Adrien Broner – The New Floyd Mayweather Junior?

By James Slater – It’s no secret the great Floyd Mayweather Junior is unbeaten WBO 130-pound champ Adrien Broner’s idle/inspiration/hero. Just one look at “The Problem,” as the 22-year-old with the shining 23-0(19) record is known, let’s a fan know Mayweather’s style has had and does have a massive influence on Broner’s boxing approach.

Almost a carbon copy of the 35-year-old master, Broner holds his hands the same way Floyd does and he has a defence that is uncannily like “Money’s.” Not only that, but Broner sure has the cockiness and the utter self belief that Mayweather has in abundance.

The question is, can Broner do what he clearly wants to do, and become as big a star as Mayweather; indeed, can the man from Cincinnati become THE NEW Floyd Mayweather? Possessing a ton of natural talent, Broner, like Mayweather (although at this point at a lower level of opposition) has the ability to make good fighters look ordinary. Broner did this last night, against the unbeaten Eloy Perez. Okay, Broner was way too big for the gutsy Perez (looking, as Barry McGuigan said whilst calling the fight for SKY Sports, like a fighter two divisions bigger than Perez) and bigger tests will come when Broner moves up to the talent-rich 135-pound division (as he surely will do soon, what with him being 5’7” and still growing physically) – but it may be that Broner will get even better than he is right now. Maybe even a whole lot better. Considering how good he is already, that’s a scary thought.

Possessing sizzling hand speed, genuine one-punch KO power and having a chin that is almost impossible to reach due to his impeccable defence, Broner seems to have it all. Much like a young Mayweather (the version that was stopping guys like Jesus Chavez, Diego Corrales and Angel Manfredy), Broner is aggressive in his pursuit of the stoppage win he has now achieved 19 times. All that is left to be tested is Broner’s ability to take a hard shot. If he’s anything like Mayweather, and he clearly is, Broner will be in no mood to go to war to prove his ability to take a punch.

A nightmare of an opponent for any good fighter at either 130 or 135, Broner is not only hard to hit, but he makes a guy pay with his own cracking power when he makes them miss. Broner has already mastered the ability to relax before and during a fight (again like Mayweather) – all he needs now are the big, big fights. It’s still early days of course, and some fans will say I’m going overboard even comparing Broner with Mayweather, but judging by last night’s flawless display of boxing, punching and making the other guy miss, Broner is ready for the big, big fights.

Like Mayweather, Broner may not be to everyone’s taste, what with his flashiness and his disrespecting of his opponents – but the wannabe star looks like he’s here to stay. We’d better get used to his style: both in and out of the ring.