals together, Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer.
How it would go if they fought: Maidana is best in a fight where his opponent wants to engage and isn't using angles or subtlety. Broner doesn't feint a lot, but in this fight, if he feinted, he'd be able to catch Maidana with clean shots because Maidana isn't quick and reacts a lot to a good feint. Maidana's power would be the wild card in this one.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium
Odds of seeing Broner-Maidana: High
Robert Guerrero would be an excellent alternate opponent if Schaefer couldn't get a Broner-Maidana deal done. The benefit for Broner is that Guerrero is coming off a Mayweather fight and he might see the bout as a chance to prove he should be regarded as highly as his idol.
How it would go if they fought: Mayweather made it look easy in taking Guerrero apart, but Mayweather is a different type of fighter than Broner, even though both implement the shoulder roll. Guerrero would pour on the pressure and would force Broner to fight backing up. He'd also be forced to throw a lot of counter shots. But Broner has the ability to do those things. The question would be whether he respected Guerrero enough to be prepared to do them.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium-to-high
Odds of seeing Broner-Guerrero: High, but not this year
Manny Pacquiao would match incredibly well with Broner and would make for a fun fight. This is all theoretical, though, since Pacquiao has a fight signed and is with Top Rank.
How it would go if they fought: Pacquiao has hand speed to match Broner, and more power. He would stalk Broner relentlessly. Broner's challenge would be to do what Juan Manuel Marquez did in all four of their fights. Marquez was able to disrupt Pacquiao's timing and walk him into punches. Broner doesn't have that kind of nuance and Pacquiao would likely stop him late.
Public interest in the bout if made: High
Odds of seeing Broner-Pacquiao: Less than zero
Amir Khan has moved to welterweight and he's always in exciting fights. Watching Khan at times, one believes he should be among the elite of the game, but Khan makes mistakes on a regular basis that keep him from being elite.
How it would go if they fought: Khan's size, jab and power would pose plenty of trouble for Broner. But Khan's propensity to make a mistake and his lack of a chin would doom him to be stopped in the mid-to-late rounds by a fast-handed Broner.
Public interest in the bout if made: Medium-to-high
Odds of seeing Broner-Khan: Medium
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