What if Manny fought Floyd instead?
LAS VEGAS – The speculation was inevitable. With the way Manny Pacquiao overwhelmed Timothy Bradley in scoring a unanimous 12-round decision, punctuated by two knockdowns, here Saturday night, fans wondered what would’ve been the outcome if Floyd Mayweather fought instead.
Fil-Am fighter Ana (Hurricane) Julaton’s trainer Angelo Reyes said the Pacquiao who trounced Bradley was not the same Pacquiao who lost to Mayweather last May. “Manny had no injury issues this time and was back to how he was years ago,” said Reyes. “Against Mayweather, Manny came in with a shoulder problem that was aggravated during the fight. From the fourth round onwards, Manny fought Mayweather with a torn rotator cuff. Against Bradley, Manny looked like his old self, aggressive, showing hand and footspeed. Bradley just couldn’t match his skill level.”
Reyes said if Pacquiao fought Mayweather instead of Bradley last Saturday, maybe, the outcome would’ve been different. “It’s hard to speculate but now that we’ve seen the old Pacquiao back, I’m curious to find out how Mayweather will cope with him,” he said. “It’s too bad both are now retired. A rematch would be a blockbuster for sure because fans want to see a 100 percent Manny fight Mayweather.”
Julaton and Reyes watched Pacquiao’s domination of Bradley at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, ending their trilogy on a convincing note. “I thought it was a tactical fight,” said Julaton. “(Trainer) Teddy Atlas had a fightplan for Bradley. At the start, Bradley tried to establish distance, boxing from range. There were adjustments throughout the fight, both ways. Manny is just too skilled and experienced for Bradley. He threw combinations from different angles, sticking it to the body and ending up with a shot to the head. Bradley circled away from Manny’s left but Manny was too fast to be outmaneuvered.”
Julaton said Manny didn’t only sit on his power but also displayed boxing skills. Whatever Bradley brought into the ring, Pacquiao was able to handle. “Bradley wanted to counterpunch and catch Manny like (Juan Manuel) Marquez did,” she said. “The way I saw it, Bradley waited for Manny to throw the left so he could counter with the overhand right. But Manny figured that’s exactly what Bradley had in mind. So he feinted a lot, putting Bradley off-guard.”
When Bradley fought Pacquiao in 2012 and 2014, Joel Diaz was his trainer and chief cornerman. Atlas came into the picture for Bradley’s previous fight against Brandon Rios last November and stayed on. Unlike Diaz, Atlas is a volatile and irreverent trash talker. When Bradley couldn’t execute last Saturday, Atlas berated him. Before the start of the 12th round, it looked like Atlas lifted Bradley off his stool with his hands on the fighter’s arms. His confrontational approach has its good and bad points. The classic example of Atlas’ unconventional style was in 1994 when he worked Michael Moorer’s corner in the WBA/IBF heavyweight unification title fight against Evander Holyfield at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. In between the eighth and ninth rounds, Atlas did a switch and sat on the stool to admonish Moorer. The trick worked as Moorer won a majority decision.
Reyes said Atlas’ addition didn’t make a difference. Atlas’ adversary on the opposite corner Freddie Roach clearly had the edge in their battle of wits. “I don’t think being a cheerleader is the best way to train a fighter,” said Roach, referring to Atlas’ rah-rah style.
Roach said Atlas showed no disrespect before and after the fight. “I went to Bradley’s dressing room to witness the wrapping of his hands,” said Roach. “Teddy even pulled out a chair for me. After the fight, Bradley came up to me and told me Manny’s an animal. It was a clear victory and Bradley’s team had no excuses.”
Julaton said from what Pacquiao displayed, he could still figure in big-money fights. “Let’s respect Manny’s decision to retire,” she said. “He’s one of the greatest fighters ever and that legacy is something nobody can take away.”
As for Mayweather, he was somewhere in the audience last Saturday. Isabela Vice Governor Tonypet Albano spotted Mayweather in his floor level seat. His father Floyd Sr. worked 17-year-old unbeaten featherweight Devin Haney’s corner against Rafael Vazquez in the undercard. Haney scored a unanimous decision in four rounds to raise his record to 5-0, with 3 KOs. Father and son avoided making comments on Pacquiao to media.
ESPN’s Wallace Matthews later reported he was told that Mayweather spoke to Bradley after the fight. Mayweather supposedly told Bradley he saw the fight a draw. The source said Mayweather told Bradley he was much improved and encouraged him to continue his boxing career. Bradley was on the way from the arena to the hospital for the mandatory medical checkup when Mayweather made contact.