WASHINGTON (AP) Adrien Broner challenged Floyd Mayweather to come out of retirement after defeating Ashley Theophane in a ninth-round technical knockout on Friday night.
Broner's defeat of Theophane, a fighter promoted by Mayweather, leaves the WBA super lightweight title vacant. The bout was supposed to be Broner's first defense of the belt, but he weighed in 0.4 pounds over the 140-pound limit Thursday and was stripped of the title.
That loss appeared far from Broner's mind, though, as he continued ongoing words with Mayweather during TV an interview.
''Somebody that I look up to, someone that I admire took the chance to do an interview and talk bad about me,'' Broner said. ''I'm a man - Floyd has got to see me.''
Mayweather retired following the 49th and final victory of his unblemished career last September. He sat ringside throughout the fight, and laughed and flashed a wide smile during Broner's comments.
Now 26, Broner (32-2, 24 KOs) has been compared to Mayweather throughout his career, both in terms of his counterpunching style and image.
Broner's latest fight went on amid reports of warrants for his arrest on felony assault and robbery charges in Ohio.
''As you know, I've been going through a lot and for me to come in here and bottle everything up and do what I did, I want to give myself a pat on the back,'' Broner said.
Theophane could've won the title with a victory, but the 35-year-old veteran never looked like a serious threat to his opponent before referee Luis Pabon stopped the fight 1:10 into the round.
That gave Broner the stoppage he promised Wednesday, even though Theophane (39-7-1) looked to have regained some footing before his ninth-round defeat.
First, Broner caught Theophane with a body shot and then a right hook, chasing him onto the ropes. With Broner punching furiously, Theophane slipped away, backpedaled and appeared to lift his glove toward Pabon, who stepped in immediately.
Earlier in the fight buildup, Broner had promised a fourth-round KO. It didn't happen, and by the eighth, a scattering of boos could be heard amid the crowd of 8,172 at the DC Armory in a city Broner calls his second home.
It wasn't for lack of trying.
He had Theophane on the ropes midway through the second round, but slipped as he closed in, letting the veteran regroup.
In the third, Broner connected with a right hook that led to some turbulent moments for Theophane, who worked out of a similar sequence in the fourth following a right uppercut.
