Pacquiao vs. Bradley 3: Weigh-in Results, Odds, Fight Time and Undercard Info
The formalities are over between Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley.
It's been a rather respectful buildup between the two men in boxing terms, but Friday's weigh-in finished the niceties ahead of what should be one of the most entertaining bouts of the year.
Both men have grown in different ways since their first two bouts, hence the mutual respect. Bradley took the first, much to the chagrin of Pacquiao's global following, but Pacquiao took the second before a humbling at the hands of Floyd Mayweather.
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As a critical moment in each fighter's career, Saturday's event is a major crossroads for the sport.
Pacquiao vs. Bradley 3
When: Saturday, April 9 at 9 p.m. ET
Where: MGM Grand, Las Vegas
TV/Live Stream: PPV
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
| Arthur Abraham vs. Gilberto Ramirez | WBO World Super Middleweight title |
| Oscar Valdez vs. Evgeny Gradovich | WBO/NABO Featherweight title |
| Jose Ramirez vs. Manuel Perez | WBC Continental Americas Junior Welterweight |
| Manny Pacquiao vs. Timothy Bradley | Vacant WBO International Welterweight title |
The Weigh-in
A much-hyped event, Friday's weigh-in was about as routine as it gets.
With a limit of 147 pounds, both fighters stepped to the scale in front of a large crowd and stood at a chiseled 145.5 pounds.
Other than the two professionals holding up their end of the bargain in terms of weight, it was an interesting time to see the two legendary trainers at the controls who will fight something akin to a proxy war through their guys, Freddie Roach with Pacquiao and Teddy Atlas with Bradley.
"I hope the fans really enjoy themselves on Saturday night," Pacquiao said at the weigh-in, according to ESPN.com's Dan Rafael. "Expect more action in the ring. We did our best in training camp, and I will bring out my best on Saturday night."
It's an interesting set of comments from Pacquiao, the favorite, who has remained mostly adamant this bout will be the last of his career so he can move on to the world of politics.
Neither guy is one to mince words, and Friday, there seemed to be tension in the air over this fight's importance, no matter how pleasant both men have been to each other over the course of the buildup.
Odds and Prediction
Las Vegas loves Pacquiao here, which isn't much in the way of a shock.
According to Odds Shark, the fight opened at Pacquiao -308 to Bradley's +252, though the line has since moved to -200 and +160, respectively.
Why the change? Oddsmakers may have been a tad overzealous with the opening odds, perhaps basing it off the first two fights. It makes some sense, as Pacquiao probably should have won the first and he took the second over the course of another 12 rounds that looked essentially the same as the first 12.
But the movement makes sense, too. Reasons abound—Pacquiao took the loss to Mayweather and has been on the shelf for almost a year rehabbing a shoulder issue. The aforementioned Atlas is a new addition to Bradley's career and helped him secure a ninth-round knockout of Brandon Rios last November, a new aggressiveness folks aren't used to seeing from the American fighter.
Bradley knows he's a better fighter than the last time out, and that Pacquiao has absolutely lost a step, as a picture painted by Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times illustrated: "Hearing the more vocal support for Pacquiao from a far smaller crowd than the throng who showed for the Mayweather-Pacquiao weigh-in, Bradley said, 'Get ready for the whuppin’. I think there’s going to be a lot of disappointed fans out there.' "
Those throwing down cash on the fight seem to agree, or at least like the idea of an upset, if not because Bradley looks improved, then perhaps because a loss might entice Pacquiao to stick around.
Don't count on a loss, though.
Pacquiao might be a bit slower and Bradley looks better, but the first 24 rounds between these two painted a picture of a guy simply outclassed in speed and power. Maybe Father Time makes a slight difference in the speed this time out, but not power.
Atlas can do a lot of things with the 24 rounds of film, but adding notable power behind Bradley's blows isn't one of them.
Don't forget the desperation, either. Pacquiao cannot afford to drop this bout, not with elections soon, not after coming off the loss to Mayweather.
In the past, Pacquiao has been quite content to let a fight go to the scorecards. He knows better than to do it against Bradley after the first bout, but also will want to end his career with a violent finish.
Already promising more action than usual, look for Pacquiao to swing for the fences and overwhelm Bradley in the later rounds.
Scorecard Prediction: 86-84 Pacquiao before 10th-round knockout
Odds via Odds Shark.
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