Showtime, PBC respond to Adrien Broner arrest

Has it reached a next level? Has it gone past writing it off to “AB being AB,” and should the powers that be who employ Adrien Broner, the Ohio born boxer who seems like he’s thisclose to getting into a situation that might lose him his freedom for a lengthy spell, take a hard and long look at how he’s living his life?

Broner, reports say, was detained at a mall and has been charged with misdemeanor sexual battery, and was held at Fulton County Jail in Atlanta after a Monday incident.

Broner was released on $2,000 bail by Tuesday afternoon after a morning court appearance, according to an ESPN report.

It’s the latest in a lengthy list of transgressions and occasions when Broner and Johnny Law were facing off and has to leave people at PBC and Showtime shaking their heads, at best.

Broner, age 28, holds a 33-3 mark and is booked into an April 21 match against Omar Figueroa, who is no easy mark. Broner was on the short list of people that industry execs hoped might be able to lead the transition out of the Floyd Mayweather era. But no one is saying or thinking that today, not after he lost handily to Mikey Garcia in his last outing, last July.

Of late, he’s said he’s a changed man, who has a hit list of foes he’s fixing to take down. But now, it looks like he has taken down himself, and who knows if that fight with Figueroa will come off.

I reached out to Showtime and Premier Boxing Champions, making clear that it looks, from the outside, that Broner seems on a wobbly track. He’s taken to social media to vent and regularly posts that he is feeling depressed or frustrated with life as a whole. His behaviors seem to indicate, an armchair shrink might say, that he’s crying out for help.

“We’re very concerned about the reported behavior and will continue to monitor the situation, as well as potential repercussions for his scheduled fight,” a Showtime spokesman responded.

PBC media relations man Tim Smith answered as well. “It’s a legal matter that Broner and his lawyer are going to have to work through. It¹s too early to speculate on his next fight,” Smith told me.

My three cents: I have no doubt that persons with his best interests at heart are discussing the best course of action for AB. More important than boxing is the mental health of a guy who has family, including children, who love him and want him around for the duration. Here’s hoping those people can help the fighter smooth out what’s been a rough ride.

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