Ruslan Provodnikov wanted to face Manny Pacquiao but the reigning WBO junior welterweight champion is happy that his good friend will have a chance to redeem himself against Timothy Bradley.

Pacquiao will finally get a chance to avenge his controversial loss to Bradley when they lock horns again in a rematch scheduled on April 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

When pressed to give his take on the upcoming Pacquiao-Bradley rematch, Provodnikov said that the second showdown between the two boxing superstars will be very interesting, and it could go either way.

The Russian champion stressed though that it will be hard for Pacquiao to win over Bradley on the scorecards unless the Filipino boxing icon shows his vaunted killer instinct.

Boxing analysts took a swipe at Pacquiao for being too passive and tentative during his last bout against Brandon Rios. Provodnikov insisted that doing the same thing in his next fight will put Pacquiao in deep trouble against the undefeated American.

"I think that the Pacquiao versus Bradley rematch will be interesting but it might be very similar to their first fight.  Unless Manny decides to be more aggressive and take risks, it will be hard for him to defeat Tim Bradley on the scorecards," Provodnikov told BoxingScene.

Provodnikov, who once lost to Bradley in their highly-commended brutal showdown in March last year, was also in the running for Pacquiao's next fight before the camp of the former pound-for-pound king decided to have a rematch with the 30-year-old American.

But while he is disappointed with failing to land a fight against his former sparring partner, the 30-year-old Russian champion said that he feels good that trainer Freddie Roach will still be in his corner for his next fight.

"I am very relieved that the fight for Manny is finally finalized.  I am glad that in my next fight I will have my trainer Freddie Roach and the rest of my team in my corner, that is very, very important to me," Provodnikov stressed.

Provodnikov, who is coming off sensational win over Mike Alvarado in October, recently challenged Juan Manuel Marquez to a showdown later this year, but the Mexican looks to be standing firm on his previous statement that he has zero interest in facing the Beryozovo native.

Also Read: Ruslan Provodnikov Says Juan Manuel Marquez Is Afraid To Fight Him