The trilogy fight between Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley could be a tough sell.
Although Bradley handed Pacquiao a loss in their first meeting in 2012, a majority felt Pacquiao dominated the fight, igniting calls for an immediate rematch.
Instead, Pacquiao fought Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time, and was brutally knocked out in the sixth round.
Following a 12-round decision over ex-lightweight titlist Brandon Rios, Pacquiao finally got his chance at revenge, and he made the most of it.
In April 2014, before 15,601 fans at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Pacquiao took it to Bradley, and this time, got the nod.
So what exactly would make fans want to see a third fight given the clear victor of the first two?
Top Rank CEO Bob Arum is fully aware of the issues that lie ahead.
“Will we do the same numbers for the first two Bradley fights? Probably not,” Arum admitted to CP Entertainment.
“I’ve run my numbers and I’ve done my math,” he added. “I’m not out here with my head up my a**.”
750,000 pay-per-view buys is not a bad number for the rematch fight. In today’s market, it is actually pretty solid. However, the first match in June 2012, had 890,000 buys.
It was Pacquiao who selected Bradley, not Arum, so in a way, the 84-year-old promoter is doing his fighter a huge favor, given that the Filipino could have opted to fight WBO World super-lightweight champion Terence Crawford.
Bolton’s Amir Khan was also a viable candidate. HBO, on the other hand, was not on board with the idea.
Arum is going to have to present Bradley as a completely new fighter under the helm of Teddy Atlas, whose now infamous “Firemen” speech to the current welterweight champion at the conclusion of the seventh round of his fight against Brandon Rios, has become the subject of humorous internet memes and videos.
Bradley picked up his first stoppage in nearly four years with a ninth-round TKO of Rios in November, who appeared to have killed to make the welterweight limit of 147 pounds, taking two attempts to make weight.
A third fight against Pacquiao will be the ultimate test for Bradley, not just for himself, but a test of his relationship with Atlas?
Is the partnership truly dynamic or was Rios just that unprepared?
Whether this will be Pacquiao’s final bout is another question. A Bradley victory would almost certainly draw the curtain, but if the 37-year-old wins, Arum has mention the possibility of a Pacquiao-Crawford fight.
Therefore, it seems that there could be some irresolution on behalf of Pacquiao.
A win for Bradley would be momentous.
However, a victory for Pacquiao may not overly do much to his career, unless if he were to somehow land an elusive rematch against Floyd Mayweather Jr.
– Ryan O’Hara @OHaraSports
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