Give Pacquiao a break

[Rantcatrat]

Both are excellent fighters, but Bradley lost the plot as far as I am concerned. He seemed to really believe that a KO punch would be all it took and considering that he has never been a KO artist and has always ground out wins by being versatile and active, it wasn't very smart boxing. He simply wasn't all that versatile in this fight and at times he was almost asking to be Hatton'ed with his recklessness. He was getting predictable with those wailing wide haymakers. It was as though he was trying to impersonate himself in a fightnight game. I couldn't fathom why he was being so cocky and seemingly so satisfied with a few rounds seemingly handed over on a plate. He should have been up 4-2 and it should have been about using smarts to win a few more rounds. He just wasn't able to focus for 3 minutes of each round.

Manny won the fight, but once again he didn't look particularly impressive. He has clearly lost a step and his output is significantly down on what it used to be and if Bradley was a puncher Manny could have been out of there by the half way mark. Fair play to Manny on grinding it out, but Bradley made it easier for him than it should have been. Bradley is better than that and Manny was better than that, thus I found it lacking in the end.

A good first half, but Bradley lost his marbles and another Top Rank love in was had. What next Manny, Marquez 5? Sheez, he better ask his promoter. I'm tired of Top Rank and want James Toney to fight Bob Arum.

I cannot agree. Bradley is not excellent. Has never been and never will be. That is of course, just my own opinion.

I agree with @Gandalf totally. I guess we watched the same fight. Bradley quite literally gave the fight away. It was not his skill set that folded, it was his pea sized brain that did. I had him ahead after 5 by a round and ahead 3/4 of the way through the sixth and then he suddenly turned into Augustus. It was as if somebody turned off a valve. He may have gave away the sixth round in the last 30 seconds but in theory was ahead by 2. I think the cards will show that when they are posted although the first round was tricky as they can be more often then not. So what discouraged Timmy as he was doing much better to this point then he was in the first fight? It really was as if the wheels fell off half way up the hill.

Manny happened and he was not as aired out as maybe they thought and they truly believed they actually could knock him out. Sincere delusion but they believed it. When Manny was still standing and starting to get what looked like his second wind, all of a sudden Tim went full on Whitaker and quit throwing. He also went gun shy and on several occasions actually turned his melon head away in anticipation which is something you dont do unless you are involved in a first boxing lesson as a walk in. Manny kept coming and showed smarts but if Tim even had mediocre power I'm not to sure we'd be having this discussion.

Manny put in a gutsy performance and deserves credit for the win but he did look about 60% of what he has looked like and even after the fight seemed a little to reserved.

I take some issue in you saying that Tim is not an excellent fighter. Not only does that statement take away from Mannys win but its also patently false. You dont get to where he is or have the notches he has on his gun handle w/o being above average. His resume is in the top 5 of the sport. If anything, its not that people are not giving Manny enough credit but rather people giving him to much. I'm already seeing threads making the leap from this fight to the phantom one and that somehow Floyd is now more scared or bla bla bla. Yet to me if it was anything other then a feud stopping it Floyd would most likely be on the phone right now. Btw who does Manny think he is the Pope? He makes the press row wait close to 3 hours wtf? And Bradley whats with the limps again and then telling Arum not to talk about it? Drama queen. He claims to have no excuses but walks out with one. What a tool.

I completely agree about Bradley. If Bradley had won on Saturday, I don't think there is anyway he is not number three on most people's p4p list. Wins over Juan Manuel Marquez, Manny Pacquiao (I thought he lost), Provo (debatable), Devon Alexander, Lamont Peterson, Luis Abregu and Kendal Holt, amount to one of the best resumes in the sport. Where does he go from here? You know what's an interesting fight for Bradley in the UK? Kell Brook.

[Beanz]

Both are excellent fighters, but Bradley lost the plot as far as I am concerned. He seemed to really believe that a KO punch would be all it took and considering that he has never been a KO artist and has always ground out wins by being versatile and active, it wasn't very smart boxing. He simply wasn't all that versatile in this fight and at times he was almost asking to be Hatton'ed with his recklessness. He was getting predictable with those wailing wide haymakers. It was as though he was trying to impersonate himself in a fightnight game. I couldn't fathom why he was being so cocky and seemingly so satisfied with a few rounds seemingly handed over on a plate. He should have been up 4-2 and it should have been about using smarts to win a few more rounds. He just wasn't able to focus for 3 minutes of each round.

Manny won the fight, but once again he didn't look particularly impressive. He has clearly lost a step and his output is significantly down on what it used to be and if Bradley was a puncher Manny could have been out of there by the half way mark. Fair play to Manny on grinding it out, but Bradley made it easier for him than it should have been. Bradley is better than that and Manny was better than that, thus I found it lacking in the end.

A good first half, but Bradley lost his marbles and another Top Rank love in was had. What next Manny, Marquez 5? Sheez, he better ask his promoter. I'm tired of Top Rank and want James Toney to fight Bob Arum.

I cannot agree. Bradley is not excellent. Has never been and never will be. That is of course, just my own opinion.

I agree with @Gandalf totally. I guess we watched the same fight. Bradley quite literally gave the fight away. It was not his skill set that folded, it was his pea sized brain that did. I had him ahead after 5 by a round and ahead 3/4 of the way through the sixth and then he suddenly turned into Augustus. It was as if somebody turned off a valve. He may have gave away the sixth round in the last 30 seconds but in theory was ahead by 2. I think the cards will show that when they are posted although the first round was tricky as they can be more often then not. So what discouraged Timmy as he was doing much better to this point then he was in the first fight? It really was as if the wheels fell off half way up the hill.

Manny happened and he was not as aired out as maybe they thought and they truly believed they actually could knock him out. Sincere delusion but they believed it. When Manny was still standing and starting to get what looked like his second wind, all of a sudden Tim went full on Whitaker and quit throwing. He also went gun shy and on several occasions actually turned his melon head away in anticipation which is something you dont do unless you are involved in a first boxing lesson as a walk in. Manny kept coming and showed smarts but if Tim even had mediocre power I'm not to sure we'd be having this discussion.

Manny put in a gutsy performance and deserves credit for the win but he did look about 60% of what he has looked like and even after the fight seemed a little to reserved.

I take some issue in you saying that Tim is not an excellent fighter. Not only does that statement take away from Mannys win but its also patently false. You dont get to where he is or have the notches he has on his gun handle w/o being above average. His resume is in the top 5 of the sport. If anything, its not that people are not giving Manny enough credit but rather people giving him to much. I'm already seeing threads making the leap from this fight to the phantom one and that somehow Floyd is now more scared or bla bla bla. Yet to me if it was anything other then a feud stopping it Floyd would most likely be on the phone right now. Btw who does Manny think he is the Pope? He makes the press row wait close to 3 hours wtf? And Bradley whats with the limps again and then telling Arum not to talk about it? Drama queen. He claims to have no excuses but walks out with one. What a tool.

I completely agree about Bradley. If Bradley had won on Saturday, I don't think there is anyway he is not number three on most people's p4p list. Wins over Juan Manuel Marquez, Manny Pacquiao (I thought he lost), Provo (debatable), Devon Alexander, Lamont Peterson, Luis Abregu and Kendal Holt, amount to one of the best resumes in the sport. Where does he go from here? You know what's an interesting fight for Bradley in the UK? Kell Brook.

I can not agree. You have just undermined your own argument. He beat Marquez who is certainly done now. That's it. He lost to Manny twice, even you have admitted the Provo win is debatable and he is hardly an elite fighter. Alexander is massively over rated, always has been and should have lost to Maidana . Lamont Peterson ? the guy should be banned for life.Abregu and Kendall Holt? Look nobody is saying Bradley is a bum but number 3 on people's P4P list? really the guy is just not that good. He is most definitely not excellent and that takes nothing away from Pacquiao. Manny beat him handily TWICE despite what the judges say. The only point I had him ahead was after round one on Sunday morning certainly not by half way through the fight. What fight were you guys watching? I still believe Khan could beat him. Brook even more so, possibly by KO. I am not impressed by Bradley at all. Having a pea sized brain is not a separate issue from boxing, his lack of ring smarts will always cost him just as it has Khan. Yes he he has a far better chin so that it is not so obvious but he isn't as fast and if a clearly 70% version of Manny can have him grasping and reaching for thin air then a younger guy with a bit of speed and style will make him look like even more of a chump.

[Beanflicker]

How could you not have Bradley as a top p4p guy when he beat a top p4p guy in Marquez?

[Beanz]

How could you not have Bradley as a top p4p guy when he beat a top p4p guy in Marquez?

Because as you keep telling us you are only as good as your last fight and Bradley just got owned by a past it Pacquiao. Styles really do make fights and Marquez finally sparking Manny out does not suddenly make him Mike Tyson when Bradley beats him. Marquez is a sublimely gifted boxer but he is getting old. Until he timed Manny coming in he was starting to show his age even in that fight. If Bradley really is a top p4p guy why has Floyd continued to avoid him ? Does he not want a challenge ? Again you can not bring yourself to give Pacquiao any credit and have to big up Tim nice but dim, who has continually fallen short.

[Beanflicker]

How could you not have Bradley as a top p4p guy when he beat a top p4p guy in Marquez?

Because as you keep telling us you are only as good as your last fight and Bradley just got owned by a past it Pacquiao.

I'm talking pre-Pac 2. Certain people are talking like Bradley was a bum, but he was a universally recognized top p4p fighter.

[Beanflicker]

Because as you keep telling us you are only as good as your last fight and Bradley just got owned by a past it Pacquiao. Styles really do make fights and Marquez finally sparking Manny out does not suddenly make him Mike Tyson when Bradley beats him. Marquez is a sublimely gifted boxer but he is getting old. Until he timed Manny coming in he was starting to show his age even in that fight. If Bradley really is a top p4p guy why has Floyd continued to avoid him ? Does he not want a challenge ? Again you can not bring yourself to give Pacquiao any credit and have to big up Tim nice but dim, who has continually fallen short.

I don't know where you get off saying I'm not giving Pac credit. By giving Bradley credit, I am ultimately giving Pac credit because Pac just whipped him convincingly. You guys are the ones discrediting Pac by labelling Bradley as an overrated stiff.

Tim fought a stupid fight, but that's not Pac's problem. He went in there and got the job done like a champ. I take nothing away from Pac.

[Beanz]

Because as you keep telling us you are only as good as your last fight and Bradley just got owned by a past it Pacquiao. Styles really do make fights and Marquez finally sparking Manny out does not suddenly make him Mike Tyson when Bradley beats him. Marquez is a sublimely gifted boxer but he is getting old. Until he timed Manny coming in he was starting to show his age even in that fight. If Bradley really is a top p4p guy why has Floyd continued to avoid him ? Does he not want a challenge ? Again you can not bring yourself to give Pacquiao any credit and have to big up Tim nice but dim, who has continually fallen short.

I don't know where you get off saying I'm not giving Pac credit. By giving Bradley credit, I am ultimately giving Pac credit because Pac just whipped him convincingly. You guys are the ones discrediting Pac by labelling Bradley as an overrated stiff.

Tim fought a stupid fight, but that's not Pac's problem. He went in there and got the job done like a champ. I take nothing away from Pac.

Bradley is not a stiff but my point is that the entire pre and post fight focus seems to still be on Tim fighting a stupid fight. That ultimately is far more disingenuous to Pacquiao than admitting that whatever version of Bradley turned up he was never going to beat Manny. Bradley was not fast enough, clever enough and ultimately not mature enough to beat the faded fighter in front of him. A mature performance is not something he could have utilised because he is Tim Bradley and Tim is not a great fighter. He is a good boxer at times with a lot of heart and a decent chin but that ain't enough when you can not pair that with a brain or the ability to follow the game plan laid out by someone with a bit more nous between the ears.

[FinitoElDinamita]

We can argue that bradley fought a stupid fight but did he really have a choice? Many of us agreed that a close fight will not favor bradley because of what happened in the first fight and that fact that pac is the cash cow.

Bradley had to be better than convincing and the only way to do that was by taking the fight to pac..

Bradley fought the only way he could in order to win.. he made the right choice even though he lost..

I actually think this loss will be beneficial to bradley.. his stock will rise.

[Beanflicker]

Because as you keep telling us you are only as good as your last fight and Bradley just got owned by a past it Pacquiao. Styles really do make fights and Marquez finally sparking Manny out does not suddenly make him Mike Tyson when Bradley beats him. Marquez is a sublimely gifted boxer but he is getting old. Until he timed Manny coming in he was starting to show his age even in that fight. If Bradley really is a top p4p guy why has Floyd continued to avoid him ? Does he not want a challenge ? Again you can not bring yourself to give Pacquiao any credit and have to big up Tim nice but dim, who has continually fallen short.

I don't know where you get off saying I'm not giving Pac credit. By giving Bradley credit, I am ultimately giving Pac credit because Pac just whipped him convincingly. You guys are the ones discrediting Pac by labelling Bradley as an overrated stiff.

Tim fought a stupid fight, but that's not Pac's problem. He went in there and got the job done like a champ. I take nothing away from Pac.

Bradley is not a stiff but my point is that the entire pre and post fight focus seems to still be on Tim fighting a stupid fight. That ultimately is far more disingenuous to Pacquiao than admitting that whatever version of Bradley turned up he was never going to beat Manny. Bradley was not fast enough, clever enough and ultimately not mature enough to beat the faded fighter in front of him. A mature performance is not something he could have utilised because he is Tim Bradley and Tim is not a great fighter. He is a good boxer at times with a lot of heart and a decent chin but that ain't enough when you can not pair that with a brain or the ability to follow the game plan laid out by someone with a bit more nous between the ears.

I agree with pretty much all of that, although I think the fact that he fought a stupid fight is undeniable (whether he could have beat Pac with a different game plan or not we'll never know).

Bradley choose to fight that way, and like you say intelligence is an even bigger part of boxing than skill and athleticism, Manny showed that he was a true champ and an ATG pro by fighting smart and getting the job done. All respect to Manny.