Bradley vs. Marquez: Odds and Round-by-Round Predictions for Saturday's Fight
Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez meet Saturday night in a match for both the WBO’s world welterweight title and slightly more substantial bragging rights among the few men who’ve ever defeated Manny Pacquiao in a boxing ring.
Bradley is the WBO champion after winning the belt from Pacquiao via a widely-panned split decision in June 2012, then defending it with a narrow unanimous nod over rugged Ruslan Provodnikov in a fight many have already determined to be the best of the lot in 2013.
Marquez has not fought since his career-defining triumph last December, when he landed a counter right hand that rendered Pacquiao unconscious and provided the lone inarguable result of the four-fight series that’s spanned nine years and 21 pounds.
Date: Saturday, October 12, 2013
Time: HBO PPV starts at 9 p.m. ET; main event around 11 p.m. ET
Venue: Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada
Odds: Marquez (-162), Bradley (+125)
Note: Odds provided by bet365.com and correct as of 10/8/2013 at 10 a.m. ET; subject to change.
Round 1
1 of 13
Lest anyone forget, the Timothy Bradley that we all knew before March was a patient counterpuncher whose fights were rarely the best of their nights, let alone entire years.
The previous style is back in a decidedly nonviolent first round in which neither man voluntarily wants to lead and make himself a target of the other’s radar-like replies.
Bradley is the least patient and directs what few exchanges there are, which is enough to give him a close opener.
10-9 Bradley
Round 2
2 of 13
The same pattern largely holds true in the sleepy second round, though Bradley is doing a bit more leading and Marquez lands his first clean shot—a right hand that lands, but doesn’t devastate—at the round's midway point.
He seems more comfortable now that Bradley is pressing the action, and, while he may not have done enough to win the round, he certainly appears more into his pattern for the night.
The champ wins another close one.
10-9 Bradley
20-18 Bradley
Round 3
3 of 13
The first sustained action of the night arrives in the first minute of the third, when Bradley misses a right hand, is countered by lefts to the body and head from Marquez, then replies with a left of his own.
Marquez is taking his offense to the body more so than in the first two rounds, which may pay dividends later and is scoring points in the meantime.
Bradley is certainly the aggressor now, but Marquez handles the approach better in this round than in the opening pair.
10-9 Marquez
29-28 Bradley
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Round 4
4 of 13
It’s not quite on the level of Bradley-Provodnikov, but something resembling a fight has broken out at the Thomas & Mack.
Bradley scores with a combination thanks to superior hand speed, but Marquez seems to be throwing the final punch in each of the exchanges at this point.
A right hand in the final 30 seconds pushes Bradley backward and is the cleanest and most ooh-and-ahh worthy shot of the night so far.
10-9 Marquez
38-38 Even
Round 5
5 of 13
The punch late in the fourth hasn’t put Bradley in danger of falling, but it does seem to have him playing less of the aggressor role in the fifth.
Marquez senses the change in tactics and begins moving steadily forward for the first time, maintaining the body attack and scoring the occasional winging shot up top.
His precision is beginning to make its mark—literally—on Bradley’s face, evidenced by an abrasion under the left eye.
10-9 Marquez
48-47 Marquez
Round 6
6 of 13
The pattern continues into the sixth, with Marquez now the aggressor and Bradley curiously not getting off as much as he had earlier.
He’s not getting pummeled, but he’s not nearly as offensive-minded as the first handful of rounds.
Marquez lands another right with 15 seconds left that clinches another 10-point must in his column.
10-9 Marquez
58-56 Marquez
Round 7
7 of 13
What we’ve unquestionably learned through six rounds is that when it comes to fighting Marquez, Bradley has looked much better and been significantly more successful when pressing matters and moving his hands.
He retakes that tack to start the seventh and lands what have clearly been his best shots of the fight, in the form of a snapping jab and a stinging right hand 90 seconds in.
Marquez is unmoved, but the surge in confidence for the champion is apparent as he looks more energetic and pumps his fist while returning to the corner at the bell.
10-9 Bradley
67-66 Marquez
Round 8
8 of 13
A rejuvenated Bradley provides a fitting Marquez foil for the best round of the night.
The two men dispense with the typical 60 seconds of feinting and footwork and instead mix it up with a pair of exchanges in the opening minute at ring center. Bradley lands more, Marquez lands harder and Bradley’s left eye is becoming more of an issue.
Two more right hands, one as a lead and another as a counter, land squarely on Bradley’s cheekbone—indicating that Bradley is having a hard time seeing and reacting to the shots.
10-9 Marquez
77-75 Marquez
Round 9
9 of 13
The final third arrives and it seems as though the brief Bradley surge has ended, giving way to a Marquez who senses his man might be both tired and frustrated at the same time.
Still, it’s not an all-out blitz, but rather the methodical chop-down that the patient Mexican employs.
A pair of ribcage shots in close from Marquez are the most telling blows of the round, and Bradley looks bothered as the round ends.
10-9 Marquez
87-84 Marquez
Round 10
10 of 13
We head into the fight’s final quarter with more of the same, Marquez grinding forward to start the 10th round against a less and less violent foe.
Blood is coming from the mouth of the champion now, too, which isn’t helping his situation any when viewed alongside a left eye that’s half-closed from repeated shots.
Marquez is bleeding from the nose, but seems far less impacted because he’s taken far less of a recurring beating.
10-9 Marquez
97-93 Marquez
Round 11
11 of 13
Trainer Joel Diaz asks Bradley if he wants to stop, but it’s clear the question is more motivational than practical. Bradley replies with a “f*ck no,” and seems jolted as he leaves the stool.
He immediately presses Marquez with a three-punch combination, the most offense he’s shown in several rounds, and grapples aggressively with the challenger in a clinch—finishing it with a push that draws a warning from referee Kenny Bayless.
Another two-way exchange ends the round and gets the crowd revved up heading into the final three minutes of what suddenly feels like the closer fight that it really is.
10-9 Bradley
106-103 Marquez
Round 12
12 of 13
The two touch gloves with assistance from Bayless and amid the loudest noise the Thomas & Mack has produced since the opening few rounds.
Bradley senses he’s behind and presses the action in a manner similar to what he’d started with the 11th-round rally. Marquez appears tired for the first time all night and is a little more hesitant to separate from a clinch, ultimately needing Bayless to steer him backward.
Bradley presses into the final half-minute, but is greeted by a right hand that stops the approach and forces him to hold on. The two remain clinched, each slapping the other’s body with one free hand as the final bell rings.
10-9 Bradley
115-113 Marquez
Final Wrap
13 of 13
Given the mysteries surrounding some scorecards in the last several weeks, the buzz in the arena is tinged by a sense of “good lord, don’t let it happen again.”
After a few minutes that seem like several more, Michael Buffer seizes the microphone and utters the words “unanimous decision” that are greeted by raised hands in both corners.
Buffer reads Patricia Morse Jarman’s final total of 115-113 first, followed by consecutive 116-112 views from Glenn Feldman and Robert Hoyle for the winner and NEW WBO welterweight champion, Juan Manuel Marquez, who becomes the latest five-division world champion.
A close fight whose verdict Bradley partisans will contest, but the general vibe is that the judges—all three of them, for a change—got it right.
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