Bradley deserves the criticism.

[The Gambler1981]

give Bradley some credit... why the hell do you people give fighters crap when they give entertaining fights? that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. fighters should be rewarded fighting their hearts out.if you wanna see two grown men play patty cake, your watching the wrong sport

Some people care about who is the best and true excellence.

Sure it was an entertaining fight, but when i watch a fight I am always trying to figure out how good are these guys, from that side of thing it was underwhelming.

You should try and see what others are seeing it can be very enlightening.

[JaYDeuce11]

Great point by someone who said Bradley made the same mental mistake that Pacquiao made for Marquez 4. They both let the media/fans/haters get to them by wanting to prove that they are a great fighter and dont need robbery victories to win, so they both were looking to be more aggressive and go for ko.

Fortunately, bradley has the better chin/stamina/training than pacquiao and survived

[Main Source]

I like Bradley as much as the next guy but let us be real about things. Individuals are touting him as a top 10 pound for pound fighter yet he was put on ***** street by some no mark. I don't want to take anything away from Provodnikov as he fought his heart out and did what any underdog should do but I'd be telling people a point blank lie if I said ''You know what he's better than I expected'' because he wasn't. He looked like a limited who would be easily outboxed/broken down by the elite of the sport.

And there lies the problem. All boxers with a reputation would be criticised for winning in a dominant fashion against the likes of Provodnikov. Canelo is never given a break, Marquez was criticised for his routine win against Fedchenko, Donaire v Nishioka, Martinez v Barker.... the list goes on. Other fighters are getting slated for looking a class apart when they deal with the likes of ( or in some cases superior opponents to Provodnikov) yet people want to get up in arms for slating Bradley after a life and death performance?

In the end he showed his metal but it should never have gone so far.

Since when was your name and how hard you punch in relation with each other? You may not know who Provodnikov is but he isn't recognized as a "one punch KO fighter" for nothing. You're also comparing apple to oranges and you decide to put carrots in the mix too.

Nobody is saying Ruslan was an elite fighter. But opposed to those competitors you mentioned, he is a VERY crafty and hard-hitting fighter. He can end a fight with one punch. Bradley came to prove something last night and he felt obligated to slug it out with Ruslan. Bradley's team never overlooked Ruslan and they respected him before that first round. You can clearly hear Joel Diaz screaming in the corner that that wasn't their game plan. That's also why Diaz wanted Bradley to stay away from Ruslan in the first 1-2 rounds.

I think Bradley's (to some) disappointing effort was due to that one punch landed in the 1st. He was clearly marked by that punch throughout the fight. That punch had "KO" written all over it and Tim proves yet again that he has one of the best chins in boxing.

Was it how he wanted the fight to be? Probably not, but he gave the fans a great fight, both fighters did, and Bradley got his respect back and may have gained some new fans. Provodnikov too.

I still regard Bradley as a "live" fighter - a top dog. Maybe even in the top 10 pound for pound.

[IronDanHamza]

Tim just fought a dumb fight. People don't always think about the stuff that happens outside of the ring, what the fighters hear or read the public saying about them, personal stuff, financial troubles, etc. That crap can get to people and force them to act out of character just like last night - it was painfully obvious that he was trying to knock Ruslan out and play some KO artist role when that just isn't what he is and never was.

He wins his fights by outboxing people with movement and activity. All the mid-rounds were the way he should have fought the entire fight but it is what it is at this point. If he had just boxed, he would have been called a runner and boring, instead he did his best Rocky impersonation and is a called a bum.

I think the underlying story is that people should give Ruslan more credit for his skill level. I see this "ESPN level" fighter comment a bunch.....how many pro boxers that are at the top now, never fought on ESPN when they were coming up? Peterson was fighting on ESPN not more than a month ago. The guy had one loss by SD and it was semi-controversial although Ruslan admitted that he didn't train properly for that fight.
I don't think he is a bum and I'd like to see him against some of the other "elite" fighters at 147 and see what happens there.

I'd agree, before the fight I didn't like the fight. That said, I'd not really seen Ruslan.

Ruslan at the very least proved he's a good fighter. And proved he packs a punch.

Put it this way, Pacquaio didn't hurt Bradley outside of stunning him a few times. And Ruslan badly wobbled him on a handful of occasions. Say's a lot.

Interested to see where he goes from here.

[samouraï]

I don't think Bradley himself deserves criticism so much as the elevated status he's been given by certain members here (and elsewhere) does. He fought like a warrior. He deserves respect for that, but he doesn't deserve to be called a P4P fighter when he isn't. But that part isn't his fault.

[The Gambler1981]

I don't think Ruslan is a one punch guy, I have watched a number of his fights and he wore guys down that he stopped.

He is a good puncher though, especially in his range where he is very good because he generally gets a reaction when he lands but that reaction is not usually a guy just falling over unconscious.

[mathed]

I'd agree, before the fight I didn't like the fight. That said, I'd not really seen Ruslan.

Ruslan at the very least proved he's a good fighter. And proved he packs a punch.

Put it this way, Pacquaio didn't hurt Bradley outside of stunning him a few times. And Ruslan badly wobbled him on a handful of occasions. Say's a lot.

Interested to see where he goes from here.

Yeah, he has pretty quick shots and a lot of power. Being a 7-1 favorite,I'd imagine Bradley slept on him do a degree coming in but I knew that Ruslan would make it a tough, tough fight.......not that tough though of course. I've seen his fights on ESPN and felt he was gonna be a guy that you can't take lightly.

[mathed]

I don't think Bradley himself deserves criticism so much as the elevated status he's been given by certain members here (and elsewhere) does. He fought like a warrior. He deserves respect for that, but he doesn't deserve to be called a P4P fighter when he isn't. But that part isn't his fault.

What defines a P4P fighter in your opinion? They way they win fights or the names on their resumes? Is there something else you look at to qualify them?

I'm just curious because a guy like Broner, for instance, is apparently worthy of a P4P ranking with his best wins coming over an already defeated DeMarco and Rees who had previously retired or was contemplating retirement recently..as well as having been defeated prior to the Broner fight. He as well has been accused of winning a fight that he "didn't deserve" just as Bradley has.

[Light_Speed]

Great point by someone who said Bradley made the same mental mistake that Pacquiao made for Marquez 4. They both let the media/fans/haters get to them by wanting to prove that they are a great fighter and dont need robbery victories to win, so they both were looking to be more aggressive and go for ko.

Fortunately, bradley has the better chin/stamina/training than pacquiao and survived

No way Bradley has a better chin than Pacquiao, what the hell is wrong with you? Pac started at flyweight and took punches from junior middleweights, let's see how good Bradley's chin is at 168 or 175. Better stamina and training?

And Pac did not fight the way he did against JMM in the 4th fight because of the media hype, he fought that way because that was the only way for him to beat JMM clearly. He tried fighting a tactical fight in the 3rd bout but it didn't work out well for him.

[KickAzz]

Great point by someone who said Bradley made the same mental mistake that Pacquiao made for Marquez 4. They both let the media/fans/haters get to them by wanting to prove that they are a great fighter and dont need robbery victories to win, so they both were looking to be more aggressive and go for ko.

Fortunately, bradley has the better chin/stamina/training than pacquiao and survived

it's not that Bradley had a better chin, but that JMM roided and Ruslan didn't