Plenty of Questions, No Guarantee of Answers, From Broner and DeMarco

by Kieran Mulvaney

Adrien Broner, Antonio DeMarco

There are, by and large, two schools of thought on Adrien “The Problem” Broner.

One is that he is a fighter of almost limitless potential, possessed of power, speed, and offensive and defensive skill. Exhibit A in support of the contention is his one-round blowout last year of Jason Litzau – who, lest it be forgot, was at the time on an improbable roll following wins over Rocky Juarez and Celestino Caballero.

The other school of thought is a little less effusive.

While not necessarily dismissive of Broner’s talents, the adherents to this second school contend that he is untested, that he has achieved notoriety and fame largely on the basis of blowing out opponents not worthy of a true contender’s resume. On the one occasion he did swap punches with a high-caliber opponent, the argument continues, he escaped with a points win he arguably didn’t deserve against Daniel Ponce De Leon in March 2011. And as for his most recent outing, when he never came close to making weight against Vicente Escobedo – well, that’s the sign of a young man who has rocketed from youth to adulthood without ever stopping to fill up on maturity.

Broner (24-0, 20 KOs) and his team had already elected to move up in weight from the 130-pound weight class in which he had been competing, and his struggles with the scales prior to dispatching Escobedo within five rounds in July only served to affirm that decision. On November 17, in Atlantic City, he takes his bow at lightweight against Antonio DeMarco, a foe even his critics agree could provide a genuine test.

Read More at HBO.com.