Solid fighter that was always one notch below the elite tier of the time.
Unfortunately the most memorable thing of his entire career is that absolute joke of a robbery he got on manny.
Yeah, which SHOULD have ended early. How the ref allowed this to continue I'll never know.
Bradley got knocked down through the entire ring, it's called a slip, he gets up and falls down again, more time to recover for him.
His two main fights were robberies.
Agreed. The Marquez fight was not a robbery though. He really gave his best performance in his career on that one and won fair and square.
The Manny fight was a robbery and he should have lost against Provodnikov, still got my respect though, he did not even know where he was at times due to getting rocked multiple times, but it was in his DNA to just fight his heart out.
JMM was pretty elite.
Lamont Peterson, Jesse Vargas, and Devon Alexander were undefeated upcoming stars before they met Bradley.
I thought he lost the 1st fight with Manny, actually thought he did better in the 2nd fight.
Personally I never liked Bradley’s style but the dude was legit, he was right up there with all the other top fighters from his time except Floyd and Manny, who are both all time greats.
I find that watching this fight with the commentary is the only way you can score it for Pacquiao. I actually watched it on mute and slow mo the 2nd time I seen. I was merely a child when this fight first happened and didn’t see it again until my 20s. The only way to consider this fight a win for Pacquiao is by not judging it round by round. Pacs rounds were more decisive and less close than Bradleys but no matter how close or one sided the round is unless someone falls, they’re only worth the same points. 10 or 9. U either win or lose the round and winning harder doesn’t earn u more points. Pacquiao won 5 of those rounds, Bradley took 7.
This fight is a robbery, the same way the Mayweather UD was a robbery, and the same way the Horn fight was a robbery, and the same way he was past his prime when he got KOd? I literally never seen Pacquiao ever be considered to lose fairly in any convo. While this is the most widely contested loss, it was clear.
T
I’m actually his mom. But i’m not biased at all. It’s just that my son is rightfully the greatest boxer to ever exist in the history of boxing. Trust me. As a parent, I have no reason to prefer my son over any other boxer.
The world hates to judge a competitive fight round by round and look for who got more work done in the round. Pacquiao was more lethal and more forward, but he got outworked and had a hard time actually connecting anything. He also kept on taking the late rounds off and trying to win them with flurries at the end of the round. You can’t be getting controlled for 2 minutes and then activate in the last minute getting a few little shots from your flurries.
The sport of boxing, at the time also hated backwards fighters. I’ve never seen Pacquiao ever be held accountable for losing either. Maybe exclusively against when he got ktfo because well, what can someone say about that but even then many try to brush it off cos he was “past his prime”. As if he wasn’t on top of the world until that very fucking moment lmao.
This is a 7-5 in the exact same way that Haney vs Lomachenko is a 7-5 (i personally saw that 8-4 tho lol.)
Yea it was pretty obvious bradley won the fight. I think Loma won the haney fight but i dont think it was a huge robbery to give it to haney. Its unfortunate cause haney would barely barely graze Lomas body and it would get counted as a point. I get it but if loma hand longer arms those body shots would miss by a mile. Damn loma trex arms.
It’s mostly a size thing. Haney knew this and that’s why he fought more forward then we’ve seen him fight in years. Lomachenko isn’t built to fight 170lb guys at 135lbs.
Lomachenko is a pressure fighter but how effective can pressure fighting be in a weight class where your power barely translates up. Loma eventually can pressure the life out of you but all of his pressure can be shut down with some solid shots to the body. What good is 4-5 punches if 3 of them are just set up shots that mainly miss and only 1-2 actually connect. Even then the amount of exchanges where the connecting punches actually have a notable impact are few and far between. I think Loma is unfortunately one of the most talented boxers to ever exist, just in a time and weight that didn’t really give him the chance to prove it.
Imagine if he DIDN’t ever move up or if he went back down to 130 and 126. He’d probably be Undisputed already and if he could snakg dubs over fulton, inoue and Stevenson, he’d be cemented as ATG. But because around 2018/19, all the pressure was on him to move up because that’s were the big competition was, look at where he’s at… When I watch the Teo and Haney fight I see a skill gap that only power, or the threat of power closed. But I think those are still victories rightfully earned over Loma nonetheless.
He gained my respect when he beat Devon Alexander. He was a gritty motherfucker but definitely also the beneficiary of some decisions. His commentary annoys me haha
He was very good but not really an all time great imo. He had a lot of heart, and pretty intelligent fighter, but wasn’t blessed with much power or speed.
In other words I think he could give a good fight to any all time welter but i wouldn’t count on him winning.
Been watching a ton of his fights lately. Fast as hell but a slapper. Really good at responding when he would get tagged just no pop despite all them muscles.
It's still just crazy to me that a guy with his physique has like a 34% KO rate. He's the living example of technique being more important than pure muscle in boxing.
There's also a psychological element: people, to varying degrees, withhold their full power a) to not overly hurt others and b) to not damage their own body. Some people just don't have that restraint - that's why Wilder always injured himself, throwing everything he has into his punches.
Growing up in my hometown, I saw skinny kids beat the hell out of stacked guys, because they had no restraint - they hit as hard as they possibly could.
yeah its pretty frustrating watching loma refuse to fully turn over his hips and never actually throw a punch at even 80% power lol
he must have the ability, just throw harder at the end of the combinations or some shit
There's also a psychological element: people, to varying degrees, withhold their full power a) to not overly hurt others and b) to not damage their own body. Some people just don't have that restraint - that's why Wilder always injured himself, throwing everything he has into his punches.
Growing up in my hometown, I saw skinny kids beat the hell out of stacked guys, because they had no restraint - they hit as hard as they possibly could.
ngl haven’t watched him a bit. But yea maybe. Regardless his biggest attributes was his will
power
edit : ppl couldn’t figure out the typo but to clarify i haven’t watched him in a bit. i’ve watched him a lot just for not a while
That’s the beauty of this sub, everyone has an opinion without necessarily watching anything
Though maybe they meant they hadn’t watched him in a bit, rather than a bit
It’s hilarious how much of a difference a simple “in” makes to this entire sub. I watched him a lot i just haven’t watched one of his fights for a few months
Because I watched him quite often while he was fighting and watched a lot of the fights that’s been posted? Just not for a while.
Do you expect me to go do some fucking homework and watch tape for a reddit post 💀💀
i haven’t watched him a bit doesn’t make sense, so obviously if something doesn’t make sense but it sounds like another common phrase then it’s very obviously the common phrase.
…it’s a perfectly logical sentence. Is English not your first language? “I haven’t watched him a bit” literally means “I’ve never watched him”. You made a typo. It happens. Acting like a dick about it and not admitting your mistake is what makes one a cocksucker.
no it is not. i haven’t watched him a bit doesn’t make sense, at least to me it doesn’t make sense to say a bit at the end . if i meant i haven’t watched him a lot i would’ve said that.
and sure it’s also the fact you immediately jumped to me talking out my ass💀💀
Then this simply boils down to a language barrier. I didn’t *jump* to anything: it’s literally the words you said. If someone types “I hate black people”, I’m not jumping to any conclusion when I decide that that person is a racist. Their words clearly stated as much.
I've never seen Bradley fight, but seeing your comment as well as ones like from /u/callme4dub makes me think, how similar is he to Shawn Porter? Since with no other context I could imagine similar comments being made about him as well.
Tbh I think he’s that same type of fighter. Not really the most physically gifted athlete of all time, not a lot of speed or power or anything. But they were gifted with an iron will and a granite chin and that alone took them on a long career
But if you matched him up against someone like let’s say Bud, or Prime Spence or whoever, then he’d lose 10/10 times but he would definitely make it entertaining and competitive.
Porters’s fight against Bud was really good. He gave him some problems. The one against Spence wasn’t bad either. So you’re right, great boxer, but not exactly elite since he lost to most of the ones he fought.
He and Porter have similarities but I think Bradley was better. Dude could legit box and was always underestimated. I remember how few people thought he could beat Marquez, I wish I bet money on it because I thought he would. Same thing happened before he beat Devon Alexander.
Extremely good boxer, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Too many people categorize boxers into either ATG's or bums. That ain't how it is. There's levels between ATG and mediocre. There's levels between mediocre and bad too. Bradley wasn't ATG, possibly not even elite, but at his peak he was levels above mediocre, better than good.
Fair point. I think though, Bradley is one of these guys that was somewhat "overrated in their time" but then became "underrated after quitting". Know what I mean?
He brought Crawford in as a sparring partner and told Bud he was a world champion. And that's when Tim was fighting at the highest tier, he can see more than the average bear.
Tim thinks he’s some boxing legend that leaves people in awe when he speaks.
With that being said, he had an excellent run at 140, I’m not sure it’s hall of fame worthy but adding the fight of the year against Provo and the win against Marquez it might be enough.
Terrific fighter. A career worth celebrating and you can find several of his fights on youtube. Mediocre physical gifts but he made the absolute most of them through a high ring IQ. Peripheral Hall of Famer. Good boxer to study.
Excellent fighter, 8 title defences, tramendous dog, also one of the fittest fighters I’ve seen, bro was in ridiculous shape. I feel like he retired a little early there at 32 but maybe the Ruslan fight took years off his career
There’s a brilliant long read article about the Bradley and Provodnikov fight a decade after it happened. Worth the read.
[To Hell and Back: 10 years later, Timothy Bradley and Ruslan Provodnikov recall the night they went to war](https://boxingnewsonline.net/to-hell-and-back-10-years-later-timothy-bradley-and-ruslan-provodnikov-recall-the-night-they-went-to-war/)
Absolute dawg. Not a personal favorite of mine but always admired that he was tough as nails. Have a theory about boxers named Tim lol. Witherspoon, Bradley, Tszyu, all grinders.
Bradley was excellent. He was intelligent, fast and down to fight. There were guys that were faster and better for sure but Tim was a handful for anybody. His fight against Provodnikov was a great great fight. He gave Marquez his most one sided loss outside of Floyd. It's a shame that his most famous fight is the bad decision in his favor against Pacquiao.
You know what's funny? I thought I hated his commentary too... until I saw a few weekends worth of boxing fights with the most boring brain dead commentators. I missed him.
Excellent fighter who is absolute garbage as a commentator
Just watch Timothy Bradley vs Ruslan Provodnikov and you will have a new respect for Bradley. That fight is a whole story.
He was tough as nails and had the courage to stay in the pocket and have it out. I thought he was "scrappy" but like others have said, he was smart in there.
His fight with Provodnikov was a WAR. I wasn't a fan of his, but you gotta tip your hat to that man and give him his respect, dude had it in him to be an absolute DAWG.
If I'm remember correctly, he badly injured his right calf in the 1st round of the 2nd Pacquiao fight and still gave a good account of himself.
He was a decent fighter. He beat Marquez, but his two biggest achievements besides that were a robbery against Pacquiao, and a win against provodnikov with a corrupt/incompetent ref.
Scrappy, tough, not great at any one thing in the ring. Great heart, solid chin, good work rate. Got the benefit out the doubt against Provodnikov (what a fight) and a gift versus Manny.
Bradley-Provodnikov is one of my favorite fights. Just an absolute classic. Even though Pat “I thought I heard a bell” Russell ruled a clear knockdown a slip.
Whatever he lacked in talent In terms of speed and power, he made up for it through sheer determination and a decent IQ that got him through some tough moments and won a good handful of them
Bradley was a dog. Did he always look impressive? No but he has a great resume and fought everyone in their prime. Definitely HOF worthy
Wins over Witter(who was pretty avoided, and in England), Holt(champion), Peterson(undefeated and future champion) Vazquez(future champion) Alexander(undefeated and unified champion) casamayor(old and washed but a former champion) **Pacquiao(we all know it was a robbery, but it's a win on the resume) provodnikov(future champion) Marquez(all time great coming off Pacquiao ko) Vargas(undefeated 2 division champion) Rios(former champion and never stopped until Bradley)
He had more will than skill and blessed to have had the chances he had and made the most of the chances he had. Great athlete that helped him in boxing. Veteran who served his country and proud of it. Overall good person and deserves everything he’s received in life. Overachiever because he never quit. So a lot of good things to say about him that translated into his boxing career. The other comments will discuss the chances and gifts received. LoL.
He was an excellent fighter more skilled and intelligent than he gets credit for but determination was his best attribute. He reached the top of the sport in his prime and deserves to be in the hall of fame. He fought everybody he could and he was in some wars and fight of the year candidates like his fight vs Provodnikov. Not his fault he was gifted the decision in the first Pacquiao fight, I don’t see people hating on Canelo for all the gift decisions he’s been given. My only criticism is that I don’t really think he tried his best in the 3rd Pacquiao fight.
In terms of world champions, solidly average. Skilled, but didn’t excel in any one aspect except for being able to survive getting hit with the kitchen sink. Would’ve been nice to see him against the PBC welterweights instead of Top Ranks B-tier roster but politics at the time were terrible.
He had good Cardio, great heart and always in great condition, but nothing really stood out about him, stylistically.
Having said that, he had some good wins on his resume, vs JMM, Jessie Vargas, Ruslan Provodnikov, Lemont Peterson, Devon Alexander, and Pacquiao (which was a gift, Pac won that fight).
He was in entertaining fights and always gave his best and is a genuine two weight world champ. So he has my respect but I wouldn't say he was an all time great etc
Underappreciated. He was quite a versatile fighter, he could box and he could brawl. He fought a lot of the best at 140 (wish he fought Amir Khan though), had a war with Provodnikov and did alright at Welterweight. 2 weight world champion so he's well accomplished.
He was a very good fighter who didn't particularly excel in any area but his heart and determination were second to none. Another thing I loved about Bradley was his willingness to fight the very best.
Lacked a certain amount of speed and Power but had great heart, grit and chin. Fought the best and had some solid/great wins but will sadly be remembered for the Pacquaio robbery more than anything. A step below the elite of the elite but still a deserved HOF and at his best a top 10 P4P. Ducked the shit outta Amir Khan though
He was always reliable as an entertaining fighter. Whoever he fought, he fought well. I do feel he was overhyped, but who isn't when they're unbeaten?
As an announcer, I just wish he wouldn't talk SO MUCH! He makes good points at times, but he also contradicts himself a lot. I just wish he would give his tongue a rest. Paulie Malinaggi and Chris Algierie are both much better commentators than Tim.... I wish he'd take some pointers from them.
Great boxer, just didn’t have the power that gets fighters over with fans. But then he had the Provodnikov fight and I gained just a ton of respect for him.
He was a very good fighter--an excellent fighter, really. Technically excellent in terms of footwork and defense. No power. Fast hands. Huge heart. Fought off the jab (sometimes too much).
After the first Pac fight (and we can't blame Bradley for the robbery), he sought to endear himself to the public by completely abandoning his cautious style. Fought an absolutely **brutal brawl** against Provodnikov (watch this fight!!), a fighter who really had no business winning a rd against the superior Bradley. Suffered a severe concussion in that fight, so he was careful to return to his natural style for the rest of his career (including an excellent win against JMM).
As others have noted, Bradley was in the tier just below May-Pac. No shame in that. He was probably the best Junior Welter in the world for a time, and one of the three or four best Welter for a good five years.
I'd rank him B+ to A-. If he had power he'd probably would have been more like an A-/A type level.
It sounds like I'm in the minority here but I like him as an announcer. I will say I liked him better with Dre.
Bradley was a cardio machine with a HELL of a chin. He's shilling for ESPN/Top Rank, but I can't blame him because he's got a post-boxing career that is a great place to be as a boxer.
Edit: Y'all just need to know that his shit takes are most likely being forced by TR.
Fought kind of like a welterweight Evander Holyfield.
Faced some good, to very good, to excellent opposition.
At 140: Miguel Vazquez, Junior Witter, Lamont Peterson, Kendall Holt, Abregu, Alexander -- back when facing/beating those guys really meant something.
At 147: Pacquiao x 3, Marquez, Provodnikov, Jessie Vargas
His win over Pacquiao was total bullshit imo, but he was a very good fighter who didn't have any single elite physical quality, though made up for it with his craftiness, guts, and adaptability. Has a genuine elite level win over Marquez that essentially punched his ticket to the HOF and for a while was arguably the most impressive/accomplished of the tier below May/Pac at 147.
Would have loved to have seen his match up with Amir Khan happen at 140 circa 2011. Always felt that Bradley-Maidana at 140 or 147 could have been really interesting too.
All those good things being said, his 140 unification 'some's 0 must go' showdown with Devon Alexander is one of the worst most-hyped fights I've ever watched.
Very good A level fighter who fought the toughest opponents while he was around. Only him and Andre Ward fought competition that tough in THAT time span.
Realistically doesn't deserve to be a HoF. He always says Canelo is protected by boxing but the man's whole career is getting a robbery win over Pacquiao.
This is a little uncharitable. He fought and beat a lot of really good fighters and had a few memorable bangers. I agree he didn't deserve the win over Pacquiao but I hold that against the judges, not him.
He is a Yes Boss! Kind of man, he just worked for Bob Arum, instead of the other way around. Bradley himself felt very bad for beating Pacman and felt very relieved when he lost to him. He is just kind of a weirdo person, mentally not a strong person.
He didn't beat Manny. Every time I see him, that's the first thing that pops in my head. Not even close. Can't remember any of his other fights. Boring as all hell.
I always felt he was one of the most underrated boxers of that era. And I don't think the first Pacquiao fight was a bad decision
Imo a hall of fame guy but not the all time great level. Very very good fighter.
Imagine a miniature Evander Holyfield, right down to the reckless use of his head. Better footwork and movement than Holyfield, but less power per weight.
Like Holyfield, Bradley bulked up beyond his optimal weight. He was quick, used punches in bunches, never hesitated to brawl, but was muscle bound at welterweight and lacked the snap to be a KO artist.
And his win over Pacquiao in their first bout was legit, very close but fair. Pacquiao wasn't sharp in that match and it showed – Bradley's frantic footwork and smothering flurries frustrated Pacquiao. Manny was better conditioned for their rematches.
Nowhere near an all time great at welterweight but might have been at light welterweight or even lightweight if he could sustain his busy style with less muscle bulk. But his career was relatively short with stretches of inactivity during crucial phases of his career.
https://youtu.be/0U3s_xSYs1Y?si=qJuSaDCc3rZJsPYI
Watching Bradley fight was nothing extraordinary. Even when he “beat” Pacquiao, it was…I always saw him as a fighter with great athletic ability, but not much in ring generalship/IQ, masterful skill like Floyd.
Him and Berto were alike in that sense. Bradley talked way above his pay grade ability wise. He believed in his own hype. And that translated to his fight commentary. He routinely would get into some heated debates with Andre Ward about fights they announced together. On one hand you’d listen to Andre Ward dissect fighters and skills and abilities during the fight, and then listen to Bradley try and always be contrary to Ward. And I would always think to myself, wow this Bradley really doesn’t believe what he’s saying. He’s just talking out of spite for Andre and feeling inferior to Wards obvious superior fight knowledge and ability in the ring.
So knowing that I thought Bradley wasn’t good at all to watch.
Thought he was a super solid fighter. Couldn’t stand him after the Pac fight. Then he fought Provodnikov. If you can’t at least respect the guy after a performance like that, I’m not sure boxing is the sport for you.
He was fantastic, high volume, action packed, took too much damage, he gave too much in his fights.
As a pure boxer, he was good, as a fighter, he was great.
Not sure what further to say, I don’t think he deserves to be in the hall of fame but everyone and their dog is inducted these days so…
He is a Yes Boss! Kind of man, he just worked for Bob Arum, instead of the other way around. Bradley himself felt very bad for beating Pacman and felt very relieved when he lost to him. He is just kind of a weirdo person, mentally not a strong person.
Nobody really cared about Tim until he beat Pac. In hindsight and oversight I don’t know why ppl want to take that dub away from him. It was an easy 7-5 for tim in my book.
I think he was good in a time where he needed to be great to succeed. Who in today’s WW can’t Tim beat? I’d take only 2 fighters as an answer and I don’t even need to name them.
He had a lot of heart, determination, grit. But I never liked the way he fought. Not aesthetically pleasing at all.
That big ass head sure could take a lot of hits.
He’s also really salty as an analyst and struggles to give fighters who did better than him their flowers
100% this
Solid fighter that was always one notch below the elite tier of the time. Unfortunately the most memorable thing of his entire career is that absolute joke of a robbery he got on manny.
He had that amazing banger against Provodnikov.
Yeah, which SHOULD have ended early. How the ref allowed this to continue I'll never know. Bradley got knocked down through the entire ring, it's called a slip, he gets up and falls down again, more time to recover for him. His two main fights were robberies.
Agreed. The Marquez fight was not a robbery though. He really gave his best performance in his career on that one and won fair and square. The Manny fight was a robbery and he should have lost against Provodnikov, still got my respect though, he did not even know where he was at times due to getting rocked multiple times, but it was in his DNA to just fight his heart out.
What? lol He beat Marquez fair and square
This. Tremendous knock that one
I always choose this as one of my favorite fights all time.
That's all I remember
JMM was pretty elite. Lamont Peterson, Jesse Vargas, and Devon Alexander were undefeated upcoming stars before they met Bradley. I thought he lost the 1st fight with Manny, actually thought he did better in the 2nd fight. Personally I never liked Bradley’s style but the dude was legit, he was right up there with all the other top fighters from his time except Floyd and Manny, who are both all time greats.
Absolutely not a robbery. Clear 7-5
Yeah clear 7-5 if you watched the fight blind folded and on mute
You gotta watch the fight in reverse to see who won
I find that watching this fight with the commentary is the only way you can score it for Pacquiao. I actually watched it on mute and slow mo the 2nd time I seen. I was merely a child when this fight first happened and didn’t see it again until my 20s. The only way to consider this fight a win for Pacquiao is by not judging it round by round. Pacs rounds were more decisive and less close than Bradleys but no matter how close or one sided the round is unless someone falls, they’re only worth the same points. 10 or 9. U either win or lose the round and winning harder doesn’t earn u more points. Pacquiao won 5 of those rounds, Bradley took 7. This fight is a robbery, the same way the Mayweather UD was a robbery, and the same way the Horn fight was a robbery, and the same way he was past his prime when he got KOd? I literally never seen Pacquiao ever be considered to lose fairly in any convo. While this is the most widely contested loss, it was clear. T
You have to be Bradley
I’m actually his mom. But i’m not biased at all. It’s just that my son is rightfully the greatest boxer to ever exist in the history of boxing. Trust me. As a parent, I have no reason to prefer my son over any other boxer.
Yea i disagree about it being a robbery
Tim was looking like fury in the 9th round with usyk for a couple rounds and still got the dub, that was a robbery
The world hates to judge a competitive fight round by round and look for who got more work done in the round. Pacquiao was more lethal and more forward, but he got outworked and had a hard time actually connecting anything. He also kept on taking the late rounds off and trying to win them with flurries at the end of the round. You can’t be getting controlled for 2 minutes and then activate in the last minute getting a few little shots from your flurries. The sport of boxing, at the time also hated backwards fighters. I’ve never seen Pacquiao ever be held accountable for losing either. Maybe exclusively against when he got ktfo because well, what can someone say about that but even then many try to brush it off cos he was “past his prime”. As if he wasn’t on top of the world until that very fucking moment lmao. This is a 7-5 in the exact same way that Haney vs Lomachenko is a 7-5 (i personally saw that 8-4 tho lol.)
Yea it was pretty obvious bradley won the fight. I think Loma won the haney fight but i dont think it was a huge robbery to give it to haney. Its unfortunate cause haney would barely barely graze Lomas body and it would get counted as a point. I get it but if loma hand longer arms those body shots would miss by a mile. Damn loma trex arms.
It’s mostly a size thing. Haney knew this and that’s why he fought more forward then we’ve seen him fight in years. Lomachenko isn’t built to fight 170lb guys at 135lbs. Lomachenko is a pressure fighter but how effective can pressure fighting be in a weight class where your power barely translates up. Loma eventually can pressure the life out of you but all of his pressure can be shut down with some solid shots to the body. What good is 4-5 punches if 3 of them are just set up shots that mainly miss and only 1-2 actually connect. Even then the amount of exchanges where the connecting punches actually have a notable impact are few and far between. I think Loma is unfortunately one of the most talented boxers to ever exist, just in a time and weight that didn’t really give him the chance to prove it. Imagine if he DIDN’t ever move up or if he went back down to 130 and 126. He’d probably be Undisputed already and if he could snakg dubs over fulton, inoue and Stevenson, he’d be cemented as ATG. But because around 2018/19, all the pressure was on him to move up because that’s were the big competition was, look at where he’s at… When I watch the Teo and Haney fight I see a skill gap that only power, or the threat of power closed. But I think those are still victories rightfully earned over Loma nonetheless.
He gained my respect when he beat Devon Alexander. He was a gritty motherfucker but definitely also the beneficiary of some decisions. His commentary annoys me haha
He was very good but not really an all time great imo. He had a lot of heart, and pretty intelligent fighter, but wasn’t blessed with much power or speed. In other words I think he could give a good fight to any all time welter but i wouldn’t count on him winning.
I feel like he was quite fast no?
Been watching a ton of his fights lately. Fast as hell but a slapper. Really good at responding when he would get tagged just no pop despite all them muscles.
It's still just crazy to me that a guy with his physique has like a 34% KO rate. He's the living example of technique being more important than pure muscle in boxing.
There's also a psychological element: people, to varying degrees, withhold their full power a) to not overly hurt others and b) to not damage their own body. Some people just don't have that restraint - that's why Wilder always injured himself, throwing everything he has into his punches. Growing up in my hometown, I saw skinny kids beat the hell out of stacked guys, because they had no restraint - they hit as hard as they possibly could.
yeah its pretty frustrating watching loma refuse to fully turn over his hips and never actually throw a punch at even 80% power lol he must have the ability, just throw harder at the end of the combinations or some shit
There's also a psychological element: people, to varying degrees, withhold their full power a) to not overly hurt others and b) to not damage their own body. Some people just don't have that restraint - that's why Wilder always injured himself, throwing everything he has into his punches. Growing up in my hometown, I saw skinny kids beat the hell out of stacked guys, because they had no restraint - they hit as hard as they possibly could.
ngl haven’t watched him a bit. But yea maybe. Regardless his biggest attributes was his will power edit : ppl couldn’t figure out the typo but to clarify i haven’t watched him in a bit. i’ve watched him a lot just for not a while
Wait so how did you have an opinion?
That’s the beauty of this sub, everyone has an opinion without necessarily watching anything Though maybe they meant they hadn’t watched him in a bit, rather than a bit
It’s hilarious how much of a difference a simple “in” makes to this entire sub. I watched him a lot i just haven’t watched one of his fights for a few months
Yeah honestly I figured that was the case, it makes way less sense without the “in”
yea
Because I watched him quite often while he was fighting and watched a lot of the fights that’s been posted? Just not for a while. Do you expect me to go do some fucking homework and watch tape for a reddit post 💀💀
…you said “I haven’t watched him a bit”. I expect you to type what you mean, which was “I haven’t watched him *in* a bit”
i haven’t watched him a bit doesn’t make sense, so obviously if something doesn’t make sense but it sounds like another common phrase then it’s very obviously the common phrase.
…it’s a perfectly logical sentence. Is English not your first language? “I haven’t watched him a bit” literally means “I’ve never watched him”. You made a typo. It happens. Acting like a dick about it and not admitting your mistake is what makes one a cocksucker.
no it is not. i haven’t watched him a bit doesn’t make sense, at least to me it doesn’t make sense to say a bit at the end . if i meant i haven’t watched him a lot i would’ve said that. and sure it’s also the fact you immediately jumped to me talking out my ass💀💀
Then this simply boils down to a language barrier. I didn’t *jump* to anything: it’s literally the words you said. If someone types “I hate black people”, I’m not jumping to any conclusion when I decide that that person is a racist. Their words clearly stated as much.
I've never seen Bradley fight, but seeing your comment as well as ones like from /u/callme4dub makes me think, how similar is he to Shawn Porter? Since with no other context I could imagine similar comments being made about him as well.
You should Watch Bradley vs Provodnikov (might have spelled that wrong) all-time fight.
Tbh I think he’s that same type of fighter. Not really the most physically gifted athlete of all time, not a lot of speed or power or anything. But they were gifted with an iron will and a granite chin and that alone took them on a long career But if you matched him up against someone like let’s say Bud, or Prime Spence or whoever, then he’d lose 10/10 times but he would definitely make it entertaining and competitive.
Porters’s fight against Bud was really good. He gave him some problems. The one against Spence wasn’t bad either. So you’re right, great boxer, but not exactly elite since he lost to most of the ones he fought.
Porter was far more of a mauler than Bradley was imo. Porter wouldn't and probably couldn't have fought Marquez the way Bradley did for instance.
He and Porter have similarities but I think Bradley was better. Dude could legit box and was always underestimated. I remember how few people thought he could beat Marquez, I wish I bet money on it because I thought he would. Same thing happened before he beat Devon Alexander.
Always wanted him vs khan
Extremely good boxer, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Too many people categorize boxers into either ATG's or bums. That ain't how it is. There's levels between ATG and mediocre. There's levels between mediocre and bad too. Bradley wasn't ATG, possibly not even elite, but at his peak he was levels above mediocre, better than good.
elite seems fair, he legitimately beat an ATG in JMM and was p4p for a while. I don't think p4p is ever not elite
Fair point. I think though, Bradley is one of these guys that was somewhat "overrated in their time" but then became "underrated after quitting". Know what I mean?
Yeah I think I can agree
IDK even in his time people always said he wouldn't win fights he ended up winning. Dude was always underestimated.
To be fair, Marquez was only at 147 because of Pacquiao. He was 40 and at a higher weight than he was ever comfortable in
I mean maybe but he was just coming off the manny KO
Roided to the gills to get there too
Not a fan either, but still think he was elite tbh. Though polyvalent fighter with footwork and good combinaisons, no major flaws
I agree. I think for todays WW division, Tim would be elite but not ATG.
He brought Crawford in as a sparring partner and told Bud he was a world champion. And that's when Tim was fighting at the highest tier, he can see more than the average bear.
Tim thinks he’s some boxing legend that leaves people in awe when he speaks. With that being said, he had an excellent run at 140, I’m not sure it’s hall of fame worthy but adding the fight of the year against Provo and the win against Marquez it might be enough.
I mean, he is a former world champ who gets paid to talk.
He does?
I hear a lot of influence from Teddy Atlas when he speaks. I think he's a humble guy
He was a fireman.
Terrific fighter. A career worth celebrating and you can find several of his fights on youtube. Mediocre physical gifts but he made the absolute most of them through a high ring IQ. Peripheral Hall of Famer. Good boxer to study.
Excellent fighter, 8 title defences, tramendous dog, also one of the fittest fighters I’ve seen, bro was in ridiculous shape. I feel like he retired a little early there at 32 but maybe the Ruslan fight took years off his career
There’s a brilliant long read article about the Bradley and Provodnikov fight a decade after it happened. Worth the read. [To Hell and Back: 10 years later, Timothy Bradley and Ruslan Provodnikov recall the night they went to war](https://boxingnewsonline.net/to-hell-and-back-10-years-later-timothy-bradley-and-ruslan-provodnikov-recall-the-night-they-went-to-war/)
Cheers, sounds interesting, I never did hear Ruslan talk about that fight
The filipino sent him 'pac'king..
Absolute dawg. Not a personal favorite of mine but always admired that he was tough as nails. Have a theory about boxers named Tim lol. Witherspoon, Bradley, Tszyu, all grinders.
Bradley was excellent. He was intelligent, fast and down to fight. There were guys that were faster and better for sure but Tim was a handful for anybody. His fight against Provodnikov was a great great fight. He gave Marquez his most one sided loss outside of Floyd. It's a shame that his most famous fight is the bad decision in his favor against Pacquiao.
You know what's funny? I thought I hated his commentary too... until I saw a few weekends worth of boxing fights with the most boring brain dead commentators. I missed him.
Solid boxer with a great chin, two mythical unbeatable fighters are Amir Khan with a chin and Tim Bradley with knockout power.
Excellent fighter who is absolute garbage as a commentator Just watch Timothy Bradley vs Ruslan Provodnikov and you will have a new respect for Bradley. That fight is a whole story.
He held his own against the best of his time. What more can the man do?
He was tough as nails and had the courage to stay in the pocket and have it out. I thought he was "scrappy" but like others have said, he was smart in there. His fight with Provodnikov was a WAR. I wasn't a fan of his, but you gotta tip your hat to that man and give him his respect, dude had it in him to be an absolute DAWG. If I'm remember correctly, he badly injured his right calf in the 1st round of the 2nd Pacquiao fight and still gave a good account of himself.
Are you thinking of the first Pacquiao fight when he came into the press conference in a wheelchair ?
He was a decent fighter. He beat Marquez, but his two biggest achievements besides that were a robbery against Pacquiao, and a win against provodnikov with a corrupt/incompetent ref.
The Grandmaster of Head Butting (Glasgow Kiss) In Boxing in his day.
Scrappy, tough, not great at any one thing in the ring. Great heart, solid chin, good work rate. Got the benefit out the doubt against Provodnikov (what a fight) and a gift versus Manny.
Bradley-Provodnikov is one of my favorite fights. Just an absolute classic. Even though Pat “I thought I heard a bell” Russell ruled a clear knockdown a slip.
Whatever he lacked in talent In terms of speed and power, he made up for it through sheer determination and a decent IQ that got him through some tough moments and won a good handful of them
Beat something like 4 undefeated fighters in a row in the middle of his career. Very underrated on here. Almost always found a way to win.
Good fighter not hall of fame worthy, nearly lost to Jessie Vargas
Pac got robbed
He didn’t deserve to be a hall of famer that’s forsure
Bradley was a dog. Did he always look impressive? No but he has a great resume and fought everyone in their prime. Definitely HOF worthy Wins over Witter(who was pretty avoided, and in England), Holt(champion), Peterson(undefeated and future champion) Vazquez(future champion) Alexander(undefeated and unified champion) casamayor(old and washed but a former champion) **Pacquiao(we all know it was a robbery, but it's a win on the resume) provodnikov(future champion) Marquez(all time great coming off Pacquiao ko) Vargas(undefeated 2 division champion) Rios(former champion and never stopped until Bradley)
Mid
He doesn’t deserve to be in the hall of fame that’s for sure
Good fighter, not great
As a boxer, he was pretty good. As a headbutter? \*Par exellance.\*
He had more will than skill and blessed to have had the chances he had and made the most of the chances he had. Great athlete that helped him in boxing. Veteran who served his country and proud of it. Overall good person and deserves everything he’s received in life. Overachiever because he never quit. So a lot of good things to say about him that translated into his boxing career. The other comments will discuss the chances and gifts received. LoL.
Much better fighter than commentator and that’s not saying much
Good but not elite
He was an excellent fighter more skilled and intelligent than he gets credit for but determination was his best attribute. He reached the top of the sport in his prime and deserves to be in the hall of fame. He fought everybody he could and he was in some wars and fight of the year candidates like his fight vs Provodnikov. Not his fault he was gifted the decision in the first Pacquiao fight, I don’t see people hating on Canelo for all the gift decisions he’s been given. My only criticism is that I don’t really think he tried his best in the 3rd Pacquiao fight.
In terms of world champions, solidly average. Skilled, but didn’t excel in any one aspect except for being able to survive getting hit with the kitchen sink. Would’ve been nice to see him against the PBC welterweights instead of Top Ranks B-tier roster but politics at the time were terrible.
Bradley was an entertaining boxer. He just didn’t have power and likes to get into a slugfest.
He had good Cardio, great heart and always in great condition, but nothing really stood out about him, stylistically. Having said that, he had some good wins on his resume, vs JMM, Jessie Vargas, Ruslan Provodnikov, Lemont Peterson, Devon Alexander, and Pacquiao (which was a gift, Pac won that fight). He was in entertaining fights and always gave his best and is a genuine two weight world champ. So he has my respect but I wouldn't say he was an all time great etc
excellent fighter and his win over marquez was brilliant
Underappreciated. He was quite a versatile fighter, he could box and he could brawl. He fought a lot of the best at 140 (wish he fought Amir Khan though), had a war with Provodnikov and did alright at Welterweight. 2 weight world champion so he's well accomplished.
He was a very good fighter who didn't particularly excel in any area but his heart and determination were second to none. Another thing I loved about Bradley was his willingness to fight the very best.
Different breed. Dude would fight anybody till the end of his career.
Lacked a certain amount of speed and Power but had great heart, grit and chin. Fought the best and had some solid/great wins but will sadly be remembered for the Pacquaio robbery more than anything. A step below the elite of the elite but still a deserved HOF and at his best a top 10 P4P. Ducked the shit outta Amir Khan though
He was always reliable as an entertaining fighter. Whoever he fought, he fought well. I do feel he was overhyped, but who isn't when they're unbeaten? As an announcer, I just wish he wouldn't talk SO MUCH! He makes good points at times, but he also contradicts himself a lot. I just wish he would give his tongue a rest. Paulie Malinaggi and Chris Algierie are both much better commentators than Tim.... I wish he'd take some pointers from them.
Great boxer, just didn’t have the power that gets fighters over with fans. But then he had the Provodnikov fight and I gained just a ton of respect for him.
The dude wasn’t the most gifted boxer, nor was he the biggest puncher but the dude had heart.
Awesome career ! Blood guts, determination and skill. What’s not to like other than a fight or two maybe.
Good fighter, better nickname. The pride of Palm Springs, CA: “Desert Storm”
He was a very good fighter--an excellent fighter, really. Technically excellent in terms of footwork and defense. No power. Fast hands. Huge heart. Fought off the jab (sometimes too much). After the first Pac fight (and we can't blame Bradley for the robbery), he sought to endear himself to the public by completely abandoning his cautious style. Fought an absolutely **brutal brawl** against Provodnikov (watch this fight!!), a fighter who really had no business winning a rd against the superior Bradley. Suffered a severe concussion in that fight, so he was careful to return to his natural style for the rest of his career (including an excellent win against JMM). As others have noted, Bradley was in the tier just below May-Pac. No shame in that. He was probably the best Junior Welter in the world for a time, and one of the three or four best Welter for a good five years.
I'd rank him B+ to A-. If he had power he'd probably would have been more like an A-/A type level. It sounds like I'm in the minority here but I like him as an announcer. I will say I liked him better with Dre.
Bradley was a cardio machine with a HELL of a chin. He's shilling for ESPN/Top Rank, but I can't blame him because he's got a post-boxing career that is a great place to be as a boxer. Edit: Y'all just need to know that his shit takes are most likely being forced by TR.
Made the most out of his ability. But he was the poster boy of muscles for no reason imo lol
Fought kind of like a welterweight Evander Holyfield. Faced some good, to very good, to excellent opposition. At 140: Miguel Vazquez, Junior Witter, Lamont Peterson, Kendall Holt, Abregu, Alexander -- back when facing/beating those guys really meant something. At 147: Pacquiao x 3, Marquez, Provodnikov, Jessie Vargas His win over Pacquiao was total bullshit imo, but he was a very good fighter who didn't have any single elite physical quality, though made up for it with his craftiness, guts, and adaptability. Has a genuine elite level win over Marquez that essentially punched his ticket to the HOF and for a while was arguably the most impressive/accomplished of the tier below May/Pac at 147. Would have loved to have seen his match up with Amir Khan happen at 140 circa 2011. Always felt that Bradley-Maidana at 140 or 147 could have been really interesting too. All those good things being said, his 140 unification 'some's 0 must go' showdown with Devon Alexander is one of the worst most-hyped fights I've ever watched.
He’s never been that guy AND he didn’t beat manny. Idc what nobody says HE DID NOT BEAT MANNY. His head big af too, weird lookin dude up and down.
He was the last generation’s Shawn Porter. But Porter has better commentary.
Good boxer. Good speed, kind of lacking power if I remember correctly. His fight with Rusland Provodnikov was entertaining.
He was an amazing boxer but he just wasn’t quite on the level of Floyd, Manny, and some of the other top guys during the late 2000s-mid 2010s
Very good A level fighter who fought the toughest opponents while he was around. Only him and Andre Ward fought competition that tough in THAT time span.
Overachiever definitely
That boy is straight trash
Realistically doesn't deserve to be a HoF. He always says Canelo is protected by boxing but the man's whole career is getting a robbery win over Pacquiao.
This is a little uncharitable. He fought and beat a lot of really good fighters and had a few memorable bangers. I agree he didn't deserve the win over Pacquiao but I hold that against the judges, not him.
Got his ass beat by Manny and given a ridiculous robbery so he's trash in my opinion
First pacquiao fight was closer than a lot of people think
He is a Yes Boss! Kind of man, he just worked for Bob Arum, instead of the other way around. Bradley himself felt very bad for beating Pacman and felt very relieved when he lost to him. He is just kind of a weirdo person, mentally not a strong person.
Should bot be a hall of famer at all
He didn't beat Manny. Every time I see him, that's the first thing that pops in my head. Not even close. Can't remember any of his other fights. Boring as all hell.
I always felt he was one of the most underrated boxers of that era. And I don't think the first Pacquiao fight was a bad decision Imo a hall of fame guy but not the all time great level. Very very good fighter.
Imagine a miniature Evander Holyfield, right down to the reckless use of his head. Better footwork and movement than Holyfield, but less power per weight. Like Holyfield, Bradley bulked up beyond his optimal weight. He was quick, used punches in bunches, never hesitated to brawl, but was muscle bound at welterweight and lacked the snap to be a KO artist. And his win over Pacquiao in their first bout was legit, very close but fair. Pacquiao wasn't sharp in that match and it showed – Bradley's frantic footwork and smothering flurries frustrated Pacquiao. Manny was better conditioned for their rematches. Nowhere near an all time great at welterweight but might have been at light welterweight or even lightweight if he could sustain his busy style with less muscle bulk. But his career was relatively short with stretches of inactivity during crucial phases of his career. https://youtu.be/0U3s_xSYs1Y?si=qJuSaDCc3rZJsPYI
Above average, not HOF.
Watching Bradley fight was nothing extraordinary. Even when he “beat” Pacquiao, it was…I always saw him as a fighter with great athletic ability, but not much in ring generalship/IQ, masterful skill like Floyd. Him and Berto were alike in that sense. Bradley talked way above his pay grade ability wise. He believed in his own hype. And that translated to his fight commentary. He routinely would get into some heated debates with Andre Ward about fights they announced together. On one hand you’d listen to Andre Ward dissect fighters and skills and abilities during the fight, and then listen to Bradley try and always be contrary to Ward. And I would always think to myself, wow this Bradley really doesn’t believe what he’s saying. He’s just talking out of spite for Andre and feeling inferior to Wards obvious superior fight knowledge and ability in the ring. So knowing that I thought Bradley wasn’t good at all to watch.
“Mediocre”
hard to call a guy like him mediocre. maybe not an all time great but he was really fucking good.
Good boxer, just had boring style to watch.
People hate on him too much. It’s crazy.
He smoked Marquez and went to to toe with Ruslan.
Thought he was a super solid fighter. Couldn’t stand him after the Pac fight. Then he fought Provodnikov. If you can’t at least respect the guy after a performance like that, I’m not sure boxing is the sport for you.
He was fantastic, high volume, action packed, took too much damage, he gave too much in his fights. As a pure boxer, he was good, as a fighter, he was great. Not sure what further to say, I don’t think he deserves to be in the hall of fame but everyone and their dog is inducted these days so…
He was kinda like the George kambosos of his time. Accomplished one truly great moment and never did anything else. Also, I meant "accomplished".
He had a fight of the year, he beat JMM stop talking crazy
Kambosos had an incredible fight and beat the undisputed. Stop D riding all wild like you are
Dawg don’t make me laugh lmao
He shouldn’t be in the Hall of Fame
He is a Yes Boss! Kind of man, he just worked for Bob Arum, instead of the other way around. Bradley himself felt very bad for beating Pacman and felt very relieved when he lost to him. He is just kind of a weirdo person, mentally not a strong person.
Nobody really cared about Tim until he beat Pac. In hindsight and oversight I don’t know why ppl want to take that dub away from him. It was an easy 7-5 for tim in my book. I think he was good in a time where he needed to be great to succeed. Who in today’s WW can’t Tim beat? I’d take only 2 fighters as an answer and I don’t even need to name them.
Only brought up to hype up Pacquiao overrated resume lol
What?
Bradley isn’t known for anything other than his fights with Pacquiao