MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, Top Rank CEO Bob Arum made headlines recently when he suggested that if Manny Pacquiao defeats Tim Bradley and decides to continue his career, a mega-fight against WBC middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez could be in the future for the eight-division champion.
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Pacquiao admitted afterwards that while he was conflicted about quitting the ring, his decision – for now – was to spend more time with his family before concentrating on his political career in the Philippines, where he is seeking election to the Senate next month.
“He’s just very quick, very explosive”, said Bradley, 32, who won his first fight against Pacquiao in 2012.
Saturday’s bout was Pacquiao’s first since losing to Floyd Mayweather in May 2015 and he was impressive as he cruised to his 58th win, and second over Bradley.
As Bradley was shown a replay of the second knockdown during a post-fight interview in the ring, he said: “Ooh-wee!”
He did, however, leave a window open for a return, saying he’s retired now but he’s not at the point of knowing whether he’ll want to come back.
“I did my best, his style is counterpunching”.
Mayweather easily won the fight that lacked much action to retire undefeated, though Pacquiao’s support team said afterwards he had suffered a shoulder injury in training beforehand and later needed surgery.
Already beaten to the punch, Bradley was likewise beaten on the mind game that he’d try to play on Pacquiao. If he retires, I’ll be happy for him.
Roach even has fighters in mind that he would like to see Pacquiao face before he retires.
Ariel Toledo, 34, who watched the fight on a widescreen TV under the burning sun in a suburban Manila plaza, was among the many who yearned for Pacquiao to postpone his retirement.
Filipino professional boxer Manny Paquiao says he has retired from professional boxing after knocking down Timothy Bradley twice on his way to a unanimous 12-round decision in their welterweight showdown.
One thing that Bradley can’t be accused of is not giving his best for the fight that ended their trilogy at 2-1, for Pacquiao officially. Yeah, he caught me good on that one.
Pacquiao recovered from a slow start to deliver a vintage display this time around, peppering his underrated opponent with power shots and confusing him with odd punching angles.
“Every round, I was looking for a knockout but Bradley was too tough.”
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I’ve made a commitment to my family that I’m going to retire after this.
