Ruslan Provodnikov has been calling out Juan Manuel Marquez and Timothy Bradley following his big win in Denver over hometown fighter Mike Alvarado, but neither man seems interested in stepping into the ring with the "Siberian Rocky."
Bradley was upfront about not necessarily craving a second go with the bruiser, telling reporters, "At the time I fought him, I was in a different position than I am now. I'm looking for big fights, and I know this rematch would be a huge fan favorite or whatever. But they're going to have to pay me a whole lot of money. They're going to have to pay me a whole lot of money to get back in the ring with that animal. That dude is a beast."
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With those big names seemingly ducking him, and Manny Pacquiao sharing Freddie Roach as a trainer with Ruslan, he seems to have turned his attention to Brandon Rios. "@Brandon_Rios1 I agree we can make a great fight... I'm ready..," Prvodnikov tweeted. In respone, Rios said, "@RuslanProvod yes sir me to so let make it happen."
A fight between Provodnikov and Rios would almost assuredly be a candidate for fight of the year, although weight issues may be a stick in the mud. Rios has said he's happy campaigning at welterweight, and he failed the post-fight drug test following the Pacquiao bout due to an illegal dietary substance. That may mean he was struggling even to make 147 lbs. At the moment, Provodnikov's made his name at 140 lbs.
Those issues aside, the fervor is present on both sides to make it happen. "That's the Russian I want," said Rios. "I want to fight him because nobody wants to fight him because they're scared because he's a f****** monster and I like to fight monsters. I want to fight him in Texas."
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