The last man to beat Adrien Broner believes the former four-division world champion faces a difficult road back, with Blair Cobbs questioning whether his comeback can be successful.
Broner confirmed his return after launching a 45-day live stream on Kick two weeks ago, immediately bringing his June 2024 defeat to Cobbs back into focus.
If Broner still has ambitions of returning to the top level and pursuing major opportunities against names such as Manny Pacquiao or Ryan Garcia, the loss to Cobbs remains the biggest obstacle in his way.
The defeat was firmly in Cobbs’ favor. The Philadelphia native dropped Broner in the second round and secured a unanimous decision victory, with judges scoring the contest 98-91, 96-93 and 96-93.
Broner also lost a tooth during the contest as Cobbs produced the biggest win of his career.
Cobbs has since returned to the ring and continued his own progress, stopping Andres Ramirez in three rounds in November 2025 to improve his record to 18-1-1 with 11 knockouts.
Speaking exclusively to World Boxing News, Cobbs explained why he wanted a rematch but does not believe Broner’s comeback will end with a return to the elite.
Cobbs Wanted Broner Rematch
Cobbs revealed that he was interested in facing Broner again immediately after their first fight.
“A rematch? Yes, I was interested in a rematch right after the fight,” Cobbs told WBN.
“And go ahead and just bag another half a mil or whatever.”
However, Cobbs said the financial situation surrounding the promotion prevented a second meeting from happening.
“Don King didn’t have the money, and nobody else was making it happen. I pretty much wiped him out.”
Cobbs also made it clear that any future rematch would require different promotional circumstances.
“I’m not with Don King, and if we did have a rematch, we absolutely could not ever fight under Don King’s promotion.
“Just given the fact that Don King Promotions does not have anything. They haven’t had a fight in two years.”
Broner has spoken about rebuilding his career, but Cobbs does not expect the former champion to return to the level he once reached.
“My views on Broner’s comeback, I don’t favor Adrien Broner making a successful comeback,” Cobbs said.
“It might be something worth looking at every once in a while, but I don’t think it would be a highly valuable fight for anybody at this point.”
Cobbs’ opinion comes after he produced one of the biggest wins of his career by defeating Broner in Hollywood, Florida.
Cobbs Focused On His Own Future
While Cobbs remains open to discussing a possible rematch, he says his attention is currently elsewhere.
“Right now I have plans for some other things that’s going on,” Cobbs said.
“But I’m in the midst of waiting for some things, and Golden Boy obviously owes me some money, so we’re going to work that deal out and see what happens next.”
Broner’s comeback has begun, but the fighter who handed him his latest defeat believes the former four-division world champion has a long way to go before proving he can return to boxing’s top level.
About the Author
Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.
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