Broner vs Cobbs Predictions: ‘The Problem’ returns and needs to win
Adrien Broner returns to the ring this Friday, June 7 as he takes on Blair Cobbs at welterweight. The contest takes place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, California. Fite TV will screen the action.
Here are my Broner vs Cobbs predictions as one of boxing’s most controversial figures returns.
The career of ‘The Problem’ Adrien Broner is an appropriately-problematic one to process. The 34-year-old is a four-weight world champion, a feat that is usually enough to guarantee Hall of Fame status. But here he is toiling away in a comparatively-dim spotlight. Broner’s name is enough to get mildly-interested punters through the doors of a mid-sized venue, but nothing more.
A large part of that is due to the litany of criminal charges against his name. Misdemeanour sexual battery, misdemeanour battery and restraining orders for homophobic threats online are just some of the crimes Broner has been charged with. Even in boxing, where the adage “forgive and forget” is abused more than in any other sport, it has left him out in the cold.
Broner’s outside-the-ring offences might have been more readily forgotten were it not for his decline in the ring. Once deemed the new Mayweather due to their similar ring styles and a brief mentorship that turned sour, the days of Broner looking like a future pound-for-pound king are long gone.
2013’s loss to Marcos Maidana was the first puncture to Broner’s in-ring supremacy. By that point, ‘The Problem’ was already a three-weight world champion. Broner had beaten the likes of Paulie Malignaggi, Gavin Rees, Vicente Escobedo and Daniel Ponce de Leon as he climbed the ranks in multiple divisions.
But the beating Maidana put on him was more than a simple defeat. It was the sort of loss that poisons a cocky fighter like Broner. It brought to mind the beating Marco Antonio Barrea put on Naseem Hamed, something ‘Prince’ never recovered from. ‘El Chino’ had started the downfall of Broner and the effects of this fight are still being felt a decade on.
Broner put together a three-fight winning streak in good company before losing to Shawn Porter. He did become the first fighter to knock Porter down, with a dramatic 12th-round flurry, but it wasn’t enough. However, Broner picked up the WBA super lightweight title in his next fight, beating Khabib Allakhverdiev.
That would be as good as it got for Broner, who went on a three-fight winless run between 2017 and 2019. His limits were exposed in losses to Mikey Garcia and Manny Pacquiao, bookended by a draw with Jessie Vargas. The two defeats in particular highlighted that Broner was never destined to reach the top level, coming as they did against pound-for-pound stars. A four-belt titleist, Broner was nevertheless a notch or two below the defining talents of his era.
It is hard to see that changing now. Broner has had a career most fighters would dream of. But the fact he was already declining before the end of his 20s means he will always be remembered as an underachiever.
Broner rarely fights these days, This is his first bout since a June 2023 win over Bill Hutchinson. You have to go back a further two years to find his previous bout, a decision over Jovanie Santiago. Rare outings against unknown fighters will do nothing for Broner as he enters the final act of his career.
Cobbs is a mild step up from Broner’s last two foes. The 16-1-1 star managed a good win over former world champion Maurice Hooker a couple of years back. Fringe contender Alexis Rocha has knocked him out though which shows the sort of level ‘The Flair’ operates at.
This feels like another attempt to relaunch the Broner campaign. He is somehow still ranked by the WBA and WBC though it is hard to imagine a current champion bothering with him. His best bet is a quick night’s work here before moving on to a genuine big name in the division.
With that said, Broner doesn’t really do knockouts these days. His first world title came at super featherweight and the pop he showed at 130 hasn’t quite travelled to 147. Ashley Theophane was the last fighter he knocked out, all the way back in 2016. Even that fight was down at super lightweight.
Therefore I’m going for Broner to have enough of the old magic to win a decision against Cobbs. You can back my selection at 11/4.
I don’t see him producing anything inspiring enough to earn fights with the likes of Terence Crawford or Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. Through a mixture of his outside issues and his in-ring decline, Broner just does not belong in that class any more.
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