By Chris Williams: WBO welterweight champion Tim Bradley (29-0, 12 KO’s) is finally getting around to defending his World Boxing Organization title after sitting around and doing nothing since beating Manny Pacquiao by a controversial 12 round split decision last year in June. Bradley could have fought for good money against Lamont Peterson, but turned down the $2.3 million fight.
Bradley won’t be making nearly as much in his fight against a non-welterweight in 140 lb. contender Ruslan Provodnikov (22-1, 15 KO’s) next month on March 16th at Home Depot Center, in Carson, California, USA.
Bradley said to mydesert.com “I’m looking to make a statement, to just show my skills and get the respect I feel I deserve.”
If Bradley wanted to make a statement then he should have selected a better opponent, preferably someone from the same division as him. This is like a Saul Alvarez move by fighting a guy from a division below, but it’s worse because Provodnikov hasn’t looked great in his fights on ESPN2. He got beat badly by Mauricio Herrera recently, and got what many boxing fans feel was a gift decision over journeyman DeMarcus Corley.
How does Bradley prove himself by fighting a guy that has already been exposed by Corley and Herrera? It just looks like a cherry picking fight for Bradley, and the only thing he can prove against Provodnikov is that he can do what Herrera and Corley did against him.
This is a fight where Bradley’s stock could actually go down if he doesn’t beat Provodnikov better than those guys did. If Bradley struggles against Provodnikov, then it’ll only cement in the minds of fans that Bradley is little more than a paper champion who got a gift decision over Pacquiao last year.
Bradley was likely hoping to get big money fight against Pacquiao, Juan Manuel Marquez or Floyd Mayweather Jr. but unfortunately for him none of them showed any interest in taking the fight. No doubt the lack of interest was due in part to the low pay per view numbers the Pacquiao-Bradley fight brought in, as well as Bradley’s style of fighting for that fight. Bradley used a lot of movement, and Mayweather, Marquez and Pacquiao likely didn’t want to fight someone they would have to chase around the ring for 12 rounds.
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