At 23-years-old lightweight champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner is a two-time world champion, and appears to be like fine wine, in that he is only getting better with age.
Weigh In: Adrein Broner 134 vs Gavin Rees 134.5
This Saturday night from the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, Broner will put his undefeated record on the line against Gavin “The Rock” Rees (37-1-1, 18 KO) of the UK in a 12-round showdown for the WBC lightweight title.
Broner (25-0, 12 KO) has looked exceptional since coming out of the gate in 2008 as a pro, and has stopped his opponents in all but one of his last 16 fights. He has displayed the ring experience and smarts of a veteran fighter, with the fast hands and elusiveness of a world champion in his prime.
About the title fight with Rees, Broner shared, “I just want him to bring his A game because if you want to get things just right you have to bring nothing but you’re A game, so I just hope he’s ready and I hope he is in shape because it’s going to be a long night.”
Although he has not fought big names recognized to most of the boxing world, and has fought comfortably in Europe, Rees has stepped up each time he has gone to battle and dismissed of the opponents he has needed to in order to rise amongst the ranks of the lightweight division. He hasn’t been defeated in nearly five years, and is a fighter who isn’t scared to come forward and go to war.
Having the opportunity to fight Broner for the world title, Rees commented, “I’m a real fighter, I’ll fight anybody. I’ll go in there to fight anybody. I know he’s a great fighter. I’m going over there to give out the fight of my life and I know it’ll be one hell of a fight. So, I’m fully confident. I’ve got a game plan, so we’ll see on the night what happens.”
Despite more than dominating each of his opponents—breaking them down round after round—until they have been unable to continue, Broner’s task at hand against Rees may not be as easy as it would appear to be on paper. Rees is someone who will stand in front of Broner as needed and make him work hard and fight the full three minutes of each round.
This 12-round battle has the makings of being a dogfight, and Broner will be in for a test. Rees has the patience and experience to go deep into the fight, but what will be key for him will be avoiding the accrued punishment Broner seems to wreak upon his opponents each trip between the ropes.
A win over Rees Saturday night will mean the continuation of his reign of supremacy in the division, and critics will be wondering when he will be stepping up and fighting the 140 pounds best.
Broner expressed he has no interest in jumping up anytime soon. “I just moved up to this weight. I still make the weight eating steak and potatoes every night at training camp. I make the weight comfortably, so I’m going to stay here for a lot of good fights that I still can have at 135 pounds. So, I’m going to flush out this lightweight division and then we can go up to the light welterweight and crush their dreams. So, we’re going to stay here for a while.”
If Broner is able to get off and control the fight the way he has been doing in his previous bouts, it is going to be a long night for Rees, and an even longer flight back home. Saturday night fight fans will be in for a treat and will find out how much of a problem Broner is for Rees.
The action begins live on HBO this Saturday night at 10:30 p.m. Eastern.