LAS VEGAS – During Timothy Bradley’s media workout in Indio two weeks ago, he was shadow boxing in the ring with numerous reporters and camera people hanging on the ropes.
As Bradley worked, he threw a punch so close that it startled a female reporter.
Bradley assured her he wouldn’t have hit her, and then joked, ?Don’t worry, I don’t hit hard.?
That has been one of the raps on Bradley, that he doesn’t have any power. In Bradley’s 28 fights, he has 12 knockouts, a low rate for a world champion.
?I get in the ring and they say I don’t have any power but then they feel me and feel my strength,? Bradley said. ?As soon as they get hit they want to hold me. The last couple of fights guys have been holding me all night.?
But if Pacquiao doesn’t respect Bradley’s power, he could step in and unleash a flurry of punches. Bradley said that won’t be happening.
?He’s going to respect me,? Bradley said. ?Believe me, as soon as I tag him, he will respect me.?
But Bradley will be facing one of the hardest punchers in the business in Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao has done devastating damage to many of his opponents; the most notable was against Antonio Margarito, where an uppercut fractured the orbital bone.
But Bradley has repeatedly said that Pacquiao doesn’t have the kind of one-punch knockout ability that Kendall Holt had. Bradley fought Holt and was caught in the first round by a big right hand. It was a knockdown that got Bradley onto SportsCenter’s Play of the Day countdown.
But Bradley got up, attacked Holt and pulled out a unanimous decision.
After what happened against Holt, Bradley feels like he can contend with Pacquiao’s power.
To prepare for Pacquiao’s power, Bradley’s camp brought in eight different sparring partners. One of the boxers was a bigger opponent who kept Bradley on his toes.
?He threw 150 punches in one round and he’s a heavy puncher so my eyes were wide open,? Bradley said. ?I was ducking and weaving and trying to counter punch to get this big guy off me before he took my head off.?
Pacquiao’s power has overwhelmed bigger fighters.
?Pacquiao hits hard with the right and the left hand so I’ll be able to feel him out in the first round and see what he really has,? Bradley said. ?If he does have some power then I will definitely have to be smarter in there. But if I don’t feel like he can hurt me then I’m definitely going to step into him to make a fight out of it.?
