PALM SPRINGS ? WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley said he is going to wait until Manny Pacquiao?s Nov. 23 fight against Brandon Rios before he decides who he will fight next, but said his dream fight against No. 1 Floyd Mayweather won?t be happening anytime soon.
?I don?t see that fight happening anytime soon at all. We?re both different promoters, different networks. … We don?t really do business together, for whatever reason,? Bradley said Thursday on mydesert.com during a live online chat. ?At the same time, it is a dream fight of mine. I?m sure Floyd being the best fighter in the world wouldn?t mind facing me himself. I don?t think he would run from me at all. I think he would embrace that. But the fact we don?t do business together, it?s not going to fly. The fight?s not going to happen.?
Mayweather promotes his own fights with partners Golden Boy Promotions, the company is owned by Oscar De La Hoya. Bradley fights for Top Rank, owned by Bob Arum, and the two promotion companies have not had their fighters fight each other for years. Their rivalry has also created a divide between the two main boxing networks, as top Golden Boy fights are on Showtime and the best Top Rank fights are on HBO.
Bradley is coming off a split-decision victory over future Hall of Famer Juan Manuel Marquez on Oct. 12, which has improved Bradley?s reputation as a tough, versatile fighter. The Ring has ranked him the No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter in the world behind Mayweather and Northern California product Andre Ward.
With Mayweather off the table, Bradley said no decision on his next fight will likely be made until after Manny Pacquiao?s Nov. 23 fight against Brandon Rios.
If Pacquiao wins, it could set up a rematch with Bradley. In 2012, Bradley upset Pacquiao with a controversial decision. Pacquiao followed his loss to Bradley by being knocked out by Marquez in December of 2012. And despite Bradley beating Marquez handily, Bradley knows there?s still a cloud over his Pacquiao fight.
