Because Lederman will be critiquing the action for Home Box Office, the energetic boxing pundit cannot make an official prediction on this superb match-up. But, Harold chimed in via the Pugilist KOrner on what he anticipates to be one heck of a Championship bout! “I’m expecting a great fight this Saturday night,” exclaims Harold Lederman.
“Anyone who has been watching HBO’s 24/7 has come to the conclusion that Bradley is a genuinely tough guy. We already knew that he was undefeated and that he fights with an Evander Holyfield style; leans in with his head and the straight right hand. Because Pacquiao was cut over his right eye in his last fight, Bradley’s style could make for a very dangerous fight with Manny.”
When asked if he sees Pacquiao vs Bradley going to distance, Harold gave his usual jubilant and emphatic response. “All in all this is going to be a very interesting contest. Bradley can take a very good punch. Freddie Roach can go around saying that his fighter is going to knock out Timothy Bradley, but no one has ever seen Bradley seriously hurt yet. Tim Bradley has a really good chin so everything points to a really great fight. This could be a twelve round war.” Despite showing a quasi-Mannyesque performance against Juan Manuel Marquez in November of 2011, Harold Lederman predicts a much more traditional Manny Pacquiao showing against Timothy Bradley on June 9th.
“You can plan on Manny Pacquiao putting forth a much more impressive performance against Tim Bradley than he showed in his last fight. I don’t know what the heck it is with him and Juan Manuel Marquez. He never seems to look good against Marquez, but he certainly looked good in all of his previous fights before his third bout with Juan Manuel Marquez.” “But Timothy just keeps looking better and better with each fight regardless of what weight he’s fighting in. He’s a terrific fighter, and I can see him giving Manny many problems throughout the entire fight. I think this fight is going to be a real war. I can easily see this fight going the distance.”
“Who knows? Maybe after a great fight between Manny and Tim, the boxing world might stop asking to see Mayweather versus Pacquiao and they might start asking for a Bradley/Pacquiao sequel…we’ll have to wait and see.” Regardless of who wins this huge mainstream pairing, the lifelong boxing enthusiast believes that the fight fans will definitely see a great product for their boxing dollar on Saturday, June 9th.
“I think we will all be treated to a fantastic evening of boxing all the way around,” proclaims Harold Lederman. “I think the preliminary bouts are all very good.
We’re going to see Jorge Arce in a war with Jesus Rojas, Guillermo Rigondeaux will face a young fighter from Philly by the name of Teon Kennedy who’s also very good, and we’re going to see one of the best young fighters in boxing, Mike Jones, fight for his first world title against the very hard punching Randall Bailey.”
“So I think Manny Pacquiao versus Tim Bradley will be the icing on the cake Saturday night!!”
Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley, who have won 11 world titles between them, will go toe-to-toe for Pacquiao’s World Boxing Organization (WBO) Welterweight Championship on Saturday, June 9th, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV.
