By John F. McKenna (McJack): There is no question that World Boxing Organization (WBO) light welterweight champion Timothy Bradley (28-0-1 NC, 12 KO’s) is a very good fighter and that he has been tested against some well accomplished boxers. In those contests he has shown that he is a legitimate champion and a worthy challenger for Filipino icon WBC welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KO’s). Most notable of Bradley’s victories was his one sided unanimous decision win over new IBF/WBA champion Lamont Peterson (30-1-1, 15 KO’s), the same Peterson who dethroned previous IBF/WBA champion Amir Khan last December.

In facing Pacquiao, Bradley will be facing pressures unlike any he has ever experienced before. Granted, Pacquiao was far from spectacular when he faced his long time nemesis WBO/WBA lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez (53-6-1, 39 KO’s) last November. But Bradley cannot expect the same Pacquiao who faced Marquez to be the fighter he faces at the MGM Grand Arena on June 9. Almost everyone would concede that “Pacman” had one of the worst fights of his career against Marquez.

Part of the reason Manny looked so bad against Marquez may have been that at 38 years old “El Dinamita” was not expected to do well against the supposedly new and improved Pacquiao. Instead Juan gave Manny the fight of his life and many if not most boxing observers felt Marquez deserved the decision.

Pacquiao knows more than anyone else that he needs to put on a stellar performance against “Desert Storm”. His legions of fans around the world expect nothing less. And hopefully for the sake of Manny’s fans he has put to rest the demons that plagued him prior to and after the Marquez fight. Pacquiao apparently underwent a spiritual experience in the months after his poor performance against Marquez. And whether God spoke to Manny or not the fact that he believes that he was spoken to by his Higher Power is pretty significant. It is this writer’s firm belief that Pacquiao will be on fire when he enters the ring for the Bradley fight. There is no doubt that he will be up for the fight.

Bradley to some degree faces two opponents on June 9. He will be facing a fired up Pacquiao and a media frenzy the likes of which he has never seen before. Every Pacquiao fight is a happening and a media event. The pressure for a fighter who has never experienced it before can be intimidating and overwhelming. It is similar to what happens to a football team the first time they play in the super bowl. Manny has been there and done that before. Bradley on the other hand has never been a huge media draw. It should be interesting to see how he reacts in the ring against Pacquiao, who will be attempting to take him out early.