The Next Chapter In The Career Of Adrien Broner

 

Former four-division world champion Adrien Broner's career can be described a couple of different ways. The one that this observer has used when asked about Broner over the years has been too much, too soon. It seemed as though when Broner emerged on the scene in the early 2010's after turning professional in 2008, that he began collecting world titles in multiple divisions during a period of time where many fighters are still developing as professionals. While this is a testament to Broner's skills and talent as a fighter, his rise to stardom might be viewed by some as one that was too quick.

By now, Broner's career and issues outside of the ring have been chronicled by many in Boxing media including yours truly, so for the purposes of the constraints of one column, I will summarize where we are now. After some setbacks in the ring, troubles outside the ring,  failed attempts to return to the ring, a highly publicized split with his longtime manager Al Haymon and the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), a failed deal with relative newcomer to the sport BLK Prime, and more than two years removed from his last fight, the now thirty-three year old former world champion prepares to return to the ring against relative unknown Welterweight contender Bill Hutchinson on Saturday, June 9th at Casino Miami in Miami, FL. The bout, which will headline a pay-per-view card available globally on digital combat sports streaming network and pay-per-view platform FITE TV, not only signals Broner's return to competition after a long absence, but also his first fight after forming an alliance in a multi-fight deal with Hall of Fame promoter Don King.

This fight has a clear storyline going into it. It represents the next chapter and what is likely a fresh start for Broner. In terms of the opposition that Broner will face on June 9th, Bill Hutchinson is a fighter, but he is also a practicing lawyer, which is a rarity in the sport. As a fighter, Hutchinson does have a respectable record of 20-2-4, with 9 Knockouts. The level of his opposition however, has been limited up to this point and this is a significant step up in caliber of opposition for him against the former world champion Broner. What Hutchinson does have going for him going into this fight is he has been the more active of the two, having fought as recently as 2022 and has won his last ten bouts.

The obvious question here is does Hutchinson have the skills to make it competitive against Broner and to potentially pull off an upset. Unfortunately, as a consequence that does not happen too often these days as compared to many years ago thanks to the advent of streaming video, but this is a rare instance where this observer, a noted and proud Boxing lifer, journalist, historian, and one who studies fight films on a daily basis, has not been able to find any footage of Hutchinson in action as this will be my first opportunity to cover him. It is important however, to keep in mind that Adrien Broner is coming off of a two year layoff and has had to deal with distractions outside of the ring in that time, which has contributed to his inactivity. Often the biggest enemy of fighters in any combat sport is inactivity. So, as there are questions as to what Bill Hutchinson will bring to the table, there should be questions as to what kind of Adrien Broner we will see in this fight. As inactivity should be viewed as an enemy, with that the possibility of “Ring Rust” is definitely possible for a fighter coming off of a lengthy absence such as Broner. 

While we do not know what Hutchinson will bring with him into this fight, there is a blueprint of sorts on how to fight Broner that perhaps he might try to use to his advantage. Adrien Broner is one of the most accurate fighters with his offense when he is actively competing, but often opponents have been able to make fights close and out work Broner by being more active and keeping Broner in a defensive shell where he does not get his punches off consistently. Obviously, we are not likely to get an idea of what Hutchinson might do until the fight is actually occurring in the ring. It would be wise of this largely unknown fighter/lawyer to have spent time studying Broner’s previous fights and to try and implement an approach for success in this fight. 

Hutchinson must keep in mind that Broner does have hand speed and punching power, but he needs to try and force the issue in this fight by making Broner fight. The one advantage that Hutchinson might have here is the fact that he has been more active than his opponent and as such, he needs to make it difficult for Broner to work off that “Ring Rust, even though he is at a significant disadvantage in terms of experience and caliber of previous opposition. This will also be the first time that Hutchinson will be in a scheduled ten round bout in his career and it will be interesting to see how he will look in the middle and late rounds of this fight, should it get that far and if the bout proves to be a competitive bout.

Outside of the significant layoff for Broner, seemingly this has all the appearance at least on paper of a fight that he should be favored to win. It will nevertheless be interesting to see if this chapter in Broner’s career is truly a fresh start where no matter what happens win, lose, or draw, and how he performs, will be one that sees him being more active inside the ring to try and work his way back into world title contention rather than dealing with issues outside of the ring.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

Broner vs. Hutchinson takes place on Friday, June 9th at Casino Miami in Miami, FL. The fight can be seen globally on digital combat sports streaming network and pay-per-view platform FITE TV for $24.99. The broadcast will begin at 6:50PM ET/3:30PM PT (U.S. Times only.) For more information about FITE TV including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, and to learn how to download the FITE app, please visit: www.FITE.TV. To order Broner vs. Hutchinson from your web browser Click Here.

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

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Crawford-Porter Preview

 As 2021 begins to wind down, one of the bigger fights remaining on the Boxing schedule is on the horizon as undefeated three-division world champion Terence Crawford, current holder of the WBO Welterweight world championship will defend his crown against former two-time Welterweight world champion Shawn Porter on Saturday, November 20th at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. The fight, which will headline a pay-per-view card that can be seen exclusively on ESPN+ in the United States brings together two of the top fighters in the division and is frankly one of the better fights that could be made currently in the sport.

 

For Terence Crawford, a fighter who has won world titles from the 135lb. Lightweight division to the 147lb. Welterweight division, this fight represents something that he has been wanting for some time. An opportunity to face one of the elite fighters in the Welterweight division. Why would an undefeated three-division world champion be struggling as Crawford has to secure marquee fights? The short answer is due to the business elements of the sport in that rival promoters choose more often than not to not work together to bring fights like this to fruition. While some might argue that the only reason this fight is taking place is due to the fact that Shawn Porter, a fighter long aligned with the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) group of promoters and to be more specific his manager Al Haymon is the current WBO number one contender in the Welterweight division and thus it was a necessity for him to negotiate with Crawford’s promoter Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc. in order to secure his mandated title shot.

 

Although the PBC and Top Rank have done business periodically, most notably in two of the three encounters between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder, this will not be a co-production of competing networks and will take place exclusively on a Top Rank promoted card and broadcast platform through ESPN. It should be no secret to longtime readers or those who have read my work recently that I am no fan of potential fights not being made due to rival promoters refusing to work together for reasons including but not limited to the exclusivity of their broadcast agreements with different networks that are involved the sport among other reasons. Even though yours truly stands by his criticism of both the PBC model as well as fights being delayed because of business interests rather than what is good for the sport and the fighters involved, this is one fight that I am happy to see taking place at an appropriate time with both fighters in their primes.

 

As for the fight itself, this will be a clash between two boxer/punchers who can box as well as score knockouts should an opportunity arise. In thinking of how this fight might be fought, I decided to do something that I have done for practically my entire life, study fight films. While there are similarities between the two fighters, I believe that the challenger Porter will likely be the more aggressive out of the gate. Although this strategy has proven successful in many of his fights and even had success in bouts where he came out on the losing end such as his bout with Errol Spence in September 2019, one aspect of Porter’s offense that I feel might work against him against a fighter like Crawford is he tends to lunge forward when he throws punches. This can indeed prove effective against fighters who may not be prepared for such tactics, but against a fighter like Terence Crawford, who is a very skilled counter puncher this could turn out to be a flaw for Porter that Crawford can take advantage of.

 

While both fighters have a mix of hand speed and punching power, Crawford is a fighter that can box quite effectively from the outside using his jab to keep an opponent at distance and set up combinations where an opponent will find it difficult to get offense off consistently, particularly opponents that Crawford will have a height and reach advantage over. In this case, Crawford will have a one inch height advantage over Porter and nearly five inches in reach. It is logical to think that the champion will try to establish distance between himself and Porter early on and attempt to keep the combat at a distance that will favor him likely through the use of his jab as well as periodically switching between an orthodox and southpaw stance, something that has proven to be quite effective for him throughout his career. The key for Porter in my eyes will be whether he will be able to force Crawford into a fight, in short, whether he can turn this into more of a toe to toe battle as opposed to a tactical Boxing match.

 

Despite the similarities between the two in both hand speed and punching power, the subtle differences between the two such as height and reach may prove to be the difference in this fight should Porter be unable to get on the inside of Crawford’s reach and force a physical and grueling fight on him as he was able to do for periods against Errol Spence. Even though Porter lost that fight, which was a unification bout for the IBF and WBC world championships in the division and subsequently ended his second reign as a world champion, it was a very close and competitive fight due largely to the success he was able to have by forcing the fight on the inside. While this is not necessarily a similar fight in terms of styles, Porter must be able to get on the inside and find a way to make Crawford uncomfortable. At the same time, he needs to be weary of lunging in recklessly where Crawford may be able to counter him with a punch or punches that he may not see coming.

 

Although the similarities between two fighters give an appearance that this may be an even fight, as 2022 nears, this could be the start of an era where fights are made based on what is good for the sport and not on the various business interests that often serve as a detriment to Boxing’s growth and overall progress. No matter who wins on Saturday night between Crawford and Porter, this observer hopes that the era where what is good for the sport and the fans that support it in good times and bad is on the horizon. If Crawford-Porter turns out to be the competitive fight an interesting clash of styles that it appears it might be on paper, it will be a win for Boxing.

 

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

 

Crawford vs. Porter takes place on Saturday, November 20^th at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. The fight can be seen exclusively in the United States on  ESPN+ Pay-Per-View for $69.99  beginning at 7PM ET/4PM PT with Preliminary bouts with the main card beginning at 10PM ET/7PM PT. ESPN+ the digital subscription sports streaming network of ESPN is available through the ESPN app on mobile, tablet, and connected streaming devices/platforms/Smart TVs. To subscribe to ESPN+ and order the card please visit: https://plus.espn.com/crawford-porter. Existing ESPN+ subscribers can order either by clicking the link and logging in or through the ESPN app.

 

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the card can be seen on Sky Sports Main Event beginning at 2AM (Sunday, November 21^st Local UK Time). For more information about Sky Sports including availability and channel number in your area please visit: www.skysports.com. Check your local listings internationally.

 

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

 

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison