Pacquiao vs. Bradley Rematch: Pros and Cons of Pac-Man vs. Desert Storm 4

Manny Pacquiao unanimously outpointed Timothy Bradley Saturday night in their third dance, ending any and all conversation about their rivalry and future fights.

Or did he?

Boxing loves its rematches. Slapping a Roman numeral next to a pair of recognizable names prints money on most occasions. So, even though Pacquiao took home a 116-110 unanimous decision, per HBO Boxing, as well as scored two knockdowns—two more than in the 24 prior rounds—maybe it isn't wise to kill off any and all ideas of a rematch just yet.

Pacquiao says he's walking away from the sport, and Bradley has to move on and salvage what he can, but let's not just toss the idea of Pac-Man vs. Desert Storm 4 out the window, as it does have some redeeming qualities. Here's a look at the pros and cons for a fourth bout.

The Good

It's a rematch.

Rematches speak for themselves. While folks weren't enthusiastic about the third meeting between these two, comparing it to Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. was simply silly. Go ahead and do a social-media search to see just how "dead" the buzz around this one was.

Which is the point here—Pacquiao could slip on the gloves against anyone and become a major draw, especially after such a good performance, despite spending the 11 prior months on the shelf with a shoulder injury.

Watching Pacquiao could become like watching Mayweather, as folks will tune in just to see if he'll lose. Maybe that's not the most ringing endorsement for Bradley right now, but he's not in a position to complain with how much cash goes into his bank account for stepping into the ring with Pacquiao.

Perhaps the biggest pro surrounding a fourth bout, other than Pacquiao ending his "retirement," is the battle behind the scenes between legendary trainers Freddie Roach and Teddy Atlas.

Atlas was supposed to be the guy who would turn the tide in this war, embodying the reason Bradley would put down Pacquiao and take the proverbial next step. It didn't work out, with Bradley morphing back to his old self as the fight wore on and the eventual winner pulled away.

Call it shadowboxing, a proxy war or something else, but it's always fun to see two respected trainers who don't like each other go at it.

“I don’t like Teddy and he doesn’t like me,” Roach said before Saturday's fight, according to USA Today's Bob Velin. “But that’s OK. He says he’s a better trainer than me, but we’ll see.”

So other than Saturday providing quite the entertaining fight— leagues better than Pacquiao-Mayweather—there are enough positive elements to merit a fourth meet if the stars align.

The Bad

John Locher/Associated Press/Associated Press

This series is essentially 3-0.

Bradley won the first but then took a public whipping. The decision got its own investigation, and some of the judges no longer perform the duty.

And other than the two knockdowns Saturday, the official fight stats via CompuBox paint a picture of sheer dominance and Atlas' lessons not translating to the ring:

Public figures such as Deion Sanders concur with the numbers:

This rivalry just doesn't need a fourth encounter, and good luck convincing the globe that Bradley presents a threat.

Perhaps most importantly, a fourth bout would block both men from what might be better matches against other opponents.

Bradley likely has to rebuild his image yet again; however, maybe he'll jump right up the ladder and get a shot at Canelo Alvarez or some other big name. 

For Pacquiao, well, folks know where this is going. A rematch with Mayweather seems unlikely, but it's one way to get both men out of retirement. The Vertical's Chris Mannix believes Pacquiao wasn't dominant enough to make it happen, though:

If Mayweather doesn't want to play and Pacquiao still wants to give it a go, anyone from Alvarez to Terence Crawford to Adrien Broner would make for an intriguing matchup and a fresh encounter as opposed to a fourth dance with Bradley.

Then again, keep in mind that Pacquiao fought Juan Manuel Marquez four times.

Alas, while a fourth bout between Pacquiao and Bradley might entertain us, the lack of a reason and plenty of other notable encounters in its place are enough in the cons department to think it won't happen.