Tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET from the Alamo Dome in San Antonio, Adrien "The Problem" Broner (27-0-0, 22 KO) will face off against Marcos "El Chino" Maidana (34-3-0, 31 KO) in the biggest fight of his young career. Boxing fans can watch the fight on Showtime, or live stream it here if they are away from Showtime-enabled television sets.
Broner is a three-division champion at the ripe age of 24, but he's come under fire at times for facing less-than-elite competition. To date, his biggest win is over Paulie Malignaggi, a respected veteran but one that posses little to no firepower at all. Broner won a controversial split decision in Malignaggi's hometown of Brooklyn, landing clean hard shots but failing to carry the action.
Maidana is not known as a particularly skillful fighter; instead he relies on hands of stone that have led to 31 knockout victories. He's pined for a shot at Broner for a long time, and plans on flooring the mouthy champ.
"I'm going to hit him hard, very hard, with all I have, and I'll get busy with him," Maidana said through a translator. "I hope he's ready, because I am. This is the hardest fight of my life. I respect Broner, but I don't underestimate him. On Saturday, I'll do my part. I'll do what I came here for -- to fight with my heart and do my best."
Broner refused to give away his game plan. He is a versatile talent, who indicated in the weeks prior to this fight that Maidana "would have to hit him," perhaps foreshadowing a defensive approach. Then again, Broner has boasted he could be shooting for a knockout.
"If he makes a mistake and I have a chance to get him out of there, I'm going to get him out of there. If I just beat him to death, then I beat him to death. Who doesn't want to see a young star on the rise like Adrien Broner fight a guy like Marcos Maidana, a hard puncher, a knockout artist with 31 knockouts?" Broner asked.
"Who doesn't want to see that? [But] I have to stay focused. I am not going to allow distraction. I'm not going to lie. This is the biggest fight of my career to date. He is going to try to hurt me, so I am ready and focused."
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