Ashley Theophane and Adrien Broner
Troubled boxer, Adrien Broner, 26, scored a 9th round
stoppage over underdog, Ashley Theophane, 35, in Washington, DC
this past Friday night. Broner hit Theophane with a low blow to his
genitals, which caused him to put his hands up and hunch
over. The referee misinterpreted it and in a controversial decision
being slammed on social networking,
gave Broner the stoppage. Theophane tried to explain to the
referee he was not asking for the fight to be stopped.
However, the referee refused to listen, ending the bout
prematurely.
While Broner did dominate for much of the fight, you never
know, Theophane may have scored a knock out, clipping him
when he was momentarily off guard. Theophane did not look to
be in mortal danger. Therefore, the fight could have
continued. Maybe Broner will give him a rematch, but he
doesn't usually extend that offer to opponents he has
already fought.
Photos from the Broner v. Theophane fight
How did Broner dominate in this fight? Broner took out his rage for former mentor, Floyd
Mayweather, on the latter's protégé, Theophane. It was like
Broner snapped and kept picturing Mayweather instead of
Theophane in the ring. It was like a case of sibling rivalry
gone wild.
Broner is exhibiting signs of jealousy and abandonment, as
Mayweather, who once took Broner under his wing as his heir
apparent, has embraced Theophane and Gervonta Davis instead as his
new boxing protégés, signing both to Mayweather Promotions.
Broner was signed to rival Golden Boy Promotions, but has
now started his own company, About Billions. Mayweather
understandably put his boxer's signed to Mayweather
Promotions first. Broner was genuinely hurt and tearful
about comments Mayweather made criticizing his lifestyle and
the negative attention it attracted. This was his motivation
for fighting the way he did during the Theophane bout.
Broner v. Theophane fight
On the under card, 21-year-old newbie
Davis won his fight against Guillermo Avila in convincing
fashion, unleashing a flurry of shots that won him a TKO in
the 6th round. Davis has a lot of potential and exhibits a
steady tenacity in finishing opponents in the ring [Boxer Adrien Broner On The Verge Of Tears Slams Former Mentor
Floyd Mayweather (Video)].
The Davis v. Avila fight was a clean finish in what was a
clear cut win.
It was another story regarding the Broner vs. Theophane
fight. It was not a clean win for Broner, who had already
drawn criticism from fight fans for failing to make weight
for the fight. Broner missed the 140 pound limit, weighing
in at 140.4, whereas Theophane accurately made weight.
Broner was given 2-hours to shed the additional weight, but
didn't even bother to return to be weighed again.
Broner v. Theophane fight
As a result, Broner, was stripped of his WBO belt. Even with
his win last night, the title still remains vacant, meaning he is
not the champion. All over .4 pounds which is being
interpreted by many online, who have voiced the opinion in
articles and on social networking that Broner is not taking
his job as a boxer seriously.
In past fights, Broner was apparently
training at Pizza Hut
(LOL) as he posted a photo of himself
eating fast food and bloated, which you can only do to
limited degrees when not in training camp (this led to boxer
Marcos Maidana beating the hot wings and pepperoni right out
of Broner in the former's win). It's a shame that Broner
does not take his job more seriously, as
the Judiciary Report has maintained for years that he
has boxing talent (credit where credit is due).
Adrien Broner being fed fast food by his fiancée
in 2014
In a tweet on the website Twitter, I stated
two weeks before the fight that Broner looked too big for
the bout. Broner didn't look out of shape. The muscle
definition was there. However, he was top heavy. Broner's
torso was too big for his weight class and as a result,
2-weeks ago he
did not look like a lightweight boxer. Broner looked more
like a middleweight. Broner was also retaining water in the
face and torso, clearly due to alcoholism (Broner was
arrested and convicted of drunk driving last year and
sentenced to 6-months probation and community service).
My tweet on Twitter 2-weeks prior to Adrien Broner not making weight, being stripped of his title and fined $50,000
Broner's trainer was unable to fully correct
this issue in time for the fight, as Broner did not make weight,
resulting in him being stripped of his title, as mentioned
above. Broner's eyes have also been looking very sad and troubled
these past few weeks, due to personal and legal issues
outside the ring:
Adrien Broner
Theophane is also a good boxer, but I would like to see him
increase his punching power. Theophane needs an expansion of
his punching power. There are exercises one can do, focusing
on the center of balance and inertia coupled with
resistance, in pulling up punches,
especially from one's core, then firing them off. Then after
much practice, it becomes instinctive. Athlete who perform
on instinct have better results in play.
For failing to make weight, Broner had to paid Theophane
$50,000 in order for the fight to continue as scheduled.
Therefore, Theophane will get his purse plus the additional
$50,000. Not bad for a night's work (that was actually
months of hard work work).
In the month leading up to the fight, I watched training
videos posted online for both Theophane and Broner.
Theophane worked much harder than Broner and put way more
into training camp. I am of the belief, Theophane, put too
much into the training camp and it took its toll. By fight
night he looked exhausted before the first bell had even
sounded. He looked anemic in the days leading up
to the fight due to his rigorous roadwork and overall hectic
training schedule. I'm my humble opinion, the road work,
sparring sessions, conditioning and strength training went
to excess.
Ashley Theophane ran for many miles in the Nevada mountains on a regular basis in preparation for the fight
A few days before the fight Theophane posted a photo of
him running many miles and he looked gaunt. He also appeared
emotionally drained from the training camp and comments
being made, as from the
outset he was the underdog and received a significant amount
of taunting from Broner, those in his camp and his rival's
fans. He took it to heart and you can't afford to do that.
In boxing, such taunts are a mind game.
Theophane is
to be commended for his gargantuan effort. However,
Mayweather in the last couple years of his career commented
on "training smarter" in relation to camp being less
strenuous in certain ways, but more effective. A balance needs to be struck
regarding many boxers and what goes into training camp, so they don't overdo it and harm their
hearts. This is especially true for heavyweights, as they
are larger, tend to lift massive weights and do road work,
all of which can overwork the heart, creating damage.
At the end of the bout Broner called out
Mayweather for a fight. This led to Mayweather laughing till
he cried (and on camera). Broner was also laughed at and
booed by the crowd, then mocked on social networking for his
comments regarding fighting Mayweather. Ironically, Broner
also stated he grew up poor eating "cornflakes and water"
which was the same thing Theophane had stated about himself
months prior.
