Tim Bradley update
Cathedral City product Timothy Bradley said his focus has been mainly on rehabilitating a calf that was torn in two places, so talk about him fighting pay-per-view star Miguel Cotto is nothing more than speculation at this point.
In a telephone interview with The Desert Sun over the weekend, the 30-year-old Bradley said he has about five more weeks of rehab before he can return to the gym and train full time. As for a return to the ring, Bradley said he is targeting either late November or sometime in December.
Any talk about an opponent is premature. Bradley said he has not spoken to anyone about a possible next fight.
"I'm just thinking about myself right now," said Bradley, who has a 31-1 record since turning pro in 2004. "As far as opponents, there's definitely guys lining up to fight me. There's guys wanting to mess up my record, give me that No. 2 (loss) on my rèsumè. I know there's a lot of guys who want to fight me, so we'll see. December is a long time away."
While Bradley refutes the Cotto rumors, he said he would not rule out a fight either. Cotto is considered one of the top draws in boxing, a popular fighter from Puerto Rico who has a strong fan base in New York. In June, Cotto went up to the middleweight division (160) to defeat Sergio Martinez and claim the WBC belt. Bradley worked as a commentator for the international feed of the Cotto-Martinez bout.
If Bradley were to fight Cotto, one part of the negotiation would be at what weight. Bradley had fought in the welterweight division, or 147. Cotto had previously fought in the light middleweight division, or 154.
But Bradley said while there has been some internet speculation, part of it spurred by his promoter Bob Arum, he has not given much thought to his next opponent while he's going through rehab.
"Honestly, I really haven't spoken to anyone about it," Bradley said. "I haven't mentioned anything, and no one has mentioned it to me. I'm not sure how everybody is saying it's a done deal, that we're going to be fighting or that we've even thought about it. I'm open to anything that makes sense. But I haven't heard anything. Don't believe everything that you read, you know what I'm saying? Don't believe everything you read."
Since Bradley is without a title for the first time in six years, he's not obligated to fight in any one weight class. He did say he would have interest in fighting in the light middleweight division.
"My preference would be to go up and try something different, something new," Bradley said. "I already did the 140 thing. I already accomplished a lot at 140. At 147, I've done some things there. I wouldn't mind testing the waters at a higher weight."
The last time Bradley was in the ring was April 12, when he dropped a unanimous decision to Manny Pacquiao in their rematch in Las Vegas. During the fight, Bradley tore his calf in two places, an injury that has taken long time to heal. Bradley said his sole focus has been on rehab, then returning to the gym to get back in shape.
"This was a bad injury. It was nothing to play with," Bradley said. "But once again, I showed my heart. I could have quit on the stool, most guys would have. I fought a good fight, I gave it everything I have and that's all I could do.
"Everything is great. I'm feeling really good, I'm really confident. I'll be 100 percent. Once my rehab is over and my trainer says I can go back into the gym, that's when I'm going to be back in the gym. If it's all good, I'll be in the gym in August. I'm trying to take as much precaution as I can so this won't happen again."
While Bradley said he's taking precautions with his rehabilitation, that won't be the strategy when he books his next opponent.
Coming back from injury is nothing new for Bradley. In 2012, Bradley injured both feet in his first fight against Pacquiao. His first fight back was against Ruslan Provodnikov, a hard-hitter who put Bradley in jeopardy throughout the fight and produced the 2013 fight of the year.
After the Provodnikov fight, where Bradley suffered a concussion that concerned his corner, he took on future Hall of Fame boxer Juan Manuel Marquez, who was coming off a devastating one-punch knockout of Pacquiao.
"Some people ask when I come back, will I have a couple easy fights. I was like, 'What, for what?' " Bradley said. "I don't have time to come back and fight an easy fight. No fight is easy. I want to come back and fight the best, that's it, plain and simple. When I come back from my injury, put someone lethal in front of me. I don't want no tune-up.
"I've been doing this thing for over 20 years and I've been professional for over 10 years. No need for a tune-up. I have over 30 fights under my belt."
The loss to Pacquiao in April ended a six-year run where Bradley won 10 championship fights, including four belts.
And Bradley said he doesn't want to be without a belt for much longer.
"I'm telling you, I want to get my title back," Bradley said. "That's the only thing on my mind, getting my title back. I'm a lot more hungry now because I lost my title. Somebody's in trouble. I'm just telling you whoever it is, they will be in trouble."
Bradley's championship years
A look back at Timothy Bradley's championship years from May of 2008 and ran until April, when he lost to Manny Pacquiao in a rematch.
12:
The number of times Bradley fought in world championship bouts. He went 10-1 with a no contest.
4:
The number of belts Bradley won. He twice won the WBC light welterweight belt twice (2008 over Junior Witter and 2011 over Devon Alexander), and added the WBO junior welterweight belt in 2009 over Kendall Holt. Bradley moved up in weight and captured the WBO welterweight title in 2012 when he beat Pacquiao.
31:
The combined world titles of nine opponents Bradley has beaten.
407:
The combined victories of Bradley's opponents in his 12 championship fights.
257:
Combined knockout victories by Bradley's opponents in his 12 championship fights
.862:
Winning percentage of Bradley's opponents in 12 championship fights
Of note:
Before Bradley fought in his first world championship fight in 2008, he had to get past Miguel Vazquez, who currently holds the IBF lightweight title. Vazquez is 34-3.
![Rico Verhoeven [right] clouts Oleksandr Usyk in Egypt on May 23, 2026](https://photo.boxingscene.com/uploads/Oleksandr-Usyk-Rico-Verhoeven-20.webp)
