?Fear was absolutely necessary. Without it I would have been scared to death.??Floyd Patterson
Confidence would seem to be an integral part of every boxer?s arsenal, were it not for a champions like Floyd Patterson or Mike Tyson who were riddled with doubt yet succeeded in spite of it.
But confidence is nothing to sneeze at, and confidence is something WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley has in spades.
As the seemingly endless negotiations as to who Manny Pacquiao fights next drag on, three fighters seem in the running, all of whom Pacquiao has fought before, which means that Floyd Mayweather (of course) isn?t among them.
The fighters are Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto, and Timothy Bradley.
Marquez and Cotto, in keeping with their respective characters, have maintained a respectful silence. Tim Bradley, perhaps because he?s confident, perhaps because he feels he has something to prove, has not.
?To be honest with you,? he told the Desert Sun, ?I think a lot of people on that side are scared. He couldn?t KO me with two peg legs. Me healthy, I?m going to beat him worse.?
That Bradley brought up his ?two peg legs? is of more interest that his belief that Pacquiao is ?scared.?
Although it wasn?t much mentioned in the wake of his controversial split-decision victory on June 9, his ?two peg legs? weren?t the result of a skiing accident, playing basketball, or stepping in hole while doing roadwork. Those injuries occurred in the ring as Bradley was scurrying away from Pacquiao?s punches and frankly have as much significance as a nasty gash, black eye, broken hand or broken jaw.
To ignore the circumstances under which those injuries occurred is similar, yet at the same time different, to people complaining about Amir Khan?s china chin after he lost to Danny Garcia, when the two punches that dropped Khan landed behind the ear and on the top of the head.
It may be a matter of semantics, or confusion as to which body part is which, but facts are preferable to fiction, especially when it comes to journalism, even though fiction may better fit our dismissal narrative.
?If Manny wants to do it,? continued Bradley, ?let?s do it. I?ve been sitting around here waiting. I want the fight, but he hasn?t decided yet.
?You said you?re going to knock me out. What are you scared about? On November 10th, come get yourself a nice, sizeable paycheck. Then you can do whatever you want. Are we going to get it on? If not, tell me, so I can move on.?
The likelihood of Bradley needing to move on are more likely than not, since the pay-per-view numbers of his fight with Pacquiao were abysmal. And Bradley, whose impatience may be an indication that he sees the writing on the wall, would just as soon fight the man every other fighter even remotely in his weight class would like to fight: namely, Floyd ?Money? Mayweather.
?Let?s dance,? Bradley said. ?Floyd?s just got to call my number.?
That?s confidence for you. Tim already got one big gift. But he should be careful for what he wishes, because it?s unlikely he?ll get another.
