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Pacquiao & Bradley Have Everything Riding On Their Rematch

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When WBO title holder Timothy Bradley 31-0 (12) and the man he won the title from 22 months ago, Manny Pacquiao 55-5-2 (38), clash this weekend, there will be a lot more on the line than just Bradley’s title belt. Forget about the decision in their last fight and who really won it, both fighters have to answer a few questions that have been lingering over them in the eyes of many boxing observers, and this fight will most likely go a long way in providing some definitive answers when it’s over.

Let’s start with Bradley. Yes, in his last three fights he has officially defeated Pacquiao, Ruslan Provodnikov 23-2 (16) and Juan Manuel Marquez 55-7-1 (40). As it has been discussed ad-nauseam, the decision he was awarded over Pacquiao is controversial to say the least and he’s viewed by many as having lost the fight. After facing Pacquiao he fought Provodinkov and won a unanimous decision. However, he endured a massive amount of head trauma during that bout, was knocked down in the 12th and final round and clearly had to hold on for dear life to make it through the round and survive the fight. Seven months later he beat Marquez via a 12-round split decision. He boxed well at times during the fight but had his huge advantage in hand and foot speed not been so much in play, it’s doubtful he would’ve finished ahead in the fight. Also, because Marquez isn’t a pressure fighter and never sustained an all-out offensive assault during the bout, we didn’t find out if Bradley suffered any repercussions from the battering he absorbed from Provodnikov. So when it comes to Timothy Bradley, he may be in the midst of the most impressive run of his career, but he doesn’t come into tomorrows’ fight with Pacquiao with a totally clean bill of health. Yes, he looks ripped physically, but those rippling muscles can tell lies.

As for Pacquiao, he lost the fight against Bradley but is viewed as the winner. Then six months later he took on Marquez for the fourth time and was knocking him all over the ring before letting his guard down right before the bell to end the sixth round just as Marquez was launching a right to the chin that was heard around the boxing world, and he was counted out face down on the canvas. After an 11 month hiatus, Manny fought the tough but very limited Brandon Rios 31-2-1 (23). He dominated the fight but never had Rios in serious trouble or looking as if he wanted out. Once he realized Brandon wasn’t going anywhere, Manny proceeded to out box and pot-shot Rios from pillar to post. Yes, he looked terrific during the fight but Rios’s walk-straight-in and take three-or-four-looking-to-land-one style had a lot to do with that. So in reality, the Rios fight didn’t answer much about Pacquiao. He didn’t need an all-out wide-open assault to handle Rios to win. Plus, Rios isn’t much of a puncher and even the few times he managed to get something in clean, Pacquiao didn’t even change the expression on his face because he wasn’t the least bit fazed by anything Rios offered him offensively. Once Rios figured out there was no way he was going to beat Pacquiao, he more or less stopped trying to win.

Pacquiao isn’t the same non-stop punching buzzsaw he was four years ago. Fighting bigger fighters with the exception of Marquez since shrinking down Miguel Cotto has taken it’s toll on him. I not only don’t believe that he can turn the intensity on like a switch, I know for a fact that it can’t be done once the fighter has passed the point where because of age, wear and tear over a long career, it’s no longer there. Or, no longer present at least to the point where it’s sustainable for three minutes a round for 12 consecutive rounds.

Yes, there are plenty of questions that remain unanswered as to just how much Pacquiao has left as a fighter, but we do know he’s not the fighter he once was: every dollar, pound, and year he adds takes him a little further away.

This all makes it a tough fight to boldly pick the winner, at least for me, in a bout that is as close to must-see as we can hope to get this year. If that weren’t enough pressure on both fighters going into the fight, how about the fact that whoever wins it will no doubt jump to the front of the “who is Mayweather’s next big fight against?” derby.

For some reason as long as they are both still active, a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao will be seen as something spectacular and a big deal. Yeah, maybe if it were 2010 and not 2014. For the umpteenth time, if they ever fight which I still believe they will, Mayweather will lose the first round looking Pacquiao over – then literally out-box and out-fight him over the next 11 rounds and win a completely lopsided unanimous decision. It’s money in the bank! That said, regardless of what I think, Mayweather-Pacquiao is still a big deal. So if Pacquiao beats Bradley, the fairy tale lives on. And if he doesn’t and Bradley out-boxes him Saturday night, Mayweather can cry about Bob Arum being Tim’s promoter all he wants. But the reality will be that undefeated Mayweather versus undefeated, fast handed and quick-footed Bradley is the marquee fight in the welterweight division. Sure, Mayweather may wait to see who wins the Cotto vs. Martinez fight in June, but nobody really cares to see him fight Cotto again or wants to see him force Martinez down to 152 and steal the middleweight title.

When Bradley and Pacquiao meet this weekend, both are in a must-win situation because there’s so much money out there in front of them for the winner, and at the same time they will have most likely answered their critics regarding what they have left as two of the best pound-for-pound fighters in professional boxing.

Pacquiao-Bradley II is a very compelling fight that will hopefully go a long way in clearing things up between them and also who has the most bragging rights to go after and scream “Floyd Mayweather must fight me next!”

Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com

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Najee Lopez Steps up in Class and Wins Impressively at Plant City

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Garry Jonas’ ProBox series returned to its regular home in Plant City, Florida, tonight with a card topped by a 10-round light heavyweight match between fast-rising Najee Lopez and former world title challenger Lenin Castillo. This was considered a step-up fight for the 25-year-old Lopez, an Atlanta-born-fighter of Puerto Rican heritage. Although the 36-year-old Castillo had lost two of his least three heading in, he had gone the distance with Dimitry Bivol and Marcus Browne and been stopped only once (by Callum Smith).

Lopez landed the cleaner punches throughout. Although Castillo seemed unfazed during the first half of the fight, he returned to his corner at the end of round five exhibiting signs of a fractured jaw.

In the next round, Lopez cornered him against the ropes and knocked him through the ropes with a left-right combination. Referee Emil Lombardo could have stopped the fight right there, but he allowed the courageous Castillo to carry on for a bit longer, finally stopping the fight as Castillo’s corner and a Florida commissioner were signaling that it was over.

The official time was 2:36 of round six. Bigger fights await the talented Lopez who improved to 13-0 with his tenth win inside the distance. Castillo declined to 25-7-1.

Co-Feature

In a stinker of a heavyweight fight, Stanley Wright, a paunchy, 34-year-old North Carolina journeyman, scored a big upset with a 10-round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Jeremiah Milton.

Wright carried 280 pounds, 100 pounds more than in his pro debut 11 years ago. Although he was undefeated (13-0, 11 KOs), he had never defeated an opponent with a winning record and his last four opponents were a miserable 19-48-2. Moreover, he took the fight on short notice.

What Wright had going for him was fast hands and, in the opening round, he put Milton on the canvas with a straight right hand. From that point, Milton fought tentatively and Wright, looking fatigued as early as the fourth round, fought only in spurts. It seemed doubtful that he could last the distance, but Milton, the subject of a 2021 profile in these pages, was wary of Wright’s power and unable to capitalize. “It’s almost as if Milton is afraid to win,” said ringside commentator Chris Algieri during the ninth stanza when the bout had devolved into a hugfest.

The judges had it 96-93 and 97-92 twice for the victorious Wright who boosted his record to 14-0 without improving his stature.

Also

In the TV opener, a 10-round contest in the junior middleweight division, Najee Lopez stablemate Darrelle Valsaint (12-0, 10 KOs) scored his career-best win with a second-round knockout of 35-year-old Dutch globetrotter Stephen Danyo (23-7-3).

A native Floridian of Haitian descent, the 22-year-old Valsaint was making his eighth start in Plant City. He rocked Danyo with a chopping right hand high on the temple and then, as Danyo slumped forward, delivered the coup-de-gras, a short left uppercut. The official time was 2:17 of round two.

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Japanese Superstar Naoya Inoue is Headed to Vegas after KOing Ye Joon Kim

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Japan’s magnificent Naoya Inoue, appearing in his twenty-fourth title fight, scored his 11th straight stoppage tonight while successfully defending his unified super bantamweight title, advancing his record to 29-0 (26 KOs) at the expense of Ye Joon Kim. The match at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena came to an end at the 2:25 mark of round four when U.S. referee Mark Nelson tolled “10” over the brave but overmatched Korean.

Kim, raised in a Seoul orphanage, had a few good moments, but the “Monster” found his rhythm in the third round, leaving Kim with a purplish welt under his left eye. In the next frame, he brought the match to a conclusion, staggering the Korean with a left and then finishing matters with an overhand right that put Kim on the seat of his pants, dazed and wincing in pain.

Kim, who brought a 21-2-2 record, took the fight on 10 days’ notice, replacing Australia’s Sam Goodman who suffered an eye injury in sparring that never healed properly, forcing him to withdraw twice.

Co-promoter Bob Arum, who was in the building, announced that Inoue’s next fight would happen in Las Vegas in the Spring. Speculation centers on Mexico City’s Alan Picasso (31-0-1, 17 KOs) who is ranked #1 by the WBC. However, there’s also speculation that the 31-year-old Inoue may move up to featherweight and seek to win a title in a fifth weight class, in which case a potential opponent is the winner of the Feb. 2 match between Brandon Figueroa and Stephen Fulton. In “olden days,” this notion would have been dismissed as the Japanese superstar and Figueroa/Fulton have different promoters, but the arrival of Turki Alalshikh, the sport’s Daddy Warbucks, has changed the dynamic. Tonight, Naoya Inoue made his first start as a brand ambassador for Riyadh Season.

Simmering on the backburner is a megafight with countryman Junto Nakatani, an easy fight to make as Arum has ties to both. However, the powers-that-be would prefer more “marination.”

Inoue has appeared twice in Las Vegas, scoring a seventh-round stoppage of Jason Moloney in October of 2020 at the MGM Bubble and a third-round stoppage of Michael Dasmarinas at the Virgin Hotels in June of 2021.

Semi-wind-up

In a 12-round bout for a regional welterweight title, Jin Sasaki improved to 19-1-1 (17) with a unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai (29-15-3). The scores were 118-110, 117-111, and 116-112.

Also

In a bout in which both contestants were on the canvas, Toshiki Shimomachi (20-1-3) edged out Misaki Hirano (11-2), winning a majority decision. A 28-year-old Osaka southpaw with a fan-friendly style, the lanky Shimomachi, unbeaten in his last 22 starts, competes as a super bantamweight. A match with Inoue may be in his future.

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Eric Priest Wins Handily on Thursday’s Golden Boy card at the Commerce Casino

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Model turned fighter Eric Priest jabbed and jolted his way into the super middleweight rankings with a shutout decision win over veteran Tyler Howard on Thursday.

In his first main event Priest (15-0, 8 KOs) proved ready for contender status by defusing every attack Tennessee’s Howard (20-3, 11 KOs) could muster at Commerce Casino, the second fight in six days at the LA County venue.

All ticket monies collected on the Folden Boy Promotions card were contributed to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation as they battle wildfires sprouting all over Los Angeles County due to high winds.

Priest, 26, had never fought anyone near Howard’s caliber but used a ramrod jab to keep the veteran off-balance and unable to muster a forceful counter-attack. Round after round the Korean-American fighter pumped left jabs while circling his opposition.

Though hit with power shots, none seemed to faze Howard but his own blows were unable to put a dent in Priest. After 10 rounds of the same repetitive action all three judges scored the fight 100-90 for Priest who now wins a regional super middleweight title.

Priest also joins the top 15 rankings of the WBA organization.

In a fight between evenly matched middleweights, Jordan Panthen (11-0, 9 KOs) remained undefeated after 10 rounds versus DeAundre Pettus (12-4, 7 KOs). Though equally skilled, Panthen simply out-worked the South Caroliina fighter to win by unanimous decision. No knockdowns were scored.

Other Bouts

Grant Flores (8-0, 6 KOs) knocked out Costa Rica’s David Lobo Ramirez (17-4, 12 KOs) with two successive right uppercuts at 2:59 of the second round of the super welterweight fight.

Cayden Griffith (3-0, 3 KOs) used a left hook to the body to stop Mark Misiura at 1:43 of the second round in a super welterweight bout.

Jordan Fuentes (3-0) floored Brandon Badillo (0-3-1) in the third round and proceeded to win by decision after four rounds in a super bantamweight fight.

A super featherweight match saw Leonardo Sanchez (8-0) win by decision over Joseph Cruz Brown (10-12) after six rounds.

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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