Most of the boxing public loudly questioned the judging in Timothy Bradley's career defining win over Juan Manuel Marquez, and expected a rematch.
That never happened; Pacquiao chose a fourth battle with Marquez, while Bradley was left with a long layoff, followed by a brutal fight with relatively unknown Ruslan Provodnikov. After Marquez knocked out Pacquiao, and Bradley survived Provodnikov's power, a rematch between Pacman and "Desert Storm" was likely.
Instead, Bradley and Marquez chose to fight each other, and the decision was a "no brainer" according to Bradley.
"I have always been more interested in looking for new challenges than in doing what has been expected. Though I was offered a rematch with Manny Pacquiao in Macau, the opportunity to fight another legend of my era -- Juan Manuel Marquez -- had far more appeal to me for several reasons," Bradley said.
"Marquez is a boxing legend and a Mexican icon. He is coming off a career-best victory over his professional nemesis Manny Pacquiao. I am coming off my two career-best victories -- over Pacquiao and Ruslan Provodnikov. It just made sense for me to fight Marquez next. Bradley vs. Marquez -- a battle between the only two fighters to have beaten Manny Pacquiao in the past seven years. It got me excited as a fighter and as a fan. It was a no-brainer for me."
Bradley also told Badlefthook.com that he is willing to face off against Pacquiao again however, provided Pacman gets by Brandon Rios in their fight in Macau in November.
"If Manny Pacquiao can beat Brandon Rios in November than maybe we can have our rematch after that fight. But timing is everything and the time for Bradley vs. Marquez is NOW. I choose the battles I want to fight and I want to fight Marquez. This is my time."
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