?We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.? ― Plato
More than likely, if Tim Bradley lived here in New York, he?d live in some sort of nice high rise building. And as such, only Tim Bradley?s doorman would agree that he deserved the decision victory he was awarded over Manny Pacquiao. And this is before he carried Tim?s bags upstairs.
But talk to that dude on his way down in the elevator.
A few years ago I imagined a storm. Not a ?desert storm?, but an impending one clad with dark sides and ominous winds. I also saw a man peering out of a window at this sky- with a sunny disposition, while ready to walk into it, wearing all white. Perhaps he thought he?d beat the rain ? or avoid it altogether; while emerging at the end of the day unblemished and unscathed.
It?s foolish.
This was my general feeling as Manny Pacquiao successfully embarked on a political journey in the Phillipines. More humanitarian than politician, Manny quickly discovered that many of his constituents were more politician- than humanitarian. Not only that, but he found that they are more interested in money and power, than money and respect.
They are two different things.
I think the judges in [Pacquiao vs. Bradley I], were subject to politicians of the worst kind. And since I?ve already dived into conspiracy cinema, the same type of politicians probably allowed Juan Manuel Marquez to train with their greasy rat ?Memo? Heredia.
It changed Pacquiao. It made him go from at once na?ve – to carelessly reckless in discovery- to uniquely humbled, with a now practiced righteousness. I believe it took the cruel closure of 2012, to literally knock him into his senses, rather than out of them.
The Pacquiao we saw a few days ago dominating Brandon Rios now wears all black. He?s more now like say Luke Skywalker from ?Return of The Jedi?, going up against Tim Bradley?s Darth Vader from the ?The Empire Strikes Back? in their sequel.
MANNY PACQUIAO VS. TIMOTHY BRADLEY II: REVENGE OF THE SWIFT
It is in some ways a more difficult fight for Pacquiao, and a more dangerous one for Bradley.
Tim comes off an impressive campaign in 2013, with a narrow escape of Provodnikov and a close points nod over Marquez. He is among the best conditioned fighters in the sport, intensely prideful, and just full of savvy. He?ll face Pacquiao again with somewhat of an ax to grind- but with caution. Meaning we?ll see versions of the guy who took several chances with Provodnikov, and then the one who took virtually none against Marquez.
Tim Bradley fights like a guy who will die in the ring but is ready to survive. Somewhere in between this thin line is a punch from Pacquiao, which really nails him, and changes the fight entirely. It is a punch that didn?t land in the first fight, though Pacquiao did hit Tim solidly on several occasions, he just never really nailed him.
I thought Pacquiao won 9 rounds in their first fight, and assuming Bradley really did have a severe foot issue which hampered his performance (which I?m not buying), Bradley will be much more of a dawg in this fight.
He?ll also be bitten more by a faster and bolder one in Pacquiao, who will again wind up forcing Tim into retreat. It would not surprise me if this fight goes the distance because Bradley knows how to escape danger. But Freddie Roach has the benefit of having prepared Manny for Tim the 1st time, and then saw what a different game plan involving Provodnikov could do to Bradley.
Armed with more knowledge going into a 3rd camp for Bradley, particularly his vulnerability to the left-hook, and I see Bradley in a massive amount of trouble courtesy of a signature ?new? left hook in the Pac-Man game.
Look for Pacquiao to swiftly begin clashing his way to revenge for a wide UD, or overwhelm and introduce Bradley into 10 seconds of darkness via 10th round KO, to reclaim the WBO welterweight championship.
The win will clear the way for something matched in anticipation only by the upcoming movie ?Star Wars: Episode VII?, a just-as-long-to-make ?superfight? with Floyd Mayweather.
