By Allan Fox: Ivan Redkach will be looking to wreck Adrien ‘The Problem’ Broner’s comeback on February 18th when the two meet in the headliner on BLK Prime PPV in Atlanta, Georgia.
A loss to Redkach will ruin what’s left of Broner’s career, as he’s looked worse than shot since 2013.
There’s no question that the 36-year-old Redkach can defeat the journeyman Broner, as he’s shot beyond belief. With the colossal paunch that Broner needs to trim off to make the 147-lb limit for the fight with Redkach, his training camp will be a fat farm, and he’s not going to get the work he needs to win.
The real question is whether the judges will give Redkach the victory if the contest goes the distance because we’ve seen Broner receive favorable scoring in many of his fights since 2011.
Will Redkach get robbed by the judges if he fails to knock out Broner on February 18th?
You can argue that Broner’s true record should be 31-9, not 34-4-1 because he deserved defeats in these fights:
- Jovanie Santiago
- Jessie Vargas
- Paulie Malignaggi
- Daniel Ponce De Leon
- Adrian Granados
As we saw in those fights, it’s not easy to get a decision against the popular Broner unless you put it on him the way that Marcos Maidana, Manny Pacquiao, and Shawn Porter did.
Redkach (23-6-1, 18 KOs) isn’t a top-tier contender. Still, he’s got an excellent chance of defeating the former four-division world champion Broner, who hasn’t shined since his victory over Ashley Theophane.
Broner (34-4-1, 24 KOs) comes into the fight with Redkach with what should be a five-fight losing streak. The way that Broner looked since 2017, Redkach has an excellent shot at defeating him.
It’s unclear why BLK Prime has chosen to try and resurrect Broner’s shattered career, as he’s been a shadow of the fighter he once was since his loss to Marcos Maidana in 2012.
In almost every fight since, Broner has struggled, looking nothing like the fighter that he was when he campaigned in the 130 and 135-lb weight classes.
If BLK Prime doesn’t have a clause in the three-fight contract that allows them to terminate their agreement if Broner gets blown out in his first fight with them on February 18th, they’ll be on the hook for another two fights with AB, which he’ll likely lose as well if they insist on him fighting a contender.
Losing to a non-contender like Redkach would show that Broner is incapable of beating a top 15-ranked contender. We already saw last year Broner get worked over by fringe contender Jovanie Santiago. Broner looked lost against Santiago and should have been given a lopsided 12 round decision, but shockingly, the judges gave AB the victory.
“We can’t leave no money on the table. This is the part of my career where I collect as much money as I can and make my career as lucrative as possible and finish out the way I want to finish out, and they’re [BLK Prime] giving me a chance to do that,” said Adrien Broner to K.O. Artist Sports.
“I wouldn’t say this is a ‘Y’all must have forgot,’ because Roy Jones’ situation was Roy Jones’ situation, but y’all ain’t forgot about me. All it’s going to take is February when I come and shine everything is going to come back like the money.
“I’m trying to set my goals and do it one step at a time. I can’t be looking towards the future.
“That’s the fight I wanted for him. Go get ten million for that,” said Broner about Terence Crawford’s big eight-figure payday given to him by BLK Prime to fight gatekeeper David Avanesyan last Saturday night on pay-per-view.
“We ain’t never had no s**t like that,” said Broner when asked if Crawford has been unfairly criticized by fans for fighting Avanesyan. “The mother f***ker [BLK Prime] say, ‘You go fight whoever you want to fight, and I’m going to give you ten million for it.’
“They [Premier Boxing Champions] were just trying to give him [Crawford] a no guarantee to fight Godzilla [Errol Spence].
“Hell, nah. No guarantee to fight Godzilla?” said Broner when asked if he would have agreed to the no guaranteed deal from PBC if a fight with IBF/WBA/WBC welterweight champion Spence were offered to him.
“Then you’re [BLK Prime] going to give him ten million guaranteed to fight you? S**t. I think we’ll see it, and I honestly think we’ll see it on BLK Prime,” said Broner.