Photos: Tim Bradley Sparring Tough For Manny Pacquiao

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

One key thing I was able to take away from my time in Timothy Bradley’s camp down in Indio, California was the reality that the high-level of confidence he has been exuding is no mirage. A 3-1 underdog heading into his June 9th challenge of Manny Pacquiao’s WBO welterweight belt, Bradley is the epitome of an athlete coming into his prime physically and mentally.

Bradley, an undefeated junior welterweight champion moving up in weight for the Pacquiao fight, showcased all of his talents and nuances during seven lively four-minute rounds of sparring against a trio of partners on Friday afternoon. Putting in work with Bradley on this day was Houston, Texas native and World Series of Boxing competitor Eric Fowler, junior welterweight prospect Andre Sherard, and former lightweight champion Julio Diaz, who is the younger brother of Bradley’s trainer Joel.

For twenty-eight minutes in the ring, Bradley showed off all of his abilities, from deft movement, sharp counterpunching, a rough infighting ability, and a punishing body attack that had one of his sparring mates taking a knee after a well-placed shot.

Offering up the most resistance to Bradley was Diaz, who switched to southpaw, a trick he has shown throughout his respected professional career, and gave Tim several angles to work off of. It was during these moments that Bradley had to slow his attack down briefly as he had to do a little more thinking, yet he still controlled the action.