By Dan Ambrose: Adrien Broner’s welterweight clash with Chris Howard has been moved to December 2nd at the Casino Miami Jai Alai in Miami, Florida.
Given how little attention Broner’s fight with 16-year professional Howard has received, it’s a match-up that could be moved repeatedly and fans won’t take notice.
AB is taking the old-fashioned backdoor route to a world title shot by facing scrubs instead of contenders, which is obviously sad, but it’s how far his career has sunk.
Broner is trying to work his way to a title shot at 140, and there’s a possibility he could get a chance to battle WBC champion Regis Prograis down the road if he holds onto his title. The 34-year-old Prograis will be laughed at if he fights Broner, but they’re both the same age and it’s a fight that Regis has wanted for years.
Possible reasons for Broner is fighting Howard
- Money
- Keeping busy
- To get moved up the rankings
- Staying relevant
Choosing to face the obscure fighter Howard (18-2-1, 8 KOs) is an odd move for Broner because a victory over him won’t do anything for his career. Broner needs to be fighting recognizable top-15 contenders at 147, but the problem is, it would be too risky to put him in against any top-tier guy.
Assuming the fight goes ahead without further delay, Broner will be fighting for just the third time in the last four years since 2019, and he’s been largely forgotten by fans.
The 34-year-old Broner (35-4-1, 24 KOs) is trying to keep his sagging career alive after years of inactivity and failure in his biggest fights. AB is ranked #15 WBC at welterweight, and he needs some solid wins under his belt, a title shot at 147 or 140.
Last June, the former four-division world champion Broner made a comeback after two years of inactivity to defeat a fighter named William Hutchinson.
Few boxing fans had ever heard of Hutchinson, as he’s not one of the mainstream fighters, yet he was dug up for Broner to fight. That choice of opponent for Broner showed clearly how far he’s slipped.
It’s hard to believe that Broner was one of the most popular fighters in the sport a decade ago, he’s fallen off the map since his loss to Marcos Maidana in 2013. The loss likely isn’t the reason why Broner’s career has gone belly up.
It’s more of a case of Broner making a lot of money, and enjoying himself too much outside of the ring.
Rather than continuing to put in the hard work and living a spartan lifestyle, Broner has enjoyed the millions that he’s made, and it’s resulted in his career deteriorating to the point where he’s now fighting completely unknown second-tier fighters, hoping to keep winning long enough to get title shot that he has no chance of winning at 140 or 147.
