By Allan Fox: WBA welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi (32-4, 7 KO’s) has no worries about the power of his next opponent Adrien Broner (26-0, 22 KO’s) on June 22nd next month despite Broner having a knockout percentage of 84.62.
Malignaggi feels that Broner has collected those knockouts over smaller fighters without much talent, and he doesn’t think he’ll be able to duplicate those efforts at welterweight against him and other better welterweights in the division.
Malignaggi said to boxingmundiel.com “I’m not convinced of his power. He’s got a lot of knockouts, but against guys smaller than him. On top of that, they weren’t that good to being with. You’re fighting smaller guys and less talented guys at that level. I think he lost to Ponce [De Leon].”
Malignaggi brings up some valid points about Broner. He has collected a lot of knockouts, but against smaller fighters each time out. Broner bulks up to the mid-140s for his fights, both at super featherweight and lightweight, and it gave him a big advantage in terms of weight over the fighters that he went up against in those divisions.
It’s true about Broner not having fought anyone with a lot of talent at super featherweight and lightweight. The best guys that Broner has fought are as follows: Vincente Escobedo, Jason Litzau, Gavin Rees and Antonio DeMarco. Those guys had all been exposed by other fighters long before Broner got to them, and it really didn’t say much that Broner could beat them too because they’d already been beaten in the past.
In moving up in weight to welterweight and now faced with having to suddenly start fighting guys with talent and around the same size as him, Broner is going to have to show that he can win at this level.
We’ve seen that Broner can beat smaller guys and less talented guys, but now it’s going to be a test to see if he’s really the next Floyd Mayweather or a poor imitation. Malignaggi said “Broner’s a Mayweather wannabee.” He doesn’t see Broner as having the speed or talent that Mayweather has or had when he was the same age as Broner.
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