IBR on The Cruelest Sport

To the relief of many, a tasteless and offensive promotion came to an end last night when Paulie Malignaggi and Adrien Broner met at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Broner, having rifled through the skeletons of Malignaggi’s closet, found a bag of bones willing to humiliate herself for fifteen seconds of fame and two minutes of hate, and tried to drum up interest by emasculating Malignaggi via unfavorable sexual reviews of “The Magic Man.” Malignaggi, ever the sanctimonious windbag, played right along, of course, helping turn last night’s “grudge match” into the final act in a vicariously embarrassing drama. Broner won a split decision over Malignaggi in a fight that—rather fittingly—offered little by way of entertainment, but managed to pose a few questions about how Broner might fair against the best fighters at 140 and 147 pounds.

Read The Future Ain’t What It Used To Be: Adrien Broner W12 Paulie Malignaggi on The Cruelest Sport.

IBR on The Cruelest Sport

A few of boxing’s unspoken rules will manifest when featherweights Mikey Garcia and Juan Manuel Lopez square off at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, Saturday night. One such rule, the soft first defense, dictates a new champion savor the accomplishments of his title winning effort by dispatching an overmatched opponent. Garcia, owner of this fight’s strap, scored his hardware in a January slap-up of diehard Orlando Salido. Lopez has shared the ring with Salido as well, getting knocked silly both times.

Read Form For Fury: Mikey Garcia-Juan Manuel Lopez Preview on The Cruelest Sport.

IBR on The Cruelest Sport

There is a military rigidity of thought to welterweight Marcos Maidana, a charming lust for destruction that permits no deviation. This is not to mistake him for being particularly skilled—he is certainly not one of the sport’s more refined practitioners, or even one of its best—but there is something undeniably endearing about his stubborn pursuit of the knockout, and his acceptance of the inevitable abuse endured to secure it. Josesito Lopez has shown a similar commitment to machismo, and expectations for havoc were high when the two met at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, Saturday night. After six grueling rounds, Lopez succumbed to Maidana’s superior firepower, but not before emptying his own clip.

Read FIREPOWER: Marcos Maidana TKO6 Josesito Lopez on The Cruelest Sport.