By Nabil Anwer: “I’d say that fight(with Amir Khan) is 50-50 right now.” These are words straight from the ring p4p light welterweight fighter. I love the fact Bradley is so honest and candid. In fact, I’m somewhat stunned. Saying the fight with Khan, is 50-50 is simply amazing. Honestly, when is the last time one has heard this from a top fighter? How great would it be if fighters like other athletes were more interested in giving it’s audiences valuable and interesting insight rather than endlessly (and predictably) touting their own horns.
Once again Timothy Bradley proves why he operates on higher level than the regular trash talking fighter. He is a fighter who talks from the heart, candidly and honestly. These kinds of fighters have the ability to engage the public and media like other fighters simply cannot. Timothy Bradley is simply a blast of fresh air in fighting, and is rapidly becoming one of my favourite boxing personalities. In this short interview Bradley outclasses all his contemporaries.
“Khan is very fast, maybe a little faster than me,” admits Bradley. If there was any doubt Khan possesses the fastest hands the business, well Bradley puts that to rest by admitting Khan is probably even faster than Bradley. The fact that someone who has lightning fast hands is admitting this, is absolutely astounding. The rest of the interview also has some very interesting quotes.
In response to being asked, “As you know, the 140-pound division is really hot at the moment; what with your big fight and the great fight Amir Khan and Marcos Maidana put on on Saturday. I take it you saw that fight?”
Timothy Bradley replied, “ I was there live. It was a very exciting fight, with furious action. Was it a Fight Of The Year candidate? Absolutely. Both guys deserve credit for putting on such a spectacular fight. Amir Khan proved he has a chin and that he is a warrior. He surprised me, and I told him so. He went up a notch or two in my book. But let me tell you, Maidana went up even higher in my book. When that liver shot put him down in the 1st, I thought it was all over. He came back though, and showed how tough he really is.”
The respect Bradley has for Khan is evident, as it should be. Only Khans competitors pretend to not notice him, which is understandable since Khan is becoming a surprisingly massive draw, earning millions more than many of his contemporaries.
“You have wanted a fight with Khan for a while now, as we all know. Despite his great win and his proven chin, you still feel you can beat him?” Asked James Slater, the gent who interviewed Bradley.
Bradley replied, “I still feel I can beat him. But let’s see what happens when we actually do fight before I say anything. I’d say that fight is 50-50 right now. Khan is very fast, maybe a little faster than me. All us top guys at this level, when we fight each other, either could win – it’s a question of who brings his A-game and is able to execute it. But let’s see who the best 140-pounder in the world is.”
What I find very interesting is how Bradley, unlike Alexander, is not afraid of Khan. Which brings up the question, is Devon Alexander really that scared to fight Khan? It’s understandable, since most likely Khan would annihilate Alexander. But one simply cannot discount Bradley’s approach the very same equation, which is, “Bring Khan on.”
“ Had you fought Maidana, you wouldn’t have taken all the shots Khan took, would you? Would you have boxed more and outclassed Maidana?”
Bradley replies “I wouldn’t have taken shots like that, no. But the fact that Khan did take those shots, it made the fight that much better. Khan should be thanked for fighting the way he did (laughs). It made for a great action fight.”
Once again, Bradley’s respect for Khan is crystal clear. And considering the animosity in boxing this is very refreshing indeed. Although, it is a little telling that neither Khan nor Bradley display this level of respect for Alexander. I’m sure most boxing fans would love to see Maidana fight either Bradley or Alexander. I believe Maidana deserves the loser of the fight, whom, I whole-heartedly believe will be Devon Alexander. However, considering the fact Devon wants to fight Juan Manual Marquez as his next opponent, it’s obvious he is not interested in the toughest fights, thus he will not give the Argentinian hit-man a chance.
Timothy Bradley goes onto share his thoughts on the Alexander fight, and he is nowhere near as ambivalent in his confidence in beating him as he is with Khan. He says, “People have said I don’t do one thing very well, and that is why I’m not a spectacular fighter. My skills are very good, but my conditioning and my nutrition are huge in my game. I make sure I work harder than my opponent. I know Devon [Alexander] isn’t working as hard as I am. He can’t be! I do my running in the morning – I sometimes do ten miles, Julio Cesar Chavez used to run ten miles a day – and then I’m in the gym. I train for six hours a day, so no-one can tell me I can’t do the 36 minutes [of a distance fight]. I always train for a twelve round fight. I’m not a prediction guy; anything can happen in that ring. But I tell you right now, I will be aggressive in this fight. I want to put on a great show and an exciting fight. If Devon feels the same way and if he stands and fights me, it will be a dog fight. If he runs, I will be the chaser. I will come out fast in this fight.”
What I find very interesting is how supremely confident Bradley is. And I think it’s clear Bradley isn’t the normal trash talking fighter, he speaks from his heart and should be commended for it. I think Bradley is going to talk an easy decision from Alexander. Let’s be serious here, if the only way for Alexander to squeak by Kotelnik is for the judges to hand him a gift, Timothy Bradley is most likely going to school Alexander. Timothy Bradley fights in the same vein as Kotelnik, only he does it better in virtually every regard.
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