Bradley still in Manny equation?

In lining up WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent, candidate Timothy Bradley’s name is in danger of being erased.

Bradley, the reigning WBO lightwelterweight titlist, saw action in the undercard of Pacquiao’s fight against Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas last weekend. He bludgeoned Cuban veteran Joel Casamayor into submission at 2:59 of the eighth round in a lopsided contest but failed to impress the sellout crowd of 16,368 because the challenger, who fought sluggishly, managed to hang around longer than he should have.

Top Rank chairman Bob Arum had announced Bradley’s candidacy before the Casamayor fight. His presence in the undercard was a tell-tale sign that Arum had big plans for the fighter known as “The Desert Storm.” Bradley pulled out of a unification showdown with WBA 140-pound champion Amir Khan last July for the chance to join Arum’s stable and get a shot at Pacquiao. Khan, promoted by Top Rank rival Golden Boy, resented the withdrawal as did promoters Gary Shaw and Ken Thompson who sued Bradley.

If Bradley is scratched out of contention, the list will narrow down to Marquez in a possible fourth encounter, WBC welterweight king Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a dream face-off, WBA welterweight titleholder Vyacheslav Senchenko of Ukraine, IBF welterweight ruler Andre Berto and power puncher Mike Jones. Khan has also been mentioned as a future opponent although like Senchenko, he is trained by Freddie Roach.

The working plan was to match Bradley against Pacquiao in May but both had to win impressively last weekend to seal it. The fighters won as expected but not has handily as oddsmakers predicted. Bradley, coming off a nearly 10-month layoff, was emotionless in his Joe Frazier routine, pursuing a listless Casamayor until the Cuban defector took three straight uppercuts to the chin, prompting his trainer Miguel Diaz to throw in the towel. Casamayor went down in the fifth and sixth rounds then took another mandatory eight-count in the eighth. 

It looked like Casamayor, 40, lost his energy trying to make the weight the day before. He stripped naked to scale a pound over the lightwelterweight limit at the weigh-in and made it on his second attempt an hour later. The effort must have dehydrated Casamayor because in the fight, he showed no fire. Despite Casamayor’s listlessness, it took Bradley more than seven rounds to dispose of him. Casamayor tried every trick in the book to survive, butting deliberately, holding and hitting below the belt. Eventually, he folded up.

“I was a little rusty,” said Bradley. “I was rushing my punches. My corner told me to relax and start putting my punches together. Once I did that, I was fine.” The jury, however, is still out on Bradley as a future opponent for Pacquiao.

Bradley’s showing vindicated Roach’s assessment over a month ago. Roach said it would be premature to match Bradley against Pacquiao because he hadn’t done enough to deserve the crack. The fight against Casamayor was Bradley’s first in Las Vegas.

Arum must be disappointed with Bradley’s inability to impress. “Top Rank had put Bradley front and center,” wrote Chris Mannix of SI.com. “They involved him in social media and pushed him to start a website. They made him the co-feature in Pacquiao’s defense against Marquez and have made no secret that if a deal with Mayweather can’t be made, Bradley is next in line.”

Bradley said he’s ready for Pacquiao, Mayweather and Khan. “I don’t fear Pacquiao,” he said. “I’m ready for anyone. The sky is the limit.  People say I don’t deserve a shot at Pacquiao. I want to prove all the criticism wrong.  I’m a three-time world champion. Everybody should know whom I am. I deserve a spot in the ring against Pacquiao.”

Aside from Marquez, the candidates boast impressive records. Bradley, 28, has a 27-0 record, with 12 KOs and one no-contest. Mayweather, 34, is 42-0, with 26 KOs. Senchenko, 33, is 32-0, with 21 KOs. Berto, 28, is 28-1, with 22 KOs. Khan, 24, is 26-1, with 18 KOs. Jones, 28, is 25-0, with 19 KOs. Arum has mentioned the six-foot Jones, who has a 72-inch wingspan, as a future Pacquiao opponent.