Bradley vs. Vargas: BoxingScene.com Staff Predictions

By Jake Donovan

Timothy Bradley and Jessie Vargas collide in a 12-round bout, with an interim welterweight title at stake in their headliner Saturday evening at StubHub Center in Carson, California (HBO. 9:45 p.m. ET/6:45 p.m. local time). 

Bradley (29-1-1, 11KOs) is regarded as one of the best fighters in the world, but it's been 20 months since his last win. The former two-division titlist saw his welterweight title reign come to an end following a 12-round loss to Manny Pacquiao in their rematch last April. His lone bout since then came last December, fighting to a 12-round draw with Diego Chaves in a bout most felt should have went the way of the sculpted Californian. 

Despite his winless streak, Bradley remains fully confident in his abilities, even going so far as to call out reigning unbeaten middleweight titlist Gennady Golovkin. 

Such a fight remains a pipe dream, not to mention the stiff challenge awaiting him on Saturday evening.

Vargas (26-0, 9KOs) returns to the welterweight division after a brief stay as a 140 lb. titlist. His reign officially spans more than a year, but only has two fights to his credit as a belt holder—a 12-round decision over Khabib Allakhverdiev to win the crown last April, and a unanimous decision win over Antonio DeMarco last November in Macao, China. 

The Las Vegas native decided to move up in weight when presented the opportunity to face an elite talent such as Bradley. Saturday will mark his first fight at 147 lbs. since Oct. '13, on the same show that saw Bradley post his last win in a close-but-clear decision over Juan Manuel Marquez. Vargas was also victorious on the show, scoring a 10-round decision over Ray Narh on the undercard. 

Will youth be served as Vargas ushers in a new era and provides fresh blood in an always loaded welterweight division? Or will Bradley find a way to once again rise to the top, proving he’s still too good for the young guns on the rise?

Read on to see how the staff at BoxingScene.com believes the action will play out.

BOXINGSCENE.COM STAFF PREDICTIONS: TIMOTHY BRADLEY vs. JESSIE VARGAS

Jake Donovan (Vargas Dec.): I like that Bradley and Vargas are at least talking up a tough game. We will see how it translates into ring action, but I’m going with the minor upset and guessing that Vargas’ combination of height/reach advantage and newfound confidence under his new trainer—former four-division champ and future Hall of Fame entrant Erik Morales—will result in a close and perhaps debatable decision over what I believe to be a version of Bradley that is slowly on the decline. 

Peter Lim (Bradley UD): With names like Pacquiao, Marquez and Provodnikov on his resume, Bradley's experience trumps Varrgas' youth in this showdown between two almost identical high-volume boxer-punchers with negligible single-shot knockout power. Both fighters have their moments in an exhilarating affair that fluctuates between a fast-paced chess match and toe-to-toe brawl, but Bradley is able to figure out Vargas more than vice-versa as the fight progresses. Getting the better of the exchanges in the late rounds, Bradley pulls ahead to win a close but clear-cut decision in the 115-113 to 116-112 range.

Takahiro Onaga (Bradley UD): I am not sold Vargas, who does not really impress me. Bradley is on the slide but still has too much skill and desire for Vargas.

Cliff Rold (Bradley Dec.): Vargas is a decent fighter whose never looked much better than that. Bradley is world class and proven. Take the chalk here.

Victor Salazar (Vargas Dec.): Bradley has been one of my favorite fighters to watch but it pains me to think he is on the decline and I think he is. Bradley says the StubHub Center brings him nightmares and it should because I see the younger Vargas being just too fresh for him this Saturday,

Alexey Sukachev (Bradley UD): Vargas was given so many gifts lately (J. Lopez, Allakhverdiev, Novikov) that: 1) I have hard time rooting for him; 2) It's a payback time on the horizon for him. Being matched against a multi-time champion still in his prime, moving up one weight for it, Vargas is a bit over his head. He will try hard but Bradley will be just a bit more precise in a not-so-fiery fight.