By Luis Sandoval

When Timothy Bradley and Manny Pacquiao square off this Saturday night they hope to finally put to rest the controversy that marred their first meeting back in June of 2012. Bradley was awarded an unpopular split decision victory in a fight most observers had Pacquiao winning and now they get a chance to prove once and for all who the better fighter is.

The judging in that fight was heavily criticized and if this rematch goes 12 rounds again, the three new appointed judges will be responsible for trying to avoid having what happened two years ago happen again.

When Bradley spoke to the media regarding his upcoming fight, he was asked about how concerned he was about the judging in this fight.

“I don’t really focus on the judges. Listen, what’s going to happen that night is going to happen. I know I’m prepared to go to war. I know I’m prepared to fight my fight and that’s what I’m going to do in there. I’m not going to be sitting there worrying about no judges or worrying about the outcome. Only outcome I want is winning. Whooping his behind and winning the fight,” said Bradley.

Bradley’s trainer Joel Diaz didn’t sugarcoat anything when he told BoxingScene a couple months back that he felt if the fight was close and went the distance that Pacquiao would get the decision without a doubt. For Bradley however, he understands the 3 ringside judges have a big assignment and nobody is perfect.

“The controversy puts so much pressure on [the judges] and this fight is going to be even worse. It puts so much pressure on getting the right victor for these judges. If the rounds are close, they’re going to really have to make a split second decision on who they’re going to give that round to. That’s what it boils down to. It can be human error. We’re not perfect. There are bad calls all the time but that’s just the way it is in any sport,” said Bradley.

While Bradley will fight his fight and not worry about what the judges are doing, he surprisingly said he will try to take matters into his own hands. Not known as a big puncher or knockout artist, Bradley expects the fight to end before we hear a decision.

“It’s going to be a war. The fight is going to be a war man. I honestly don’t think this fight is going to go the distance. [It’s not going to be a close fight]. It’s not going to go the distance” promised the reigning WBO Welterweight champion.

The last time Bradley went into a fight with this type of mentality was against Ruslan Provodnikov where he engaged in a war that had him hurt on multiple occasions and forced him to take a knee in the final round. We’ll find out if we see an aggressive Bradley again in the most important fight of his career.

You can follow Luis Sandoval on Twitter & Instagram @Truewest007