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Adrien Broner vs. Jovanie Santiago: Fight Odds, Time, Date, Live Stream, TV Info
February 18, 2021
Former four-division world champion Adrien Broner will end a long absence from the ring Saturday night when he takes on Jovanie Santiago in a junior welterweight match at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut.
It's been two years since Broner (33-4-1, 24 KOs) last fought and four years since his last win. He's had legal and financial issues but insists he's a changed man and still has what it takes to win another world title. That journey starts again with Santiago (14-0-1, 10 KOs), an undefeated but unremarkable fighter from Puerto Rico.
Broner's reputation and notoriety is enough to see him headline Saturday night's Showtime card. The night's entertainment also features a heavyweight clash between Otto Wallin and Dominic Breazeale (20-2, 18 KOs) and a junior welterweight scrap between Robert Easter Jr. and Ryan Martin.
Broner vs. Santiago Fight Info
When: Saturday, Feb. 20 at 9 p.m. ET (main card)
Where: Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut
TV: Showtime
Live Stream: SHO.com
Odds: Broner -910 (bet $910 to win $100), Santiago +500 (via DraftKings)
When we last saw Broner fight, back in January 2019, he was busy getting outclassed in just about every way against a then-40-year-old Manny Pacquiao. Broner lost by a wide margin on the cards and subsequently announced his second retirement from boxing.
The loss to Pacquiao came on the heels of a draw against Jessie Vargas and a loss to Mikey Garcia. Even Broner's most recent win was shaky, a split-decision victory over Adrian Granados in February 2017. The shoulder-roll defense and counter rights that made Broner a highly touted star weren't working anymore, and Broner had nothing to show for his prime years as an athlete.
Broner's issues outside the ring have persisted in his time away from the sport. He was jailed for contempt of court in November, and as ESPN.com's Ben Baby wrote, Broner may be feeling financial pressure related to the case:
"Broner owes $855,682.03, which is how much he is required to pay to settle the lawsuit, as of an affidavit filed on Jan. 29. That follows a criminal case in which he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault and unlawful restraint after he forcibly kissed a woman at a club in 2018. In a court filing submitted on Jan. 29, Wells Fargo said Broner had no funds available, with a large stamp across blank lines."
Broner told ESPN that this is not the main motivation for returning. Instead he says he has "great talent, and I'm not going to let it go to waste," per Baby. He's still just 31 years old and has dropped a ton of weight to reach the 140-pound limit for Saturday's fight. Plenty of boxers have had great runs in their early 30s, though most were building off much better foundations than Broner has made for himself. The way Broner tells it, though, he's ready to start fresh.
"I've found my love for boxing again. I gave myself some time to miss boxing, and I'm ready to go in there and win some more world titles. My children are what fuel me now," he said, per Bad Left Hook's Scott Christ.
If he's healthy and focused, "The Problem" should have no problem against Santiago. His last two stoppages came at 140 pounds, against Ashley Theophane and Khabib Allakhverdiev, before the decline of the last few years. The junior welterweight ranks also offer a much easier path toward contention than the star-studded welterweight division, as long as Broner can stay disciplined and maintain his weight.
There's an opportunity for him to do more than cash a check on Saturday night. He just needs to offer up a better version of himself than the one we've seen over the last few years.
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