Adrien Broner TKO1 Jason Litzau

Junior lightweight
Records: Broner (21-0, 17 KOs); Litzau (28-3, 21 KOs)

Broner, 21, of Cincinnati, was a top amateur who flew a bit under the radar because he did not compete in major international competitions. But he is a gifted boxer with tremendous speed and reflexes and the swagger to go with them. Golden Boy Promotions has moved him very quickly as a professional, and he stepped way up in class in March when he was matched with former junior featherweight titlist Daniel Ponce de Leon, a noted puncher, in his HBO debut. Broner, who fights in the mold of Floyd Mayweather Jr., got the close win, but it was a terrible fight because Broner stunk out the joint, eliciting booing throughout the fight because of his safety-first style. Thanks to his connections to Golden Boy and powerful manager Al Haymon, HBO brought Broner right back in his next fight and matched him with Litzau, 27, of St. Paul, Minn. Litzau had pulled off a major upset on HBO in November, when he scored a decision win against heavily favored Celestino Caballero, a top featherweight contender and former unified junior featherweight titlist who had moved up in weight because nobody of note would fight him at 126 pounds. But this matchup was a nightmare for Litzau from the moment the fight was made because he is a bit on the slow side and defensively deficient, even though he has very good power. Broner, on the other hand, has that tremendous speed and good power. Broner was clearly winning the opening round, when he nailed Litzau with a right and left along the ropes. Litzau was badly hurt and the rest was window dressing after that. Broner missed with several shots but eventually connected with a devastating right uppercut, another left hand and yet another left as Litzau was falling to the canvas. As he was falling, referee Curtis Thrasher was jumping in to stop the bout at 2 minutes, 58 seconds. It was a spectacular knockout for Broner, who is so much more interesting to watch when he fights like this than the way he did against Ponce de Leon. Broner has the talent to be a significant fighter. It is going to be up to him if he can draw in the fans. He will with performances like this one, but he won't if he reverts to the way he boxed against Ponce de Leon.