Undefeated jr. welterweight champion Timothy Bradley officially started training camp this week for his June 9th showdown with WBO welterweight and pound-for-pound champion Manny Pacquiao. "Time to put in some work, camp has officially started, off to the gym I go," he wrote on his official Twitter page yesterday afternoon. Contrary to earlier statements he made, Bradley appears to be starting his camp a little sooner than expected. Originally, Bradley suggested that he would begin a typical 8-week camp in mid-April. "I'm gonna start camp like mid-April, but I stay moving, man. I stay active. I stay up in the gym," he would tell FightHype's own Percy Crawford just last week. Instead, it appears Bradley has decided to put in a little extra work for the biggest fight of his career.
While speaking to Crawford, a confident Bradley said Pacquiao was starting training camp early because he was concerned about the threat that the undefeated jr. welterweight posed. "Pacquiao knows that I'm a threat. That's why he's starting camp so early. Pacquiao has been in my shoes before and that's what it boils down to. He knows exactly what he's up against," he explained. "All of the pressure is on him because he's supposed to demolish me. He got all of the pressure on him. That's why they started camp early." Having decided to begin his camp the exact same time as Pacquiao, it appears that Bradley also recognizes just how serious of a threat that the 8-division world champion poses to him.
Nevertheless, Bradley maintains that he's not at all concerned about the two biggest advantages that Pacquiao has had over most of his opponents, his angles and speed. "His footwork is very good, and to keep his power as he goes up is unbelievable. But you know, I feel that I am well-schooled and well-trained for angles. There are not too many fighters that can move on angles on me. I cut 'em off and I'm a student of the game and I think I have the ability to nullify a lot of the things he likes to do," he added. "I think that I can deal with his speed as well. I was able to deal with Devon, who was extremely fast, and I was able to deal with his speed. I think I will be able to deal with Manny Pacquiao's speed as well."