By Francisco Hernandez: Several weeks ago I wrote an article pointing out how Daniel Ponce de Leon was being set up to be the stepping stone for Golden Boy Promotions new hype job Adrien Broner. Daniel Ponce de Leon was supposed to lose this fight no matter what. It is not surprising then that despite winning the fight last Saturday night at Anaheim, California, the judges awarded it to Adrien Broner.

Daniel Ponce de Leon a small featherweight gave up all the advantages that a fighter can possibly give up: height, he was slower, and more importantly he gave up his power at the lightweight division. The story should have been that Broner would knock out the Native-American fighter, and the sensationalist ring commentators at HBO and in other media would howl about how the next great fighter was now on the scene after destroying a tough veteran like Ponce. Well that didn’t happen. The small and slow Ponce was able to do enough to win the fight, and everyone in the Honda Center knew it, except the judges who I suspect had scored the fight before it even started.

Daniel Ponce de Leon proved to be a very slippery stepping stone for Adrien Broner. Ponce exposed the hype job Broner for what he is, not much of a fighter. Adrien Broner is like a dog chasing a car, what is he going to do when he catches up to it? What is Broner going to do when he has to face someone like Brandon Rios? He is going to get knocked out silly.

Daniel Ponce de Leon doesn’t have many options left, he doesn’t have the skills to defeat any of the champions at the featherweight division, and if he doesn’t retire he is destined to be a gate keeper or stepping stone for the upcoming prospects. There is nothing wrong with that, he will be able to knockout many a hype job, and lose to real talent, but he needs to do this in the featherweight division where he will not give up so many advantages. Ponce should not be fighting lightweights.