COMMISSIONER’S CORNER: Talking Broner, HBO Bouts, P4P List, More

The Sweet Science (not the sport, but TSS.com) has been ablaze with talk/chatter/comments about Adrien “The Problem” Broner. It is 100% agreed upon that he takes his pre-fight and post-fight antics way too far. Even the most liberal of us cannot sit there, either by ourselves or with family and/or friends and say, after watching him grab himself more than Miley Cyrus and throw F-bombs around more than “Kid Chocolate” throws chocolate kisses to the crowd after a victory, “I really like this guy. He’s a class act.”

He hasn’t done anything, er, Problematic lately. It’s just that a recent thread on TSS, started by Skibbz on June 19, entitled, “Re: Adrien Broner-A Problem?” has already garnered dozens of responses covering eight pages—and still coming–as of this writing. Apparently, fans love speculating about Floyd Mayweather; discussing Manny Pacquiao; showing new love for Vasyl Lomachenko; and bashing Adrien Broner.

If Broner were in the WWE, he would unquestionably be a “heel”—a bad guy. However, in the WWE, it’s all an act (sorry if I just burst a few bubbles). With bad-guy Broner, it’s no act. What you see and what you get is what he is: a man-child who is 24 going on 14.

Broner thinks he’s funny.

Broner thinks he’s tough.

Broner thinks he’s entertaining.

He’s none of the above. If anything, he’s crude, a punk and repulsive. He’s been a champ in the ring and a top-rated chump outside of it.

I think it’s safe to say (or write) that most of us would like to see Adrien Broner fight again very soon. The tougher and more-skilled the opponent, the more we’ll like it. I think it’s also safe to say (or write) that most of us have no desire—NONE!—of hearing Broner in his pre-fight and post-fight drivvle (that’s a lot of words, a lot of nonsense and little substance.

So, what I am going to do, is send an open letter to the head of Showtime Sports, Steve Espinoza, before Broner’s next fight. The letter will ask, very politely, to only show Broner’s fight, but nothing more. I will ask him to refrain from doing pre-fight interviews, post-fight interviews and keeping the microphone away from Broner’s mouth. We don’t want to hear his potty-mouth, we don’t want to hear him telling us he is going to be known as the best fighter in history and we don’t need to hear him telling some groupie bimbette to “brush my hair.”

Steve Espinoza should let us watch Adrien Broner fight.

We should not have to endure anything else from him until he grows up.

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QUICK JABS: Next Saturday, young, gifted WBO Lightweight Champion Terence Crawford puts his title on the line against veteran Yuri Gamboa on HBO. It’s the fourth straight weekend of world-class boxing action on television. This past Saturday was the Showtime card featuring Robert Guerrero v Yoshihiro Kamegai and V-Lo against Gary Russell. The week before was Chris Algieri v Ruslan Provodnikov. The week before that was Miguel Cotto v Sergio Martinez at Madison Square Garden. In case you haven’t noticed, our sport is hot!

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POUND-FOR-POUND: Just what does Pound-for-Pound mean? What is it? Pound-for-Pound is either a consensus list or our own personal list of who we think the best fighter in the world is if everybody were the same size and weight. Could Manny Pacquiao beat Wladimir Klitschko? Could Mikey Garcia beat Andre Ward? With that, here’s my updated, fictitional list of the best Top-10 fighters in the world, starting with #10 and working up to #1:

10. Leo Santa Cruz

9. Miguel Cotto

8. Vasyl Lomachenko

7. Sergey Kovalev

6. Mikey Garcia

5. Gennady Golovkin

4. Wladimir Klitschko

3. Manny Pacquiao

2. Andre Ward

1. Floyd Mayweather

Whether or not you agree with the list doesn’t matter. V-Lo at #8. Hey, it’s my list. MINE! You have your lists. I have mine.

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SANCTIONING FEE RUBLES: Ahh, leave it to the sanctioning bodies to find ways for promoters to make deposits into the sanctioning body’s account. Only July 6, in Grozny, Russia, Ruslan Chagaev will face perennial contender Fres Oquendo. We use the term “perennial contender” for a guy who’s been around a long time and who usually loses his big fights. Well, Chagaev will face Oquendo for what the WBA is calling a championship bout. In case you’re keeping score, the bout is for the WBA’s vacant “regular” heavyweight title. What is the “regular” heavyweight title? Is that like vanilla ice cream and vanilla “lite.” And low-fat vanilla. And sugar-free vanilla? What is the the “regular” heavyweight champion? The “regular” heavyweight champion is a title for sale by a sanctioning body. It’s money, in this case rubles. Lots of them. FYI. The WBA Heavyweight Champion, just the plain ‘ol heavyweight champion, is a guy named Wladimir Klitschko. In June, 2009, Klitschko and Chagaev fought. Klitschko dominated, cut, dropped and battered Chagaev on the way to winning on a ninth-round TKO. So much for holding a WBA Heavyweight Title belt (should Chagaev beat Oquendo) while Klitschko is the real title holder. Titles for sale, anyone?

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BOOKS & DOCS: There are so many boxing books and videos on the market now I am in boxing heaven. Here are a few I highly recommend:

“El Boxeo”—this one is a documentary on the legends of Hispanic boxing. Directed by veteran filmmaker Alan Swyer, this is a fight fans’ collectible: From Alexis Arguello to Fernando Vargas, Swyer leaves nothing out. Roberto Duran, Wilfred Benitez, Julio Cesar Chavez, Ruben Olivares, Miguel Cotto, Carlos Palomino, Bobby Chacon, Canelo Alvarez and Oscar de la Hoya are just a few of the personalities and talent Swyer brings to your screen. Check it out online at elboxeothemovie.com.

“Typhoon Technique” is a book with both explanations and photos of training tips and boxing basics, written in masterful style by Vinny Furlani, along with former world champion Tracy Harris Patterson. It’s a fun book to have, especially when you might be thinking of expanding your boxing horizons from the couch to the gym.

Then there’s Steve Canton’s “Tributes, Memories & Observations of the Sweet Science,” with a foreword by Al Bernstein.This is a plethora of boxing stories and bios, put together by a lifelong boxing fan. It has 38 chapters and 358 pages of boxing info to sink your teeth into. I just got the book, and every morning, before leaving for the gym, I read another chapter. I can’t put this book down. You’ll see what I mean.

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HERE & THERE, THIS & THAT: I keep hearing talk of two opponents being thrown in the direction of Manny Pacquiao. One is Robert Guerrero. The other is Chris Algieri. With Al Haymon advising Guerrero, is there any real possibility of matching “The Ghost” with Bob Arum-promoted Pacquiao? I’d say little chance. The better chance is Chris Algieri, the unbeaten slickster from Long Island, N.Y. Algieri is promoted by Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing, and DeGuardia/Top Rank have no problem working together. Between the two fights, Guerrero would provide more fireworks, but most of the time those fireworks would be blowing up on his face. While there would be little fireworks with Algieri, there would be drama. That’s because Algieri would keep the fight close and take it into the late rounds. His reach and speed may be a huge problem for Pacquiao, which will also be a huge problem for Arum. The safe fight would be Guerrero. The most logical and realistic fight will be Algieri. We’ll have the answer soon…Comebacking Shannon Briggs, 42, looks to make it four straight KO’s on his comeback when he takes on Raphael Zumbano Love in Oklahoma this weekend. Since launching his comeback last April, Briggs has knocked out all three opponents in the first round. Will another first-round ending come on Saturday? The 33-year-old Love is 34-7…The U.K.’s David Haye, recovering from shoulder surgery, is planning a comeback. Haye v Briggs would be a fun fight…Daniel Geale, who will face GGG in MSG on July 28, is talking tough. “Golovkin can be hit,” says Geale. “I am going to hit him hard and I am going to hit him often.” To that, GGG just replies, “Let him try!”…Might it be time for unbeaten Heather Hardy and Roberto Guerrero to get new trainers? Neither know the meaning of the word “Defense.”

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THIS DAY IN BOXING: This morning, I sat down and watched the first Joe Frazier-Jerry Quarry match with my wife, Roni. The bout was held on June 23, 1969, in Madison Square Garden.

I was there that day as a college kid, not yet in possession of either a press pass and still 19 years away from being handed my Commissioner’s badge. I bought two $50 seats ($100 was a lot for a college kid back then!!!) to watch my favorite fighter, Joe Frazier, defend his share of the heavyweight title against “Irish” Jerry Quarry. I gave the usher $10 and he moved me and my first-time date down to ringside. I had wanted to take my girlfriend, but she had just broken up with me, so I took another girl instead. Well, what a fight it was, especially that first round. It’s on Youtube. Watch it. You’ll probably watch it a few times. It was kind of like a heavyweight version of Marvelous Marvin Hagler-Thomas Hearns. Nobody except Frazier could have kept up that pace, and he stopped Quarry in the seventh round. As for my date, she hated the fights. I never saw her again. My ex-girlfriend? Her name is Roni. She came back to me. She loves the fights. She married me. Goes to nearly every one with me. She sits in-studio while I do my show on SiriusXM. So, this morning, on the 45^th anniversary of the Frazier-Quarry fight, which was Ring Magazine’s “Fight of the Year,” we watched the fight in its entirety.

“I can’t believe I missed this fight,” she said.

“Yeh, but you got to watch a lot more,” I said, “and you got to become friends with both Frazier and Quarry.

“Sorry for breaking up with you,” she said.

“Thanks for coming back,” I replied.

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