Timothy Bradley Sets Sights on Manny Pacquiao; Brandon Rios Retiring?

A new storm has entered the boxing area of responsibility and he goes by the name of Timothy Bradley Jr.

Known to most as ‘Desert Storm’, Bradley gave the world a glimpse of things to come under new trainer Teddy Atlas and the unfortunate first victim was Brandon Rios. From the opening bell, there was no question that Bradley is a reformed fighter, practically taking a piece of Rios with each round that passed.

And by the ninth round, Bradley was simply too overpowering to fend off. Rios’ end came at the 2:49 mark succumbing to a flurry of punches after getting up from a previous knockdown courtesy of a left hook. Bradley wins by technical knockout.

The performance is a far cry from the previous bout that Bradley was in, the highly controversial match between him and Jesse Vargas.

This time, a reformed Bradley was ready from start to finish and with no room for controversy to unfold.

On the part of Rios, the loss may have very well sent the American boxer into retirement. He had no qualms that he was outboxed by a reformed Desert Storm and could be hanging up his gloves soon.

"The better man won. I have no excuses," Rios said via the Associated Press. "I think I'm done."

While that statement seems to sound like something aired due to frustration, Rios believes that his body language is already an indication that he may no longer be fit to compete in the same level as other fighters.

“My body wasn’t doing what I wanted to do. I tried to pull the trigger and I couldn’t let it go,” Rios said. Never one to make excuses, he simply gave credit where credit was due. “He caught me with the perfect shot to the body. It is what it is.”

As far as Bradley is concerned, it remains to be seen if his marvellous performance was enough to push him among the top candidates for Pacquiao’s last dance on April 9, 2016.

Prior to the fight, there were only two names being mentioned as Pacquiao’s final opponent – Amir Khan and Terence Crawford. Bradley was originally in the mix but was somehow taken out of the mix recently.

Could that impressive performance place him among the ranks of Khan and Crawford now?

Well, one man was certainly impressed by his showing, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum.

"That's the best Bradley I've ever seen," said Bob Arum after the Bradley showcase.

Pacquiao is expected to announce his next and final opponent anytime between this month and December.