Pacquiao-Bradley II: What we learned

Vindication. Hopefully that’s what Manny Pacquiao felt on Saturday when he took back the welterweight belt he lost to Timothy Bradley in June 2012 due to one of the worst decisions the sport of boxing has seen in years. Pacquiao, 35, said prior to Saturday’s championship fight he didn’t feel as if he had much to prove -- after all, he knew who really won that first fight. Even though many of us would tend to agree, here are five other things we learned from the Pacquiao-Bradley card.

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Unbeaten Ramirez faces Lorenzo on FNF

Mexican prospect Gilberto Ramirez puts his unbeaten record on the line Friday against veteran Giovanni Lorenzo in the main event of ESPN's "Friday Night Fights." The 10-round super middleweight bout (ESPN2, 9 p.m. ET) headlines a card from the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, on the even of Manny Pacquiao's rematch with Timothy Bradley Jr. Ramirez (27-0, 21 KOs), the 6-foot tall knockout artist, has stopped 77 percent of his opponents.

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Pacquiao: 'Freddie has been a father to me'

Two years removed from the most controversial fight of his 19-year professional career, Manny Pacquiao is focused on getting a chance to set the record straight against Timothy Bradley Jr. The rematch, set for April 12 in Las Vegas (HBO PPV), marks the first time the fighters will meet since their June 2012 bout -- won by Bradley via split decision -- which produced some of the most contentious scorecards in modern history. Pacquiao (55-5-2, 38 KOs), 35, enters the bout one fight removed from a wide unanimous-decision win over Brandon Rios in November -- a fight that served as a comeback for Pacquiao following his December 2012 knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez.

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Bradley: 'Pacquiao has lost the fire'

In the two years since his controversial June 2012 victory over Manny Pacquiao, unbeaten welterweight titlist Timothy Bradley Jr. has done nothing but grow as a fighter. Bradley (31-0, 12 KOs), 30, survived a toe-to-toe war with Ruslan Provodnikov in March 2013 before outboxing slick counterpuncher Juan Manuel Marques in October. But the native of Palm Springs, Calif., returns April 12 in Las Vegas (HBO PPV) for a second go-around with Pacquiao.

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President Clinton Says About Pacquiao Next Fight

President Clinton says he hopes Manny Pacquiao ‘goes right on up the ladder’ in Philippine politics

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Roman Martinez (illness) out of fight - Pacquiao Next Fight

From: http://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/10737005/roman-martinez-withdraws-bout-raymundo-beltran-due-illness

Two-time junior lightweight word titleholder Roman "Rocky" Martinez of Puerto Rico is ill and has withdrawn from his fight on the Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. undercard next week, Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti told ESPN.com on Saturday night.

Martinez (27-2-2, 16 KOs), 30, was due to face Raymundo Beltran (28-6-1, 17 KOs), 32, of Mexico, in the 12-round lightweight co-feature of next Saturday's HBO PPV card at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Arash Usmanee will replace Martinez and face Beltran instead, Moretti said.

"Rocky went to see the doctor twice. That's what Peter Rivera (Martinez's co-promoter) told us," Moretti said. "He said Rocky had no energy, low blood sugar and had not been feeling well for four or five days. Maybe he has the flu or something, but whatever it is, he doesn't feel good and pulled out of the fight. He had missed going to the gym for three or four days in a row and on Friday he pulled out. He is just not going to be ready to fight."

The 32-year-old Usmanee (20-1-1, 10 KOs), a native of Afghanistan fighting out of Montreal, appears to be a strong replacement opponent. In his last fight on Aug. 23, in Verona, N.Y., Usmanee fought to a majority draw challenging junior lightweight titleholder Argenis Mendez.

"I'm finishing the deal with (Usmanee promoter) Greg Cohen. I don't have the paperwork yet, but that's what we're trying to get done," Moretti said. "I worked things out with Greg on Friday. He said Usmanee had been in the gym training and was going to have some sort of fight soon, so this worked out for them. He'll be in shape for the fight because he was already training. Greg says (Usmanee) is a gym rat."

Beltran, who lives in Los Angeles, has served as a top sparring partner for Pacquiao and got a shot at a lightweight world title in September. He went to Ricky Burns' home base in Glasgow, Scotland, and fought the fight of his life. He broke Burns' jaw in the second round, dropped him in the eighth round and seemed to clearly win but was the victim of a heavily disputed draw.

The fight with Usmanee will be Beltran's first since the disputed draw with Burns, who later lost his title to Terence Crawford. If Beltran beats Usmanee it could propel him into a title shot against Crawford.

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Manny Pacquiao next fight: 'Pacman' the next Muhammad Ali, Bradley rematch compared to De La Hoya fight?

From: http://www.sportsworldnews.com/articles/11442/20140402/manny-pacquiao-next-fight-pacman-the-next-muhammad-ali-bradley-rematch-compared-to-de-la-hoya-fight-video.htm

Even if his star has faded just a little in recent years, Manny Pacquiao remains one of boxing's rock stars. He has fought in countless big-money fights, and Top Rank CEO Bob Arum, Pacquiao's promoter, considers the upcoming April 12 bout arguably the most important of them all.

Pacquiao is scheduled to take on Timothy Bradley, who won a highly controversial fight in 2012 that most boxing observers felt was a lopsided victory in the opposite direction. Pacquiao's made no secret of his desire to take on pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. before he hangs up the gloves, but there's no chance of it happening if he can't get by Bradley.

Arum is calling this fight his most important since facing Oscar De La Hoya in 2008-the fight that launched Pacquiao's career into superstardom. Arum also took the time recently to compare Pacquiao to the legendary Muhammad Ali, one of the most influential athletes in the history of sports.

Pac/Bradley winner getting Marquez/Alvarado winner?

"I don't think anybody could become as extraordinary as Muhammad Ali but in his way, for his time, I think Manny has the opportunity and the chance to be an extraordinary person who really affects millions and millions of people," Arum told Telegraph Sport.

 While Pacquiao's already affected masses of fans, to truly ascend to that level of importance a victory vs. Bradley is crucial. It won't be easy either, as Bradley's vastly improved since their first clash. He also has stated that Manny has lost his "killer instinct" that allowed him to mow through larger opponents on his way to the top.

"He's a nice dude, man," Bradley said. "Pacquiao is very humble, very spiritual. But I don't think he has that killer instinct. I don't think he has that fire in him. I really don't."

Pacquiao's obviously commented to the contrary, and claims to be working as hard as ever in camp to ensure Bradley learns the fire's burning.

"Because I am facing Tim Bradley again I am extra motivated for this fight," Pacquiao promised. "I may not have won the decision the first time we fought but I know I did not lose that fight. I want the world title he won from me back around my waist. I want to prove I am the better fighter."

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Manny Pacquiao Next Fight: Would PacMan Split From Bob Arum To Fight Floyd Mayweather Jr.?

From: http://www.ibtimes.com/manny-pacquiao-next-fight-would-pacman-split-bob-arum-fight-floyd-mayweather-jr-1565943

Manny Pacquiao is interested in fighting Floyd Mayweather towards the end of 2014. However, he says he won’t leave Top Rank in order to make a bout happen.

“Right now, I don’t have issues,” Pacquiao told the L.A. Times at Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood. “I’m the kind of person that doesn’t look to make changes. Look at me, since I’ve fought in America, I’ve only had one trainer [Freddie Roach]. I never change. We have a good relationship with Top Rank, with Bob [Arum]."

According to Mayweather’s camp, the long awaited mega-fight can only happen if Pacquiao separates from Top Rank. The undefeated boxer split from the promotions company years ago, and went on to sue Arum, Top Rank’s CEO. Now, Mayweather refuses to be a part of any fight that involves Arum.

Pac-Man, though, doesn’t believe that leaving Arum would do much good. For the last five years, Mayweather has presented different reasons why the two sides have never agreed to a fight. Whether it’s been drug testing, money or the promoters involved, there has always been something standing in the way. According to Pacquiao, Mayweather simply doesn’t want to fight him.

“For me, if he wants to fight, the fight will be on,” Pacquiao said. “The ultimate answer is from him. I’m just waiting to see if he’ll change his mind.”

On April 12, Pacquiao is scheduled to take on Timothy Bradley in Las Vegas. Following the match, the 35-year-old says he hopes to fight again in October or November. Marcos Maidana will challenge Maywather on May 3 at the MGM Grand. He’s looking for an opponent in September.

Since a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight doesn’t appear to be on the horizon, Arum is already lining up a potential next opponent for Pac-Man. He’s looking to pit the winner of Pacquiao-Bradley II against either Juan Manuel Marquez or Mike Alvarado. Marquez and Alvarado will do battle on May 17.

In November, Pacquiao decisively beat Brandon Rios is a unanimous decision, following nearly a year-long layoff. Mayweather last fought in September, defeating Canelo Alvarez.

Pacquiao’s deal with Top Rank will reportedly conclude sometime in 2014

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Bradley: 'I will be hungrier than Pacquiao'

In the two years since his controversial June 2012 victory over Manny Pacquiao, unbeaten welterweight titlist Timothy Bradley Jr. has done nothing but grow as a fighter. Bradley (31-0, 12 KOs), 30, survived a toe-to-toe war with Ruslan Provodnikov in March 2013 before outboxing slick counterpuncher Juan Manuel Marques in October. But the native of Palm Springs, Calif., returns April 12 in Las Vegas (HBO PPV) for a second go-around with Pacquiao.

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Pacquiao: 'I intend to prove I'm the best'

Two years removed from the most controversial fight of his 19-year professional career, Manny Pacquiao is focused on getting a chance to set the record straight against Timothy Bradley Jr. The rematch, set for April 12 in Las Vegas (HBO PPV), marks the first time the fighters will meet since their June 2012 bout -- won by Bradley via split decision -- which produced some of the most contentious scorecards in modern history. Pacquiao (55-5-2, 38 KOs), 35, enters the bout one fight removed from a wide unanimous-decision win over Brandon Rios in November -- a fight that served as a comeback for Pacquiao following his December 2012 knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez.

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