Via Jack Tiernan: Adrien ‘The Problem’ Broner is at training camp in Colorado getting ready to return to the ring. Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza says they are looking for an opponent and a date to face former First Division four world champion Broner (34-4-1, 24 KOs).
It’s understandable why Espinoza and Showtime weren’t willing to give up the still young and talented Broner. If they can rebuild him, he has the potential to be a goldmine for the network.
At best, Broner needs to return to the featherweight superweight division he dominated years ago. It is easily his best weight class and the one where his strength far exceeds.
Since moving up 140 and 147, Broner’s career has been on the decline, like any boxer competing outside of his natural weight division.
The 32-year-old Broner has not been in a fight since February 2021 when he defeated Jovanie Santiago by unanimous decision of 12 rounds in an uneven performance from the talented boxer.
Broner had been out of the ring for two years when he entered the fight, and he looked surprisingly good for a fighter about to be laid off 25 months.
It’s important that expectations aren’t too high for Broner’s next game as he’s been out of the ring for 14 months.
What Broner needed was to compete against a peer from the 140 or 135 lb divisions we’re talking about a boxer who had only one fight under the belt in the last three years.
Broker ‘Problem’ in camp
“Adrien is in the camp. He’s gone away, he’s in Colorado camping, which proves how serious he is,” Showtime Sports Stephen Espinoza told ESNEWS about Adrien Broner.
“We are researching opponents and dates for him. He is clearly committed to it. I think he still has gas in the tank.
“I think there are interesting matches. Whether you love him or hate him, you know, he’s a draw,” Espinoza said of Broner.
If Broner can return to featherweight super in June or July, these will be good picks for him:
- Robson Conceicao
- Brock Jarvis
- Hector Luis Garcia
- Chris Colbert
- Roger Gutierrez
Errol Spence vs. Yordenis Ugas on Showtime
“I like to think about it in televised matches, it’s actually a six-card game,” Espinoza said of this Saturday’s unification fight between IBF/WBC weight champion Errol Spence Jr and home WBA champion Yordenis Ugas on Showtime PPV.
“You get Radzhab Butaev versus Eimantas Stanionis, [Brandon Lee vs.] Zachary Ochoa on Showtime before pay-per-view. So all for your pay-per-view you get six wars.
With some cool stuff in the cards, you’ll get the return of Isaac Cruz, who a lot of people just discovered when he was fighting Tank. I think it’s going to be a really fun night. There are six TV-quality matches on that card,” Espinoza said.
Tank Davis vs. Rolly Romero = War
“Sometimes you can get rid of all the plot, belts, and rankings, and as Tank says,” Espinoza said, “It’s about respect,” Espinoza said of the May 28 battle between Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis and Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis. and Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero. “It was a fight where we knew what both of you were going to do.
“They will try to knock each other out with almost every punch. It won’t have any surprises and no deception here. Both will say let’s go to the center of the ring and see who can shoot the other best.
“I think that’s very interesting. When you get one of those and it’s very personal. This is not about money, legacy or titles. This is about individual competition being developed. I think that adds a lot of excitement to the fight,” said Espinoza.
Kambosos vs. Haney: Is George real?
“Whenever you feel uncomfortable like we saw with Kambosos – Teofimo, you have to ask yourself if it’s more about [George] Kambosos or more about Teofimo? ‘ Espinoza said.
“The only way we will see this is to see Kambosos play against another high-level opponent. We will see it. Obviously, Haney is definitely skilled, and it’s going to be fun. It should be a well-suited style.
“With the pressure of the Kambosos and the movement of Haney, it could be there. But to me, the jury still doesn’t care about Kambosos. I won’t discount what he did [against Teofimo Lopez last November]. So far he was the better man that night.
“Since then, we have learned that Teofimo has had some pretty serious health problems. So the question is what percentage is Teofimo and how much is Kambosos?
“I think that’s why people are interested in the top games against Kambosos to see how good he really is,” Espinoza said.
Tyson Fury vs. Dillian Whyte bottom card
“It’s a good question. There’s definitely talent there. Promoters have access to talent,” Espinoza said when asked why the undercard Tyson Fury vs. Dillian Whyte was said to be weak in the match. their April 23 match.
“I don’t know their business, I can only speculate that having too much money tied up in the primary case makes them reluctant to invest and go further and take risks.
“I think it was a missed opportunity. That’s one thing that has been a priority for us last year and especially this year. That’s why we see three defeats, we have a world championship match.
“We have removers in the concurrent features, and we’re really trying to avoid those notifications when the fight goes on and you have a star on the side as a guy you really right for Google.
“That’s not what we’re doing. We are looking at evenly matched matches, world title challengers, developing and upcoming contenders in even matches. We have seen it. We saw it with Chris Colbert in a big disappointment earlier in the year [against Hector Luis Garcia on February 26th].
There are also others. I think you can call Mark Magsayo nasty [against Gary Russell Jr] also. That’s what happens when people have tough battles. You can’t always predict how it will end.
“That is something we are proud of. We looked at that card and the others, I was constantly shocked at the carelessness done to the bottom card.
“Literally, people like you and I have to Google someone like, ‘Who is that?’ That is saying a lot. You’re setting that as your concurrency feature, that’s a problem.
Shakur Stevenson and Oscar Valdez
“That’s a good question. I think [Oscar Valdez is not as quick and as athletic as Shakur, but we’ve seen it before. Sometimes the pressure and being fundamentally sound, I think it’s a tough fight,” said Espinoza on the April 30th super featherweight unification clash between WBC champion Oscar Valdez and WBO champ Shakur Stevenson.
“Whoever can impose their power and their will on this, I give Valdez a decent chance,” said Espinoza.
Espinoza talks Canelo
“It was very close and it was the more lucrative offer of the two,” said Espinoza when asked how close was Canelo Alvarez to PBC’s two-fight deal for him to face Jermall Charlo and David Benavidez this year.
“Even when it turned into a two-fight offer, PBC’s offer was more lucrative than the other one [from DAZN and Matchroom Boxing]. Canelo is an experienced guy, and he knows what he wants in his career.
“If the challenge is there for him to take, that’s what appeals to him. Personally, obviously, I’m not objective.
“I think in terms of fan perception and reaction, I think there’s more excitement behind Charlo and Benavidez. But I wouldn’t say it wasn’t an interesting match,” Espinoza said of Canelo taking on WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol on May 7 on DAZN PPV.
“175 is a tough detachment and Bivol is a legitimate 175 pound army. There are certainly challenges there. I hope after the fight with Bivol, we can absorb those conversations [with Canelo] and get the job done,” Espinoza said.
