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(ESPN) As if Adrien Broner didn't have enough problems, he added one more to the list when he failed to make weight Thursday afternoon and was stripped of his junior welterweight world title.
Broner, who won the 140-pound belt by 12th-round knockout of Khabib Allakhverdiev in October, was due to defend it for the first time against England's Ashley Theophane in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions card on Friday (Spike, 9 p.m. ET) at the DC Armory in Washington, D.C.
While Theophane was right on the division limit of 140 pounds, Broner was 140.4 pounds. He had two hours to lose the extra 0.4 pounds, but he never returned to the scale in an attempt to make weight.
The fight will still go on with Theophane able to win the vacant title. If Broner wins, the title will remain vacant.
In order for the fight to go forward, the Broner and Theophane camps made a deal under which Broner (31-2, 23 KOs), 26, of Cincinnati, will have to pay Theophane (39-6-1, 11 KOs) a portion of his purse. Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, Theophane's promoter, said they made a deal, but he declined to disclose the terms. Multiple sources told ESPN.com that Broner would pay Theophane $50,000.
Broner has won world titles in four weight classes, but this is the second time he has been overweight and been stripped of a belt.
In July 2012, Broner was due to make the second defense of his junior lightweight world title against Vicente Escobedo, but he was well over the division limit of 130 pounds. Broner weighed 133½ pounds and was stripped. Escobedo, who made weight, was eligible to win the belt, but Broner knocked him out in the fifth round the next night, and the title remained vacant.
"It's an unfortunate situation," Ellerbe told ESPN.com. "It's very embarrassing and unprofessional. These young fighters need to understand the importance of taking their job very seriously and showing professionalism."
Regarding Broner not returning to the scale to at least try to make the weight, Ellerbe said, "That was his decision. It's a decision he made. I can tell you this: Ashley is focused, he's prepared and he's coming to win the WBA title."
Broner's professional issues come amid a storm of controversy over his actions unrelated to boxing. He will go into the fight with warrants for his arrest in his home state of Ohio on charges of felony assault and aggravated robbery in connection to an incident during the early-morning hours of Jan. 21.
Broner is accused of assaulting a man and robbing him of $12,000 at gunpoint outside of a bowling alley. Broner allegedly lost the money to the victim during a night of high-stakes betting on bowling games, knocked him unconscious outside the bowling alley after a confrontation and took the money.
Despite heavy criticism in some quarters for agreeing to allow Broner to fight with outstanding warrants in connection to a violent crime, the DC Boxing and Wrestling Commission agreed to license Broner after it said it received written assurances from Broner's camp and authorities in Ohio that he would turn himself in after the fight.
Written by ESPN's Dan Rafael
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