Burns must solve ‘Problem’ of Cincinnati

It will be posed by American Adrien Broner, dubbed “The Problem” in his home city of Cincinnati on 26 November when Burns makes a mandatory defence of his crown in what is almost certain to be toughest test of the 28-year-old champion’s career.

Broner, undefeated in 21 fights, represents a massive challenge for Burns, who has a 32-2 record and a 26 per cent KO record compared to the challenger’s 80 per cent strike rate.

But Burns is understood to be receiving a purse of around £200,000 for agreeing to risk all against the reigning WBO Intercontinental champion in Ohio.

He can take further comfort from the memory of his stunning defeat of Roman “Rocky” Martinez at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall 11 months ago when he recovered from a first-round knock down to wrestle the title from the Puerto Rican’s grasp.

But Burns conceded: “Broner is a good counter puncher with an impressive knockout ratio and he is always looking to throw his big left hook. When I watched him fight Daniel Ponce de Leon I got the impression that he is a Floyd Mayweather type of fighter. However, he was rather lucky to get the verdict on points and, with my high-intensity boxing, I can definitely cause him some problems.”

Broner, 22, is promoted by ring legend Oscar de la Hoya’s Golden Boy organisation and is regarded as one of American’s hottest prospects. But Burns does not lack big-fight experience, having made three successful defences against Norwegian Andreas Evensen, Ghanaian Joseph Laryea and Englishman Nicky Cook since defeating Martinez.

Older boxing aficionados will also readily recall that Edinburgh’s most famous boxing son, lightweight Ken Buchanan, campaigned successfully in the States 40 years ago when he defeated both Ismael Laguna and Ruben Navarro in world title bouts.

Meanwhile, WBO light-heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly will defend his title against Tony Bellew in October, with the winner facing a potential clash with American legend Bernard Hopkins.

Bellew was granted a shock world title shot at Cleverly in May and engaged in a fiery press conference, only to pull out hours later as he could not make the weight. Cleverly went on to defend his belt against Poland’s Aleksy Kuziemski inside four rounds, but will now belatedly go toe-to-toe with Bellew on 15 October at the Liverpool Echo Arena.

While the bout takes place in Bellew’s home town, the 24-year-old insists the venue will make no difference to the result. “It wasn’t really much of a tough decision [to fight in Liverpool] really,” he said. “I had the choice where I wanted the fight. I could have had it in Wales or up in Liverpool. We were struggling to find the right venue in Wales with the right capacity for the fight so, if it is in Liverpool, it will be a good sell.

“I thought it was a guaranteed sell-out anyway and it is a boxing ring. Whether it was set up in here today, in Liverpool or Wales, it makes no difference to the outcome of the fight. It is still Tony Bellew and I am still the world champion. And I am pretty sure I will beat this guy.”