By Scott Gilfoid: WBC lightweight champion Adrien Broner’s trainer Mike Stafford thinks WBO lightweight champion Ricky Burns made the right decision in turning down a fight against Broner because he feels that Burns would have lost and he knows he would have lost. Stafford thinks Burns understands his limitations and doesn’t want the Broner fight.
Stafford said to Sports Illustrated “I was disappointed we didn’t get the Burns fight because the media and the fans wanted it. I was happy for Ricky because Ricky was smart enough to know that he couldn’t beat Adrien, and his team protected his business. Other than that, we have to move on.”
There it is and I agree with Stafford. Burns and his team had the chance to fight Broner more than once and more than once they decided to go in a different direction, even though the Broner fight would have made them a lot of cash.
You just look at the guys that Burns has been matched against instead of being put with Broner and it seems like the interest just isn’t there by his team to make that fight. Look at the guys that Burns has fought: Nicky Cook, Michael Katsidis, Paulus Moses…etc.
I thought it was kind of hilarious to hear Burns’ promoter Eddie Hearn mentioning Broner’s name as one of the fighters that Burns can’t fight in September because Broner has a fight in June, as if Broner was really being considered. I guess Hearn has to do that to make it seem to boxing fans that Broner is being considered for Burns’ next fight, but you know and I know that fight isn’t going to happen. The interest just isn’t there on Burns’ team’s side.
After watching how badly Burns struggled against Jose Gonzalez last Saturday night, I definitely see why it would be a very, very bad idea to put Burns in with Broner. That would be a slaughter of epic proportions.
I could see a lot of gloomy faces in Glasgow, Scotland if the Broner-Burns fight were to be staged there because there would be absolutely nothing to cheer about for the Scottish fans. I know some of them would be holding out hope that Broner would maybe tire or suffer an arm injury late in the fight so that Burns could finally start getting into the fight, but that would be such a hopeless pipe dream. If I were one of Burns’ fans, I would realize the hopeless of the situation by the 3rd round and then I’d walk out of the arena rather than sticking around for the bitter end.
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