“I’m good. I beat Paulie. I left with his belt and his girl,” stated newly crowned WBA welterweight champion Adrien Broner shortly after his split decision victory over former champion Paulie Malignaggi. Leading up to the bout, both men traded harsh words with each other throughout the promotion of the event. Though the fight was over, Broner couldn’t resist taking one last parting shot at Malignaggi, which prompted Malignaggi to respond, “I know I lost, but don’t brag about taking my sidepiece.”
Regardless of the lapse in sportsmanship, Broner was pleased with the outcome of the fight, despite the fact that it was close on the scorecards. “Paulie fought exactly how I thought he was going to fight. As soon as he felt my power, he got on his bicycle and I had to literally cut him off the whole fight. I respect. He’s a hell of a fighter. He’s a world-class fighter, and to come into somebody’s hometown and beat them on a split decision, that’s great to me,” Broner explained as he assessed his performance. “He couldn’t hit me. He was shadowboxing…It’s a tremendous accomplishment. 23 years old, 27 and 0, 22 knockout; I mean, who’s doing it like me in the game? Nobody,” Broner continued. “I didn’t have to use my feetwork today. He ran, so all I did was cut off the ring. That’s all I had to do.”
As for what’s next for the new welterweight champion, Broner made it clear that he has no preference and he’s willing to face anyone. “Since everybody think I’m picking my opponents, my next opponent, I’ma let y’all pick, and whoever got the highest percentage, I’m fighting,” he added.
