Sports

Broner has no ‘Problem’ keeping lightweight title

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Gavin Rees was a gutsy little guy who fought with heart. But that’s wasn’t enough to deal with Adrien “The Problem” Broner last night at Boardwalk Hall.

Broner knocked down Rees twice and was in mid-stream of landing a barrage of unanswered punches when Rees’ corner waved the white towel of surrender to stop the fight with 2:59 left in the fifth round.

Broner of Cincinnati retained the WBC lightweight title with his 16th knockout in his last 17 fights. He also remained unbeaten in 26 fights. Rees, a Welshman fighting for the first time in the United States, dropped to 37-2-1 with 19 KOs.

“I knew he was going to come to fight. He’s a world class fighter,” Broner said. “I had to see how much gas was left in that Toyota. I don’t care what they put in front of me. I’ll fight ’em. He kept coming through every shot like it was his best shot. I knew he would hang. He’s a world class fighter.”

Broner’s speed and keen defensive skills were evident in the first round. Rees, a former world champion at 140 pounds, tried to pepper Broner with a short stinging jab. But Broner slipped the punches by turning his shoulder and dipping low.

Rees, however, showed he came to fight in the second round, tagging Broner with repeated left hooks to the body and a swinging overhand right to the head. Standing his ground, Broner landed short choppy lefts as the exchanges delighted the crowd of 4,812.

“When you have two world class fighters going toe to toe it’s going to be a great fight,” Broner said. “He’s tougher than a steak that’s been well done.”

Rees took a hard right hand to the head early in the third round, but didn’t flinch. He came back swinging, putting Broner on the defensive. When the action paused, Rees raised his gloves in a gesture that said, “Let’s fight,” which is what Broner did. The champion unleashed an 8-punch combination that had Rees’ head bouncing like a bobble head.

“I’m disappointed with my performance,” Rees said. “I made a lot of mistakes, and I think I have a better skillset than that. I didn’t show that and that disappoints me. He hits incredible hard for a lightweight. I knew he was going to be powerful, but his power really stunned me. I got reckless in the third and fourth rounds and that really hurt me.”

A minute into the fourth round, Broner unleashed a right uppercut that sent Rees sprawling to the canvas for the first time in the fight. Rees got up on wobbly legs and endured another multiple-punch barrage and barely survived the round.

Broner dropped Rees again early in the fifth round with a body shot to the gut. By the end of the round, Broner was landing with such frequency and force, Rees’s corner waved the white towel forcing Early Brown to stop the bount.

Now the question is what Broner will do next. A potential block-buster match-up is Broner against super featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa. The Cuban is 22-0 with 16 KOs. Their weight classes are separated by just five pounds, though Broner likely would be the bigger fighter. It’s the kind of match-up that would excite not only boxing fans, but the general sports fan.

Curtis Jackson, aka 50 Cent, promotes Gamboa and is said to be open to the idea of matching his fighter against Broner. The Queens-born entrepreneur and rapper started a boxing promotional company called SMS Promotions. He has said boxing needs the best fighting the best. Broner vs. Gamboa would qualify.

The broken business model these days has most promoters protecting their fighters to build up the record, especially when they’re young. Broner is 23, Gamboa is 31. But once a fighter is established, the trend is to keep the best fighters to arm’s length while making the most money for the least risk.

Let’s hope Broner turns out to be different.

george.willis@nypost.com