Richard ‘The Boxing Prophet’ Solomon’s Picks Of the Week (6/20/15)
By Richard Solomon, RCM Boxing Radio Panel-Host
Richard’s love of boxing preceded his love of solid food. Doctors report he came out of his mother’s womb throwing a jab. As a child he would only ever count from 1 to 10, and his favorite superhero didn’t wear a cape- he wore leather gloves that were A Thrilla In Manila. With his uncanny ability to predict fights, his parents gave up dreams of him becoming President and set their sights higher: Boxing Prophet.
His claim to fame: telling the whole world in Feb of 1990 that James Buster Douglas was going to beat Mike Tyson. Through jeers and laughs he stuck to his prediction. Rich was an overnight sensation. A folk hero in his town. The prophet was born. His parents wept.
For every 10 fights Richard predicts – he guarantees 8 out of 10 are correct. He prides himself on not only picking the winner of the fight, but also whether it’s by decision or knockout – being so bold as to even pick the exact round.
Richard went to Adelphi University and holds a Master’s degree in Special Education. He teaches preschool children with learning disabilities and special needs. His kids are fighters and Richard genuinely appreciates and nurtures that spirit in them.
Richard started his career on Adelphi radio in a weekly sports talk show and went on to co-host other boxing radio shows during his career. He is now the RCM Boxing Radio Co-Host since April 2013.
Adrien Broner (30-1, 22KOs) vs. Shawn Porter (25-1-1, 16KOs)
The battle for Ohio between Cleveland’s and Cincinnati’s best boxers takes place in Las Vegas. Instead of a hot local crowd, this will take place in front of bored gamblers with no vested interest in the outcome. That’s utterly stupid and missing a big opportunity to highlight some organic excitement. Now that I have that out of the way-Damn, this is a great fight!!!! Broner remains one of the most marketable and recognizable names in the sport, despite his penchant for grinding away at people with his childish antics and often disrespectful nature. He’s smart enough to know that controversy sells and that you need to be a little bit “Nuts” to make it in this business. This is Broner’s second chance to prove he can deal with a rugged pressure fighter in the welterweight division. Needless to say, the first did not go very well. Porter was on the fast train to stardom. After back-to-back wins over Devon Alexander and Paulie Malignaggi, he seemed to be the next big thing in the welterweight division. However, a loss to Kell Brook pumped the brakes on that train. This is a huge opportunity for Porter to prove that he is once again a player, as he faces an opponent with a big mouth. Porter would seem to be at something of a disadvantage by having to drop three pounds to make the catchweight limit. But he does not seem worried. It will be interesting to see how his attacking, swarming style works against Broner, who has struggled with that type of fighter in the past.
Let’s not forget that Adrien Broner is a good fighter, when he’s on his game and focusing his attention in the right places. His victories over Carlos Molina, Emmanuel Taylor and John Molina Jr. were nothing special. But, they did represent a clear attempt by the Cincinnati native and his team to refine some areas of his game that were lacking. He primarily worked on his jab, which was largely nonexistent in many of his previous fights. Make no mistake about it, that’s the key weapon coming into this bout. Broner needs to jab and throw punches with conviction if he is going to win Saturday night. Broner can’t allow Porter to walk into scoring range without paying a heavy price. Porter is the type of fighter who can work comfortably on the outside before bursting in and exploding with powerful, mauling combinations at close range. To sum up, Broner needs to jab and dart in and out, use his hand speed and don’t get pushed around on the inside.
Shawn Porter’s path to victory is simple: Take every post-Maidana nightmare Broner had and turn those into reality in the ring at the MGM Grand. He has the style and power to maul and physically wear down Broner, but he will need to do it by turning this scrap into less of a technical boxing match and more of a dog fight. Maidana’s aggression is a bit more raw and that allowed him to catch Broner off guard with an unconventional attack. Porter has more natural talent than Maidana and should make it his business to keep this fight on the inside and bully Broner. Porter will win if he spends more time on the inside than the outside. He is a strong fighter and we all know that Broner does not really like the action outside his comfort zone. So that’s where the Akron native needs to bring this fight.
This is a tough one. Not going to lie, I’m a huge fan of Adrien Broner (Love Being In The Minority!!!!). Sure, he looked like a pedestrian fighter in his two prior fights above 140 pounds. This is exactly why team Broner demanded a 144 pound weight limit here. The “Problem” struggled to a narrow decision win over Malignaggi before being dropped and pushed around by Maidana. Broner was a fierce puncher at 130 pounds, but he has not carried much of that with him north to 140, let alone 147. Even with an improved jab, it’s going to be hard for him to find the zip on his shot like Kell Brook, to hold Porter at a distance and neutralize his attack. I imagine this fight will take place on the inside and like I stated before, that’s what Porter wants. Most of my close friends who follow Boxing like Porter to win this fight big. Why not? He’s more mentally focused on the sport he loves and has no outside distractions. Broner has so much ability, but he is his own worst enemy. Perhaps Porter dries out and looks useless or maybe he has a good nutritionist and the weight loss does not bother him. My brain is telling me that heck, even a 65-75% Porter demolishes all 100% of Broner. I would not be shocked at all if Porter knocks out Broner inside of eight rounds. Really!!!! Porter is all wrong for Broner on every level. But this is the sport of Boxing and at the end of the day, Adrien Broner has box-office potential and there is no way Al Haymon would risk the potential gravy train on a fight like this. I’m a genius or an assclown. Can’t wait for this weekend to be over. Damn!!!! My Pick: Broner Wins By Split Decision.
Here are my picks for other fights taking place this weekend: Errol Spence Jr. (16-0, 13KOs) over Phil Lo Greco (26-1, 14KOs) by a 7th Round TKO. Andre Ward (27-0, 14KOs) over Paul Smith (35-5, 20KOs) by Unanimous Decision. Terrell Gausha (14-0, 8KOs) over Luis Grajeda (18-4-2, 14KOs) by Majority Decision. David Lemieux (33-2, 31KOs) over Hassan N’Dam (31-1, 18KOs) by a 9th Round TKO. Dierry Jean (28-1, 20KOs) over Jerry Belmontes (19-6, 5KOs) by an 8th Round TKO. Rances Barthelemy (22-0, 13KOs) over Antonio DeMarco (31-4-1, 23KOs) by a 10th Round TKO. Sammy Vasquez (18-0, 13KOs) over Wale Omotoso (25-1, 21KOs) by a 5th Round TKO.
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