Timothy Bradley has always been a terrific fighter, but his reputation was damaged in 2012 after winning a controversial fight over Manny Pacquiao. However, Desert Storm repaired that reputation quite a bit with a solid win over Juan Manuel Marquez.
The 30-year-old Bradley won the fight by split decision in what was a competitive fight, although some felt that Bradley won without too much trouble. Two judges had the fight at 115-113 and 116-112 in favor of Bradley, while the other had the fight at 115-113 for Marquez.
The fight numbers were pretty even for both fighters, although Bradley was the more active fighter. According to the HBO Boxing Twitter account, Bradley landed just 15 more punches than Marquez.
The win puts Bradley at 31-0 on his career, but more importantly, it has repaired the reputation of this great fighter.
Back in June of 2012, it appeared that Pacquiao had beaten Bradley in a rather close fight. Instead, the judges ruled that Bradley had won by split decision in what was a very controversial ending that hurt Bradley's reputation.
The decision wasn't Bradley's fault in any way, but it created an image that Bradley wasn't as good of a fighter as his record indicated.
He didn't seem like one of the best fighters in the world in his next fight either. Back in March, Bradley took on Ruslan Provodnikov, and although he won by unanimous decision, he looked very shaky out in the ring. He got beaten down badly in the first two rounds, then got knocked down in the closing seconds of the fight.
After the fight, it was reported that Bradley had suffered a concussion. In a report by Kieran Mulvaney of ESPN.com, Bradley had some things to say about his symptoms:
A few weeks after the fight, I was still affected by the damage that was done. My speech was a little bit off. I was slurring a little bit. But after about two months, I cleared up and I have my wits about me now.
A lot of fighters probably go through the same things I went through after certain fights. I'm here to tell them that there is basically help out there. You can get help. I got the help out there, and I'm here to speak out. A lot of people feel that I shouldn't speak out about it and that I should keep it a secret.
But for some reason, I want to talk about it. I went through it and I want to share it with the world. I want to let them know, "Hey, it is true what they talk about boxing. It is a dangerous sport." When you come in for a fight, you might not leave the ring the same way."
After these two fights made people doubt Bradley and how good of a fighter he really was, Desert Storm finally showed that when healthy, he is a truly elite fighter.
Bradley showed off his elusiveness and frustrated Marquez throughout the fight. He kept using his jab effectively and kept Marquez from landing combinations or pulling off big counterpunches.
The win over Marquez was a big one, as he was able to defend his WBO Welterweight title for the second straight fight. This time, it was against one of the biggest names in the sport over the past 10-20 years.
The future is now much brighter for Bradley, as he has repaired his reputation as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, and he can continue to cement his legacy after the big win.
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