By Cutman’s Stool: This is now fight week and the build-up is in full swing for a fight which I am highly anticipating. The “Desert Storm”, Timothy Bradley (30-0, 12 KO) is defending his WBO welterweight title against boxing veteran Juan Manuel Marquez (55-6-1, 40 KO). Live from Las Vegas, Nevada this Saturday night, in my mind this is a real 50/50 fight. A fight which is extremely hard to predict who will prevail after both warriors collide.
The title holder Timothy Bradley, earlier this year competed in a narrow decision win over Ruslan Provodnikov which is a strong contender for fight of the year. Against Provodnikov, Bradley felt that he needed to show the world that he is a true world champion. His decision win against the great Manny Pacquiao gained him a lot of bad publicity, because it was clear that Pacquiao really won the fight but got robbed by the judges. Although, not Bradley’s fault, he really pushed for a dominate win and abandoned the style which has made him a top fighter throughout his career. This attitude resulted in a slug-fest which seen Bradley hit the floor twice, he received more punishment from this fight than any other. His legs were clearly wobbled on numerous occasions and it’s a miracle how he stayed up and fought on. Bradley was caught with some big shots and later admitted the fight had inflicted him with some serious physical issues.
Juan Manuel Marquez is also coming off a big career win, in the 2012 fight of the year, he brutally knocked-out Manny Pacquiao. The future Hall of Famer, looks in great shape and is pursuing another defining win in a career which is likely to come to an end soon. A win on Saturday makes Marquez the first Mexican to win 5 world titles in 5 different weight divisions. The Mexican warrior is nothing sort of a modern great and looks to add another piece to a great legacy in the ring. Marquez, 40, comes to the ring 10 years older and has 32 more professional fights than Bradley. Marquez claims he is in great condition and age will not matter.
What is clear for Bradley this weekend is that he can’t go into the ring with the same mindset that he had against Provodnikov. Marquez is top fighter and has been in many wars in his long career and has never been stopped. Marquez is a true old school boxer, his experience and ring IQ are undeniable. I think if Bradley is to be victorious then he will need to be very smart in the ring and bring his A-game because it will be very hard to outbox the Mexican. Both men can really take a punch and I think that a knockout is unlikely but not completely out of the picture. Juan Manuel Marquez rightly so, is the favorite to win, he is a highly technical fighter and is one of the best counter punchers in the game. Marquez will try and break down Bradley by setting him traps and will allow Bradley to come at him and throw punches. Bradley will need to be very accurate and not wasteful because Marquez will be looking to counter punch at every opportunity. Both fighters are coming into this fight looking in tremendous condition. Questions remain however, how much did the Provodnikov fight take out of Bradley physically and mentally? Will age be a factor for Marquez? All I know is that this is going to be a fascinating and intriguing fight which is not to be missed.
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