Roach: If Bradley Runs, He’ll Make It A Boring Fight

So Manny Pacquiao will fight a rematch with Timothy Bradley on April 12. And fight fans are curious as they count down: will Manny look to rumble, and show some of that 2009 style fire, or will he be the smart in and out technician that he was against Brandon Rios in November, fighting in a manner that impressed the judges and most fans, if not the sorts who adore the search and destroy version of Pacman from a few years back?

I posed the query to Coach Roach, Pacquiao’s longtime trainer and sidekick. On April 12, will Manny rumble or be a ring general? Because, I noted to Freddie, Bradley had much more trouble with Ruslan Provodnikov’s pressure than he did Juan Manuel Marquez’ patient manner.

“Ruslan and Manny are two different fighters,” Roach noted. “If Bradley’s gonna fight like he did in his last fight, and he’s gonna run and move a lot, we have to cut the ring off and attack him a little bit more, yes. If Manny attacks him and fights three minutes of every round like he did against Brandon Rios and throws combinations, I think we have great success with that.”

I’m inclined to think that Bradley is a better boxer than he was when he and Manny met for the first time, in June 2012, when CJ Ross proved once again, but not for the last time that she desperately needs Lasik surgery.

I sense it in his body language, that he’s more comfortable as an athlete and human being. But does Freddie think the same? Is Bradley better than he was in 2012?

“I don’t think he’s better, I think he’s the same guy,” Roach said. “He’s a good boxer but sometimes he tends to get into a fight, and that’s when he mistakes, because he likes to exchange sometimes. When he exchanges with Manny, Manny is the better, faster puncher, and the better puncher of the two, and like Ruslan was, and he’ll be able to hurt him. But if he runs the whole night long, then he’ll make it a little bit of a boring fight. But it’s hard to a win backing up so there will be points where he’ll have to exchange with us, and we’re going to have the advantage, I think.”

And, I wondered, will Tim be a rumbler or a mover on April 12?

“I hope he does press, because that’ll bring the best out of Manny,” Roach said.

Readers, your thoughts? Will Bradley be the trading type on April 12, or the patient, and cautious-aggressive sort he was against Marquez?

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