Bonzo
05-20-2014, 02:11 PM
May 20, 2014
http://boxingtalk.com/img/fighters/broner1.jpg
MAKING THE CASE FOR A PACQUIAO-BRONER FIGHT
By Tommy Canez
Oscar De La Hoya, the president of Golden Boy Promotions, recently vowed to end boxing's "cold war" between his company and Bob Arum's Top Rank. As boxing fans now, the cold war has prevented many great fights from being made in recent years, most notably Floyd Mayweather, Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao. If De La Hoya is able to accomplish his stated goal, it would be an extraordinary step forward for the sport of boxing. There are many dream fights that can be made between the rival promotional companies that fans would absolutely love to watch.
The sport of boxing needs both companies to reconcile instead of having people like Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer and boxing's most influential manager/advisor Al Haymon attempting to form an oligarchy. A new Schaefer/Haymon entity, if it happened, would only hurts the fans and the sport because it would continue to block the best match-ups from being made. Notwithstanding, the number one fight that can be realistically be made right now is Pacquiao vs. Adrien Broner. Afrter his last fight, Broner (pictured) made it very clear that he is willing to fight Pacquiao anywhere and at any weight. If Broner is serious, and Golden Boy and Top Rank Promotions are able to reconcile their differences, this fight would be an easy sell and every effort should be made to make it happen.
At this point, you might ask, why isn't Pacquiao vs. Mayweather the biggest fight that can be made between Top Rank and Golden Boy? Well in theory it is, but not in reality. The fans can forget about that matchup ever taking place. In my opinion, Floyd Jr. clearly has no intention of ever fighting Manny. Too much time has passed, too many excuses have been made, and fans need to move on. It is a pipe dream.
Pacquiao vs. Broner would capture fans' interest. It would give them plenty of ammunition to debate who would have won between Pacquiao and Mayweather had it ever taken place. Why? The answer is because many experts and fans view Broner as a Mayweather clone. Moreover, many claimed Marcos Maidana's victory over Broner last year would not be indicative of how he would perform against a fighter of Mayweather's caliber. Floyd Mayweather Sr. even went as far as stating that Mayweather would box circles around him before stopping him.
Ultimately, we learned that Maidana's victory over Broner was a pretty solid indicator about how he would perform against Mayweather, because Maidana, after beting Broner, went on to give Mayweather the toughest fight of his career. Mayweather won, but it was a majority decision. The same can be surmised from a Pacquiao vs. Broner matchup-- Pacquiao's performance against a Mayweather-lite opponent like Broner would give us a real indication about how he'd do against Pacquiao.
A victory over Broner would also give Pacquiao and his fans plenty of bragging rights that he never feared a particular style. Many fans have stated that the true reason why Mayweather avoided Pacquiao is because Floyd fears a fighter with the skill set that Pacquiao possesses: a southpaw stance, blazing hand speed, the ability to punch from unorthodox angles, superior power in both hands, and the ability to dart in and out. Currently, there is no fighter in boxing, other than Pacquiao himself, that Mayweather can fight who possesses that skill set.
On the other hand, Broner is the boxer who most closely resembles Mayweather's skill set. This would be a huge stylistic plus for Manny Pacquiao and his fans.
Similarly, a victory over Pacquiao would yield the same results for Broner. If Adrien Broner were to pull off the upset, he would form his own identity and remove himself from Mayweather's shadow. Broner and his fans could also boast that he had the fortitude to share a ring with Pacquiao. More importantly, a victory over Pacquiao would catapult Broner into superstardom and, should he win, he would solidify his boasts that he is Mayweather's heir apparent.
Heep in mind, even if De La Hoya and Arum are able to settle their differences, there would still be a sizeable roadblock that would keep a Pacquiao-Broner matchup from happening. Broner is advised by Al Haymon and he could potentially advise Broner to stay away from a fighter like Pacquiao if he hopes to become a major superstar in the sport. Boxing is as much a business as it is a sport. With Haymon being the smart businessman that he is, he may provide Broner with a plan that maximizes his profits while minimizing his risk, similar to the plan Broner's "big brother" has followed with great success.
http://boxingtalk.com/img/fighters/broner1.jpg
MAKING THE CASE FOR A PACQUIAO-BRONER FIGHT
By Tommy Canez
Oscar De La Hoya, the president of Golden Boy Promotions, recently vowed to end boxing's "cold war" between his company and Bob Arum's Top Rank. As boxing fans now, the cold war has prevented many great fights from being made in recent years, most notably Floyd Mayweather, Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao. If De La Hoya is able to accomplish his stated goal, it would be an extraordinary step forward for the sport of boxing. There are many dream fights that can be made between the rival promotional companies that fans would absolutely love to watch.
The sport of boxing needs both companies to reconcile instead of having people like Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer and boxing's most influential manager/advisor Al Haymon attempting to form an oligarchy. A new Schaefer/Haymon entity, if it happened, would only hurts the fans and the sport because it would continue to block the best match-ups from being made. Notwithstanding, the number one fight that can be realistically be made right now is Pacquiao vs. Adrien Broner. Afrter his last fight, Broner (pictured) made it very clear that he is willing to fight Pacquiao anywhere and at any weight. If Broner is serious, and Golden Boy and Top Rank Promotions are able to reconcile their differences, this fight would be an easy sell and every effort should be made to make it happen.
At this point, you might ask, why isn't Pacquiao vs. Mayweather the biggest fight that can be made between Top Rank and Golden Boy? Well in theory it is, but not in reality. The fans can forget about that matchup ever taking place. In my opinion, Floyd Jr. clearly has no intention of ever fighting Manny. Too much time has passed, too many excuses have been made, and fans need to move on. It is a pipe dream.
Pacquiao vs. Broner would capture fans' interest. It would give them plenty of ammunition to debate who would have won between Pacquiao and Mayweather had it ever taken place. Why? The answer is because many experts and fans view Broner as a Mayweather clone. Moreover, many claimed Marcos Maidana's victory over Broner last year would not be indicative of how he would perform against a fighter of Mayweather's caliber. Floyd Mayweather Sr. even went as far as stating that Mayweather would box circles around him before stopping him.
Ultimately, we learned that Maidana's victory over Broner was a pretty solid indicator about how he would perform against Mayweather, because Maidana, after beting Broner, went on to give Mayweather the toughest fight of his career. Mayweather won, but it was a majority decision. The same can be surmised from a Pacquiao vs. Broner matchup-- Pacquiao's performance against a Mayweather-lite opponent like Broner would give us a real indication about how he'd do against Pacquiao.
A victory over Broner would also give Pacquiao and his fans plenty of bragging rights that he never feared a particular style. Many fans have stated that the true reason why Mayweather avoided Pacquiao is because Floyd fears a fighter with the skill set that Pacquiao possesses: a southpaw stance, blazing hand speed, the ability to punch from unorthodox angles, superior power in both hands, and the ability to dart in and out. Currently, there is no fighter in boxing, other than Pacquiao himself, that Mayweather can fight who possesses that skill set.
On the other hand, Broner is the boxer who most closely resembles Mayweather's skill set. This would be a huge stylistic plus for Manny Pacquiao and his fans.
Similarly, a victory over Pacquiao would yield the same results for Broner. If Adrien Broner were to pull off the upset, he would form his own identity and remove himself from Mayweather's shadow. Broner and his fans could also boast that he had the fortitude to share a ring with Pacquiao. More importantly, a victory over Pacquiao would catapult Broner into superstardom and, should he win, he would solidify his boasts that he is Mayweather's heir apparent.
Heep in mind, even if De La Hoya and Arum are able to settle their differences, there would still be a sizeable roadblock that would keep a Pacquiao-Broner matchup from happening. Broner is advised by Al Haymon and he could potentially advise Broner to stay away from a fighter like Pacquiao if he hopes to become a major superstar in the sport. Boxing is as much a business as it is a sport. With Haymon being the smart businessman that he is, he may provide Broner with a plan that maximizes his profits while minimizing his risk, similar to the plan Broner's "big brother" has followed with great success.