MANILA, Philippines - If WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley will be Manny Pacquiao’s last opponent in Las Vegas on April 9, the Filipino ring icon is determined to go out with a bang. Pacquiao will ride into the sunset with the WBO 147-pound strapped on his waist if and when he dethrones Bradley in his farewell outing.
But Top Rank CEO Bob Arum said it may not be Pacquiao’s swan song. Pacquiao has two fights left in his Top Rank contract which expires this year. The talk is after disposing of Bradley, Pacquiao will end his career with a big fight, possibly against Terence Crawford, at the 50,000-seat Philippine Arena or he could meet Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a rematch wherever the unbeaten “Money” chooses.
Arum also said Pacquiao can’t take Bradley lightly in their rubber match because the man known as the “Desert Storm” has been transformed into a much tougher fighter by new trainer Teddy Atlas. Last November, Atlas made his debut in Bradley’s corner and the 32-year-old Californian was merciless in demolishing Brandon Rios in nine rounds. Rios, who didn’t win a single round in the three judges’ scorecards, was a poor excuse for a fighter as he entered the ring weighing 170 pounds after scaling 147 the day before.
Bradley picked Atlas over Buddy McGirt to replace his long-time trainer Joel Diaz last September. Atlas, 59, apprenticed for fabled trainer Cus D’Amato and worked with Mike Tyson as a teenaged amateur. Atlas was fired from D’Amato’s camp for pointing a gun to Tyson’s ear during an altercation. A high school dropout, Atlas has been jailed for armed robbery and his face bears a scar from a face wound caused by a knife that took 400 stitches to close. Atlas has trained former world champions Michael Moorer, Barry McGuigan and Alexander Povetkin. He is an ESPN boxing commentator and has been on the TV panel for boxing in the last four Olympics.
“Teddy’s technical expertise combined with his ability to dig into a man’s psyche is what sets him apart,” said ESPN’s Brian Kenny. “Teddy sees the patterns, the angles and how each fighter’s repertoire interlocks into his opponents.’ Styles do indeed make fights and how those styles mesh determines the flow of the battle. He senses the ebb and flow of energy, the clash of wills, the struggle with inner stamina and frequently sees the outcome, rounds before it happens.”
It will be Pacquiao’s third fight against Bradley. Their first meeting, which Bradley won on a highly-disputed split decision in 2012, drew 890,000 pay-per-view buys. Pacquiao took the rematch via a unanimous decision in 2014 with the pay-per-view numbers dropping to 750,000. Atlas’ presence is expected to reverse the trend and make the rubber match a pay-per-view success.
Pacquiao has registered at least one million pay-per-view hits in seven fights. His bout against Oscar de la Hoya raked in 1.25 million in 2008, Miguel Cotto 1.25 million in 2009, Antonio Margarito 1.15 million in 2010, Sugar Shane Mosley 1.2 million in 2011, the third Marquez fight 1.25 million in 2011, the fourth Marquez encounter 1.15 million in 2012 and Floyd Mayweather Jr. 4.4 million last May.
Bradley has been in only three pay-per-view events, twice with Pacquiao. His other pay-per-view fight was against Marquez whom he outpointed in 2013. The Marquez fight had only 375,000 pay-per-view buys.
Bradley is one of only four fighters whom Pacquiao has faced more than once. The others are Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera. Pacquiao and Marquez had four encounters with the first meeting ending in a split draw in 2004, the Filipino winning the rematch on a split decision in 2008 and the third outing on a majority verdict in 2011 and the Mexican scoring a sixth round knockout victory in 2012.
Pacquiao and Morales figured in a memorable trilogy. Morales outpointed Pacquiao in their first battle in 2005 then the Filipino won the rematch on a 10th round stoppage in January 2006 and the rubber match on a third round knockout in November that same year. Pacquiao halted Barrera in the 11th round in 2003 and defeated him on points in 2007.
What makes Bradley a marketable opponent for Pacquiao is his outstanding record of having beaten 12 world champions. He has lost only to Pacquiao in compiling a 33-1-1 record, with 13 KOs. Among his victims were Marquez, Ruslan Provodnikov, Joel Casamayor, Devon Alexander, Lamont Peterson and Nate Campbell. Bradley ruled as WBO superlightweight champion from 2008 to 2012. Since losing to Pacquiao, Bradley has drawn with Diego Chaves, decisioned Jessie Vargas and stopped Rios.
Pacquiao, 37, is 3-3 in his last six fights. He lost back-to-back to Bradley and Marquez then beat Rios, Bradley and Chris Algieri before bowing to Mayweather. His record is 57-6-2, with 38 KOs. If Bradley fights Pacquiao like he did in their first two meetings, the outcome of the rubber match will be a foregone conclusion. But Bradley insists he’s not the same Bradley as before. With Atlas in his corner, Bradley aims to throw a monkey wrench in Pacquiao’s plan to regain the WBO welterweight crown before the May elections.