Broner, Matthysse Create Path To Future Showdown

By Jake Donovan

CINCINNATI, OH - The fight week shenanigans suggested more the same in the career of Adrien Broner. But on Saturday night at home in Cincinnati, the former three-division was surprisingly subdued - even humbled - in outlasting Emmanuel Taylor over 12 rounds.

“It’s boxing, this is a business,” Broner stated of the pre-fight buildup to Saturday’s main event at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, which aired live on Showtime. “A lot of people didn’t know (Taylor) was tough, but this was my first big fight against another African-American fighter. I knew what I was getting into.”

What Broner got into was a world of hurt, overcoming a stiff challenge from an upset-minded Taylor to take a unanimous decision win, to the delight of 8,115 partisan fans in attendance.

The bout began on a promising note, with his hometown fans on their feet dancing and chanting along to Broner’s spirited ring entrance. It was the last time they’d have reason to cheer for the next few rounds, as Taylor came out with both barrels blazing.

None of this was surprising to the former three-division champ.

“I came from the bottom, so I know what it’s like to be there,” Broner said of his opponent’s hard-luck story and relative anonymity. “I was glad to give him a shot, because nobody really knew who he was.”

Taylor’s name will be well remembered after Saturday’s performance, entering as a 10-1 underdog as he nearly pulled off a major upset.

On paper, the night was marketed as a prelude to a showdown between Broner and Lucas Matthysse, who stopped Roberto Ortiz in two rounds in the evening’s co-feature attraction.

What fans were given was not a night of setup fights, but an action-packed thriller. Broner’s corner would have preferred for the fight to go chalk, but were generally pleased with the results in the end.

“I’d have preferred him to box more,” noted trainer Kevin Cunningham, working for the first time together with Broner, after having previously guided Cory Spinks and Devon Alexander to world titles. “But he gave the fans what they wanted to see, and that’s what matters in the end.”

The atmosphere in the arena carried a big fight feel to it, even with the prospect of the night intended to sell a bigger fight down the road. The threat of a Cincinnati Reds home game right next door didn’t at all affect the walk-up crowd, as local fans poured in droves to see the area’s biggest current boxing attraction.

“The arena was originally scaled to seat about 7,000,” noted Golden Boy Vice President Eric Gomez. “We had to add more seats due to the overwhelming demand.”

The event was a far cry from Broner’s last fight at home, when he missed weight and nearly caused a cancellation of a July ‘12 showdown with Vicente Escobedo. The show went on, but with his 130 lb. title left at the scales, his reign ending in the very same location where he won his first title some seven months prior.

There was no major title at stake for Saturday’s main event, though both fighters turned in championship-level efforts. Broner had to rally back from an early deficit to close the fight strong. A second-half surge propelled the local favorite ahead, to where he surprisingly didn’t even need to win the 12th round in order to win the fight.

But he did, and in emphatic fashion.

His lip bloodied from repeated right hands and right eye cut from an accidental headbutt, Broner appeared to be on the verge of one of the most stunning upsets of 2014.  Digging deep, the former three-division champ found the energy for one last surge. Combination punching led to a left hook that caught Taylor flush and put him down for the bout’s lone knockdown.

The arena reached a fever pitch as the entire crowd was on its feet in approval. Taylor managed to beat the count, but with less than 10 seconds to go in the fight had no chance to rally back and complete his dreams of shocking the world.

“I came to his hometown and gave him a good fight,” insists Taylor, now 18-3 (12KOs). “In the 12th round, I just got caught. I was trying to do what I had to do to win, but I just got caught.”

As the bell sounded to end the 12th and final round, Broner mounted a turnbuckle to salute the crowd, still on its feet and appreciative of the effort turned in by the hometown favorite.

Scores of 115-112 and 116-111 (twice) confirmed the feel in Broner’s corner - that victory was within reach and that the knockdown removed all doubt.

“It was more of a sigh of relief than anything else,” Cunningham said of the sequence towartds fight’s end. “We knew Adrien was up, but not by much. That knockdown definitely helped but we were confident he would prevail.”

The win is Broner’s second straight since suffering a humbling loss to Marcos Maidana last December. His record now 29-1 (22KOs), the question is which direction he travels for his next fight. Having moved up from 135 to 147 last year, Broner made the decision to drop back down to 140 lb. for his past two fights. A title pursuit - and win - would make him a champion in four weight classes, joining a very small list of fighters who’ve accomplished such a feat.

Instead, he sets his sights on one of the most feared fighters in the sport.

“My next fight should be Matthysse,” Broner insisted. “If it were up to me, I’d fight him with this cut on my head tonight.”

Matthysse’s win came in anti-climactic fashion, scoring a 2nd round stoppage of Roberto Ortiz in a ruling that didn’t sit well with the crowd.

A body shot late put Ortiz on the canvas late in round two. Referee Benji Esteves reached the count of nine as Ortiz arose from a knee, but called the fight as if the unbeaten Mexican was unable to continue.

The outcome was vehemently protested by Ortiz, and didn’t entirely sit well with Matthysse.

“If he was able to get up, I would have continued to fight him,” said Matthysse (36-3, 34KOs) after scoring his second straight win following a points loss to Danny Garcia last September. “But I respect the decision made by the referee and now we move on.”

Matthysse would rather revisit the past, anxious to avenge the loss to Garcia. The likelihood of that fight happening isn’t great, even with both fighters advised by Al Haymon. Garcia is due to face mandatory challenger Viktor Postol, and would have to vacate a title in order to proceed with a rematch.

Absent that, Matthysse is more than happy to tangle with Broner, who doesn’t seem to carry the same level of respect for the Argentine brawler as he does his most recent opponent.

“I wish he were here right now,” Broner said during the post-fight press conference, having just missed Matthysse, who exited moments earlier. “I want him next, but I got to give it up to Emmanuel Taylor, who put up a hell of a fight.”

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox