Manny Pacquiao's Next Fight vs Timothy Bradley a Must-Win if Pacman Wants Floyd Mayweather; Here's Why [Video]
Manny Pacquiao has had some pretty big fights in his illustrious career, but none may be as fate-determining as his fight with trash-talking Timothy Bradley on Saturday, April 12, as this fight could be a "make-or-break" situation for Pacman.
Make, as in a convincing win against Bradley could bring him one step closer to possibly sealing a date with the biggest draw in boxing, the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr., at a date in the not-too-distant future. And break, as in another loss to Bradley could mean the end of Pacquiao's storied boxing career.
Yes, fight fans, it could indeed happen.
Let's take a look at some of the facts: the eight-time division champion Pacquiao has been facing a lot of questions surrounding his viability as one of boxing's best fighters after suffering defeats at the hands of Bradley-via a controversial decision-in 2012 and Juan Manuel Marquez, who knocked out Pacquaio in their fifth fight later that same year. While his victory over Brandon Rios in December showed people that he can still go, those two back-to-back losses did some substantial damage to his reputation and to his credentials when it comes to fighting Mayweather.
And Bradley has not been shy about teeing off on the Filipino boxing icon, boldly declaring that Pacquiao has lost his "killer instinct."
"It's reality," Bradley (31-0) said Thursday, as reported by the L.A. Times. "His fans are saying the same thing: 'He doesn't have the fire,' 'He's had guys pinned in the corner and lets them get away.' That never happened before. He's not finishing guys. Something's changed."
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In fairness to Pacquaio, that probably wasn't the smartest move to make on Bradley's part. He has the advantage going in. While it was a controversial decision victory that he won against Pacquiao, a win is a win. Bradley's proven that he could beat Pac in a fight, he has far less to prove than his opponent does. That puts the pressure on Pacquaio's shoulders: put up or shut up. That simple.
But by running his mouth and running down Manny before the fight, Bradley might have done the one thing you never do in any competition, be it boxing or warfare: give your opponent a reason to be motivated. He should have let the sleeping dog lie, not poke it with a stick and make loud noises while doing it. And while Pacquiao isn't exactly a young pup anymore, he's still got plenty of bite left, and giving him incentive to take a bite out of you is probably not the best strategy that Bradley could have taken.
However, Pacquiao had better bite hard come Saturday. Bradley is still undefeated and he'll be a tough fight, for sure. And while he's talking a big game, make no mistake, Bradley's looking to prove something, too. A second straight win over Pacquaio would establish him as one of boxing's most legitimate fighters and raise his star just a little higher. So Bradley's got plenty of incentive to knock out Pacquiao and silence any critics calling his last win over Pacman a fluke. Though in reality, all Bradley really has to do is get a win.
Pacquaio, however, has to dominate. He has to go out there and give Bradley a sound, good ol' fashioned whuppin' to not only show that he's still got "it," but that he has more than enough of "it" to bottle up and challenge The Great Floyd Mayweather (although, to be honest, the way Mayweather has been ducking him, fans shouldn't hold their breath). That's a pretty high bar to set, leaving Pacquaio with little room for error. Never mind what a loss would do to him. Two defeats to Bradley and Marquez back-to-back were damaging enough. A loss on Saturday has some analysts thinking Pacman should call it quits. And they're probably right. At age 35, Pacquiao doesn't have a lot longer to go. If Bradley beats him again, there might not be any going back for the Filipino boxing star.
Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's trainer, told The Guardian recently that Pacquiao's fight with Bradley was a "must-win" for Pac. Odds are, he's probably right.