Manny Pacquiao Vs Timothy Bradley Set for WWIII on the “No Trump Card”

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By Anthony “Stacks” Saldaña

This Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Nevada on a absolutely stellar card labeled the “No Trump Card” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao 57-6-2, 38 KO’s will go to war for the third time in his illustrious career with Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley, 33-1-1, 13 KO’s. Bradley and Pacquiao first fought in 2012, with Bradley winning a highly controversial split decision and handing Pacquiao his first loss since 2005. They rematched in April 2014, and Pacquiao won a clear unanimous decision to send Bradley to the first and only defeat of his career. Pacquiao the Congressman from the Sarangani province in the Philippines is the only fighter to win eight world titles in different weight divisions.

Manny is a three-time Fighter of the Year and has also been named “Fighter of the Decade,” Pacquiao has gone up against and beat some of the greats in the sport including Oscar De La Hoya, Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Márquez , Ricky Hatton, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Miguel Cotto, and Timothy Bradley. To date no active fighter has sold more tickets in the United States than Pacquiao. Manny has been involved in bouts which have sold over 18 million pay-per-views. Saturday night he returns to the Las Vegas after a very disappointing unanimous decision loss to Floyd Mayweather, JR., although the May 2nd world championship fight generated a record 4.5 million pay-per-view buys and over $400 million in television revenue that fight left several boxing enthusiasts with a bad taste in their mouth.”I look forward to my battle with Timothy Bradley on April 9th and giving boxing fans a fight they will always remember,” said Pacquiao.

“This fight has a very special meaning to me and I will pour every ounce of my being, physically, emotionally and spiritually into preparing for Bradley. He has my full attention. I dedicate this fight to my fans and to my countrymen throughout the world who have kept me in their prayers. And as always, I fight to bring glory to the Philippines.”

Bradley from Palm Springs, California is a 5x world champion and 13 of his last 16 fights have been against world champions and include wins against fighters such Juan Manuel Marquez, Jesse Vargas, Brandon Rios and Pacquiao who he has fought twice. In his last fight on November 7th in Las Vegas, Bradley’s first fight with trainer Teddy Atlas, he won by spectacular ninth-round TKO against former WBA lightweight world champion Brandon Rios. It was the first time Rios had ever been stopped in his 11-year, 36 bout professional career, sending Rios into a temporary self-imposed retirement. A consensus Top-10 pound for pound fighter, Bradley returns to the ring a new fighter thanks to Teddy Atlas.

A former junior welterweight world champion who unified the junior welterweight titles twice during his previous four-year world championship reign, Bradley moved up to the 147 pound division and beat Pacquiao on June 9, 2012 to capture the WBO welterweight crown for the first of three consecutive career-best victories. Bradley followed that with a Fight of the Year on March 16, 2013, at StubHub Center in Carson California, winning a brutal 12-round decision over future world champion Ruslan Provodnikov though Bradley was suffering from a concussion throughout most of the fight. Seven months later Bradley had another great performance in defeating three-division world champion and Mexican icon Juan Manuel Márquez on October 12, 2013, at The Forum, proving that Bradley is indeed one of boxing’s elite pound for pound fighters. In a recent interview Bradley stated “I can take a lot from the first two fights. I could look at it a couple of ways, not even having a game plan in the first fight. I was fighting on my skills and experience. In the second fight I had the injury in the second round and after six rounds it was three rounds a piece. I think fundamentally I have a better chance to win this fight.

On the undercard Bob Arum brings Cinco De Mayo a month early to fight fans as his “No Trump Card” will feature four Hispanic contenders in three title fights. To kick off the pay-per-view telecast , Jose Ramirez,16-0, 12 KO’s of Avenal, California will put his undefeated record and WBC Continental Americas super lightweight title on the line against veteran Manny Perez, 25-11-1, 6 KO’s of Denver, Colorado. Ramirez, is a star from the Central Valley of California and at the age of 23, is a sensational prospect at 140lbs. He is a former international amateur standout, and represented the United States in the 2012 Olympics where he was considered the top talent on the U.S. Olympic team. Jose will box in his first 10-round bout. “I’m excited and honored and feel blessed for this opportunity for myself and my team on one of boxing’s biggest stages,” said Jose.

Next up is undefeated prospect and #1 WBO featherweight contender Oscar Valdez,18-0, 16 KO’s from Nogales, Mexico he takes on former featherweight world champion Evgeny “El Ruso Mexicano” Gradovich, 21-1-1, 9 KO’s. Gradovich, nicknamed “The Mexican Russian” because of his brawling fighting style, lost a technical decision to Lee Selby last year in England and has won two in a row since his lone defeat, recently stated “I’ve prepared very hard, you’ll see, I love boxing. That’s why I came here, the Mexican people gave me my nickname and you’ll see it’s true, I’m like an old-school Mexican, like Chavez, Sanchez, Barrera, Morales, Marquez.”

In his last fight Valdez scored an impressive knockout victory over Chris Avalos using elusive head movements and precise positioning to land power punches. “I’m going in there in shape to go all 10 rounds, and I’ll beat him to the punch in all 10 rounds,” Valdez said. “I might have to brawl it out. I’ll fight. I can switch it up. My amateur background allows me to adapt to whatever, I feel it’s time for me to show I’m capable of fighting big names and ready to fight for a world title.”
In the Co-main event WBO Super Middleweight Champion “King” Arthur Abraham, 44-4, 29 KO’s of Berlin, Germany, will defend his world title against undefeated WBO No. 1 Super Middleweight contender and mandatory challenger Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez, 33-0, 24 KO’s of Mazatlan, Mexico. Abraham is a two-division world champ who has been in the ring with the likes of Jermain Taylor, Carl Froch, Andre Ward, Robert Stieglitz and most recently he pulled off a split decision over tough Englishman Martin Murray. “Fighting in Las Vegas on the biggest stage of them all is a dream come true for me, and sharing the spotlight with Manny Pacquiao, a true legend of the ring, makes this opportunity even sweeter,” said Abraham.

“I have all the motivation I need including the challenge of a young hungry fighter in Gilberto Ramirez. I respect Ramirez and see him as one of the toughest challenges in my career, but I will not be denied a victory in my U.S. breakout fight, and believe my experience will prove too much for him.

I promise to deliver a great fight for the American fans, and with another successful defense of my title I will pave the way for a great pay per-view event and leave the fans screaming for more!” for “Zurdo” this will be the biggest test of his career “This is the fight I have wanted all my life. We are going for that world title and coming out winning,” said Ramirez Arthur Abraham is a strong fighter that comes forward. He has a lot of experience but we’ve been preparing very hard for everything he has, I think the super middleweight division is a very tough division. There are good champions, but right now I’m very focused on this fight. Arthur Abraham is one of those champions and I’m ready for my next step,”

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