Oh, what could have been?
If you were a fan of Adrien Broner early in his career, you saw his potential as the next megastar in boxing. You probably also saw the potential of the downfall that seemed destined to come.
Broner is now 33 and isn’t much more than a gatekeeper in the sport. Still, you wonder if he will ever see the ring again after pulling out of his comeback fight against Omar Figueroa Jr., which, if Broner was in any good shape, should have been an easy win for him.
Here are Broner’s words on why he pulled out of the fight just five days before the bout.
Sorry to all my fans, but #MentalHealth is real, and I’m not about to play inside the ring. I’ve watched many people die playing with their boxing career, which is something I won’t do. Just pray for me. I love the sport of boxing too much not to give my all, and I feel Like I came up short before because my mind wasn’t 100% there, and I will be dammed if I make that mistake again. I need to make some changes for the better instead of worrying about other people’s feelings and pleasing them when In all reality, I have nothing to prove to nobody. I’m a four-time world champion in 4 different weight classes, and if I never lace up a pair of gloves again, I feel like it’s safe to say I will be inducted into the #BoxingHallOfFame, So I have to step back and overcome this obstacle before I put my life on the line inside the square circle again I know I’m far from being finished with the sport SEE YALL SOON #Respectfully❤️ 🆎@showtimeboxing.
Broner isn’t going to make it into the Hall of Fame and his career will be seen as a big “WHAT IF” if he never laces them up again. With that being said you can’t go into a boxing ring if your head isn’t right, you will get hurt, so I don’t begrudge him for pulling out.
Figueroa Jr. believes it has nothing to do with mental health but everything to do with Broner potentially not training and blowing weight.
Flip the pages for both of their Instagram posts.