Bradley won’t ‘Pac’ down from the champ

source: Chris Robinson | Examiner.com

LAS VEGAS -- Emanuel Steward works for HBO when he isn’t training fighters, so he has an interest in enticing people to tune into Saturday night’s pay-per-view boxing card from the MGM Grand.

But it didn’t sound like a sales job when he said, “I see a big upset brewing” when challenger Timothy Bradley challenges Manny Pacquiao for his WBO welterweight championship (HBO PPV, main event approximately 11:30 p.m.).

“You have to learn the mental makeup of guys, and few people like Timothy Bradley exist,” Steward told The Post yesterday. “He’s the strongest guy mentally that Manny has ever fought. He’s also got speed, determination and intelligence.

“Going down the stretch where Manny has won a lot of his fights by closing the show by shooting twenty punches, this guy is going to shoot 30. Manny is going against more than he has prepared for, and that’s something they need to recognize. I don’t think they realize what they’re up against. I’ve known Timothy since he was 14. He’s nothing to play with, trust me.”
Bradley (28-0, 12 KOs) was oozing confidence during yesterday’s weigh-in, when he hit the scales at 146 pounds. Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) came in at 147. Bradley, 28, tried to engage Pacquiao in an intense staredown, but Pacquiao, 33, only smiled because “I’m happy to be here and God is with me.”

There has been much discussion about Pacquiao’s religious transformation and forsaking of gambling and carousing for Bible study. But it hasn’t been without its own distractions. He made headlines when he was said he was against same-sex marriage and his following of Evangelical
Christian teachings stirred questions about whether he has abandoned the Roman Catholic Church.
Whether any of that has any bearing on a prize fight won’t be known until they meet tonight in the Grand Garden Arena. Pacquiao is a 4-to-1 favorite, but Steward is far from the only one giving Bradley a chance to win the fight.

For starters, Bradley doesn’t know how to lose, he is supremely conditioned and is a tenacious if not powerful puncher. His basic plan is to figure out Pacquiao early and then overpower him in the later rounds.

“Pacquiao’s going to come out blazing fast,” Bradley said. “He’s going to try to get me into a shootout early. I see myself counter-punching, trying to make adjustments. It’s going to take me two rounds to figure him out. I’m just as quick as he is. I’m just as strong as he is. He hasn’t seen anything like me in a very, very long time.”

There has been talk of whether Pacquiao is taking Bradley lightly, but that seems unlikely, especially after the Filipino southpaw squeaked out an uninspiring majority decision over Juan Manuel Marquez in November.

“Bradley is a different type of fighter, and we don’t take this fight lightly,” Pacquiao said.
“We have trained hard for Bradley because he is the type of fighter we cannot underestimate.”

Steward said this matchup reminds him of when Evander Holyfield was obsessed with fighting Mike Tyson and ultimately won a bout few believed he could.

“Even when I was training Evander for Riddick Bowe when he won back the title in the second fight, he was obsessed with fighting Mike,” Steward said. “He didn’t concentrate on Bowe as much as he wanted to fight Mike.”

Bradley admitted he has been studying Pacquiao for four years and plans to show no deference when they get into the ring.

“I don’t fear anybody,” he said. “I don’t fear Manny Pacquiao. I don’t have any respect for him right now. This is the biggest challenge of my life. But this is my moment to stardom, and I have to win this fight.”

PREDICTION

There has been plenty of late action on Bradley, but Pacquiao is still a devastating puncher and far better than anyone Bradley has faced. Let’s hope it’s not stopped on cuts.
Pacquiao by ninth-round TKO

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Sampson Lewkowicz feels Pacquiao will lose to Bradley and retire from boxing

source: Chris Robinson | Examiner.com

There’s an odd feeling in the air in Las Vegas ahead of tonight’s Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley fight.

Despite the overwhelming success that Pacquiao has celebrated in recent years, fans and insiders alike find themselves being drawn to Bradley because of his engaging personality and his determination as a fighter.

Vying for Pacquiao’s WBO welterweight belt inside of the MGM Grand, Bradley may be a clear underdog according to odds makers, yet the Palm Springs, California hopeful has swayed his share of people towards choosing him to prevail in the biggest fight of his career.

Count in International advisor, matchmaker, and promoter Sampson Lewkowicz as one of those going with the upset.

Having played an instrumental role in helping bring Pacquiao to America over eleven years ago, Lewkowicz knows the Filipino idol very well and was taken back to a key fight of his that took place in November of 2001 when discussing the Bradley matchup.

“I’ve known Pacquiao for a long time and I never forget when the late Agapito Sanchez, who has a very [similar] style to Bradley,” said Lewkowicz of Pacquiao’s bout with the awkward Dominican, a fight that ended in a six-round technical due to a nasty cut above Pacquiao’s right eye following an accidental head butt.

“A rough fight is not for Pacquiao,” Lewkowicz continued. “I believe he will be rough, this kid Bradley with Pacquiao. I predict that it’s the end of the career for Pacquiao.”

Surprising remarks from Lewkowicz, who insisted that Pacquiao, who also serves as a congressman in the province of Sarangani in the Philippines and who recently has begun devoting himself to God, is a fighter who mentally is already on his way out of the sport.

“Oh no, he has too many things on his plate and I don’t believe he will continue,” stated Lewkowicz. “Actually, he’s starting to lose his mind I believe. It’s not the same Pacquiao as two fights ago.”

Asked how boxing would deal with the loss of one of its biggest stars, Lewkowicz pointed out that there are always other doors yet to be opened.

“It will be much better,” said Lewkowicz. “Because you will have many Filipinos who will have the right to be the next Manny Pacquiao. For the Philippines, Pacquiao is an idol, he will be an idol all the time and thanks to that idol, he will pass the torch to the other younger Filipinos.”

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Timothy Bradley brings brash confidence into fight against Manny Pacquiao

source: Robert Morales | Daily News

You have to love Timothy Bradley.

The other day he was asked what he thinks about trainer Freddie Roach saying he is tailor-made for Manny Pacquiao.

"I don't care what Freddie Roach thinks," said Bradley, who tonight will challenge Pacquiao for his welterweight title at MGM Grand in Las Vegas (on HBO pay-per-view). "He isn't in the ring fighting for Pacquiao and he isn't in my training camp. He can say whatever he wants.

"I know I am training and prepared to do what I need to do. We are setting out to win this fight and not sit around and look pretty. I don't care what Roach says or what Pacquiao says, I am ready to go. I am going to take it to Pacquiao."

Bradley isn't just talking big. He will make Pacquiao fight because he is starving for that ultimate victory. Bradley might be the underdog, but you wouldn't know it by his boldness.

Another cool element about this fight is, we're not sure which Pacquiao we are going to see. The one who took a controversial majority decision over Juan Manuel Marquez in November wasn't very good, although Marquez was partly responsible for that.

Then again, perhaps it's true that Pacquiao was down psychologically because his marriage - now said to be repaired - was on the rocks. Just that night, before the fight, that drama was reportedly thick.

Pacquiao is supposedly back at full strength in that regard. He claims he has had a spiritual reawakening, that he and his wife are united, and that he no longer does the naughty things he was doing to mess up his marriage.
If his calves - which have cramped in recent fights - hold up and his head is right, we might see the best of Pacquiao.

That is unless we have already seen Pacquiao's best. In the eyes of his trainer, Pacquiao has to show he still is Pacquiao.

"You've got a lot of people telling Manny that he's all done and shot because he looked like (expletive) in his last fight, and he's hearing that," Roach said. "So he knows that he has to perform in this fight.

"He knows he needs a knockout."

Pacquiao is indeed eager go give a good showing in order for many to forget about his work against Marquez in November.

"I want to impress people with my performance," Pacquiao said. "I want to prove to them I can still fight."

Roach said Pacquiao knows this could be a hard fight. Besides his marital woes, Pacquiao said he also underestimated Marquez. It doesn't sound like Pacquiao is taking Bradley for granted, however.

"Bradley is a different type of fighter and we don't take this fight lightly," Pacquiao said. "We have trained hard for Bradley because he is the type of fighter we cannot underestimate.

"Tim Bradley is undefeated and he is a champion."

Bradley, 28, is 28-0 and a former junior welterweight champion.

"I don't know what Tim Bradley will bring in the ring, but we will be ready for whatever he brings," said Pacquiao, 33. "I know he will be 100 percent conditioned for the fight.

"We have practiced every kind of fight in the ring, with four different sparring partners."

The left-handed Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) would be foolish to take the right-handed Bradley lightly, and Pacquiao is not foolish. Bradley has a great chin, and a big heart. The only time Bradley was knocked down was during his junior welterweight title unification bout with Kendall Holt three years ago, and he got off the canvas twice and won.

"People said to me, `Why did you do this fight?' because of Bradley's attitude and Bradley's skills and Manny at this age could be in trouble," said promoter Bob Arum, who promotes both.

"And I said, `Because that's what people want. People want competitive fights."'

It will be more than competitive, Bradley promised.

"I don't know if it will be a knockout," he said. "I'm not a prediction kind of guy, but I know at the end of the fight I will have my hand raised. I am going to be the winner, plain and simple."

Bradley was laughing. He wasn't when talking strategy.

"Pacquiao hits hard with the right and the left hand, so I'll be able to feel him out in the first round and see what he really has," he said. "If he does have some power, then I will definitely have to be smarter in there and outbox this guy.

"If I don't feel like he can hurt me, then I'm definitely going to step into him to make a fight out of it."

Pacquiao can hurt Bradley. Can Bradley hurt Pacquiao?

Bradley has 12 knockouts in 28 fights, a low ratio, and he's moving up in weight.

Let's just hope head-butts don't play a role. Bradley has a reputation of leading with his head. Roach admits he is concerned, Bradley said he is aware and has taken precautions to avoid clashing heads.

"I don't want this fight to end on a head-butt," said Bradley, who is so confident he had a mock poster made up promoting a November rematch with Pacquiao, which suggests Bradley will win tonight.

Yes, you have to love Bradley, even though he's probably going to lose.

Pacquiao weighed the 147-pound limit Friday. Bradley weighed 146.

Garcia looks to be good fill-in to battle Khan

Former super lightweight champion Amir Khan was supposed to fight Lamont Peterson in a rematch May 19, but May 8 it was revealed Peterson tested positive for steroids and the fight was off.

At the time, it was a letdown. But Golden Boy Promotions has lined up Philadelphia world champion Danny Garcia for Khan, and this could end up being a better fight than Khan-Peterson. They will tangle July 14 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas (on HBO).

Not only is Garcia (23-0, 14 KOs) a terrific fighter, his father/trainer Angel Garcia likes to get under the skin of his opponents. He did it again Monday when the parties got together at an L.A. news conference to formally announce the bout.

"Khan is an overrated fighter," Angel Garcia said.

Khan (26-2, 18 KOs) spoke directly to Angel Garcia.

"When I beat your son, am I still going to be overrated?" Khan said. "Maybe it's Danny who is the one who is overrated."

The fighters doled out respect to each other, however, demonstrating that all the talk aside, they seem to know they are in for a rough ride.

"I have seen him fight and he has a dangerous style," said Khan, 25, of England. "He is tough, but he has never faced anyone like me."

Danny Garcia responded in kind.

"Khan is a great fighter, I'm a great fighter," said Garcia, 24.

"When you put two great fighters together, you have to fight your best to get the win."

Some might say Garcia still has to prove himself because he won the title with an overwhelming decision over 35-year-old Erik Morales in March. But keep in mind that 11 months earlier, Morales gave hard-hitting Marcos Maidana all he could handle in a majority-decision loss.

Freddie Roach, Khan's trainer, likes this matchup a lot.

"This is a big fight," he said. "It's the best fighting the best."

It has not been determined if Garcia's belt will be on the line, as he has a mandatory defense he is supposed to make against Ajose Olusegun of Nigeria.

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Boxing experts predict upset win for Timothy Bradley over Manny Pacquiao

source: Drew Schmenner | MyDesert.com

LAS VEGAS — Ever since Timothy Bradley first publicly called out Manny Pacquiao after a victory in July 2010, he has avowed he will defeat the Filipino superstar.

That self-assurance has won over some members of the boxing media, who are picking him to pull off the upset tonight.

“They know how hungry and determined I am,” Bradley said on stage during Friday's weigh-in.

Legendary ring announcer Michael Buffer understands how Bradley has convinced some writers. In the run-up to the fight, Bradley has sold himself well on the HBO reality series “24/7.”

“In my opinion, a lot of people are impressed with the way he composes himself, the way his personal life is, and the way he's so mentally and physically focused,” Buffer said. “It was very impressive to see that. That tends to sway a lot of opinions.”

Tim Smith of the New York Daily News initially picked Pacquiao to win by decision, but he switched sides a couple of weeks ago after watching “24/7.” He now believes Bradley will win by technical knockout in the 11th round.

“He looked more fierce than I had ever recalled seeing before a fight,” Smith said.

ESPN's Dan Rafael also changed his mind, picking Bradley to win in a close decision.

The fighter noticed.

“I was amazed, I was like holy (expletive),” Bradley joked as he greeted Rafael at a private media session Wednesday.

Rafael told Bradley he didn't think he read his stories.

“I don't read it, but people bring it to my attention,” Bradley responded. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, hell must be freezing over.' ”

Rafael believes time has caught up to Pacquiao.

“I see the little slippage in Pacquiao,” he said. “They can say what they want about personal problems, which there's probably something to that, but there's also 33 years of age and all those tough, hard fights.”

Rafael also thinks the relative magnitude of the fight in each boxer's career is also a factor.

“This is by multiples of a million the biggest fight that Timmy's ever had, and he has such hunger and desire for it,” Rafael said. “Not to say that Pacquiao's not training hard and doesn't want to win, but I don't think he can possibly have that same kind of mentality for a fight like this that he's had for many other fights that in my opinion are much, much bigger fights in his career.”

Some writers, however, are sticking with Pacquiao. Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports picked the Filipino to win by decision.

“I think it's a really good fight. I think the odds are ridiculous. I think it's more of a 7-to-5, 8-to-5 fight,” he said. “I just think when it comes down to it the combination of speed and power that Pacquiao has will lift him to the victory.”

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Timothy Bradley sees 'guardian angel' in his corner ahead of Manny Pacquiao fight

source: Leighton Ginn | MyDesert.com

LAS VEGAS — Timothy Bradley displayed a hard and determined look throughout most of his final pre-fight news conference.

Suddenly, the focus of the Cathedral City boxer turned to an orange and black butterfly floating over his team's side of the dais.

Bradley believes it was a sign from the first man who declared he would one day be world champion — O.J. Couture.

“He was just here? You didn't see him? He was flying here. That was O.J.,” Bradley declared after his news conference Wednesday. “Butterflies are like a new beginning, a new life. That's the significance of butterflies.”

The unbeaten Bradley (28-0) will take on boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao (54-3-2) tonight in a welterweight championship fight at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino.

The pay-per-view fight is expected to begin sometime about 8:30 p.m., as officials have announced the bout won't commence until Game 7 of the NBA's Eastern Conference final between the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics wraps up.

Bradley first met Couture as a 10-year-old when he first walked into the Palm Springs Boxing Club with his father, Timothy Sr., who also goes by Big Ray.

“I say, ‘OK, all right, whatever. You sold me,' but I was going to sign him up anyway,” Tim Bradley Sr. said. “But he told me, ‘I'm not here to shuck and jive you, I'm not pulling your leg, but look at the way he carries himself. I know fighters, I know champions when I see them. Not everyone can be a champion that comes here.'

“Tim was different. He had a different light shining down on him,” Bradley said of his young son.

Couture and Russell Rodriguez helped shape Bradley, and not just in the ring. Couture would visit Bradley's school and check on him to make sure he was not getting into trouble.

“They were my boxing fathers, my heroes,” Bradley said. “They saved me, they saved me from being in the streets, and they gave me the opportunity to use my skill set and get attention in a positive way.

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