Manny Pacquiao vs. Timothy Bradley 3: Latest Fight Card Odds and Prop Bets
Timothy Bradley Jr. knows he has an opportunity to climb higher in the boxing world when he steps into the ring at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas Saturday night against Manny Pacquiao.
Bradley has officially split his two decisions against Pacquiao, but the large majority of those who follow boxing believe the judges robbed Pacquiao of a decision he earned in their first fight in June 2012. While Bradley's hand was raised after that fight, his performance was largely denounced, and it threw him into a funk as he heard nothing but criticism afterward, as he explained to the Desert Sun.
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He could not get himself out of that hole until he stepped into the ring with Ruslan Provodnikov in March 2013. Bradley became an aggressive fighter in that bout, going punch-for-punch with his Russian opponent. The American earned a unanimous decision and started to get respect from boxing fans.
Since that time, Bradley has been a much different fighter than the cautious boxer who stepped into the ring with Pacquiao the first time. He followed the Provodnikov victory with another respect-gaining win over Juan Manuel Marquez, and that split-decision triumph earned him a second opportunity against Pacquiao in April 2014.
| Pacquiao gets knocked down but still wins | 8-1 |
| Bradley gets knocked down but still wins | 18-1 |
| Fight will go the distance | 2-5 |
| Fight will not go the distance | 7-4 |
Bradley also knew that Pacquiao was not the same fighter he had been in their first bout as a result of that victory over Marquez. The latter had knocked out Pacquiao in a December 2012 encounter, so it was obvious Bradley had improved if he could get the best of Pac-Man's longtime rival.
A well-prepared and motivated Pacquiao hammered out a unanimous decision over Bradley two years ago, but it was a hard-fought bout and one that helped Bradley's reputation. Since that fight, the California-born boxer has gone 2-0-1, and his latest bout was a TKO victory over Brandon Rios last November.
Pacquiao has been idle since losing a unanimous decision to Floyd Mayweather Jr. While that fight came with much hype, it did not reward the paying customers with much action. Mayweather displayed his defensive skills and controlled the fight, but neither man was able to do much damage with his fists.
Pacquiao had said he was going to fight Bradley and then retire, but he has backed off those statements in the days before the fight, according to British boxing reporter Gareth A Davies of the Telegraph. Pacquiao wants to put on a good show against Bradley, and if he can gain a clear victory, that might lead the 37-year-old to return to the ring in the future.
Pacquiao said at a press conference Wednesday that he still wants to get in the ring and win. "I still have the desire," he said. "I love boxing. Boxing is my passion. I started boxing when I was 12 years old, nonstop, until now."
While he has been training hard, the question is how much Pacquiao has left in the tank at this point in his career. He is just 3-3 in his last six fights and has not registered a knockout since November 2009 when he stopped Miguel Cotto.
The oddsmakers continue to show Pacquiao respect. Odds Shark has the Filipino as a 4-9 favorite, while Bradley is a 7-4 underdog.
Prediction
This fight has all the earmarks of a 12-round decision. While Bradley stopped Rios in his last fight, Pacquiao has the quickness, instincts and intelligence to avoid Bradley's hardest punches.
Pacquiao will start the fight with confidence and will steal the early rounds with his jabs and counterpunching. However, Bradley will be undeterred and take the fight to Pac-Man in the middle rounds.
However, just when the fight gets close, Pacquiao's two-fisted attack will allow him to control the late rounds. Look for Pacquiao to win a unanimous and well-earned decision.
The victory will give Pacquiao the vacant WBO international welterweight title.
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