All eyes will be on Timothy Bradley Jr. and Brandon Rios next weekend when the two fighters get it on for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Nov. 7.
To date, Bradley seems to be getting more attention for the said fight and it is not because he is a favorite over Rios. Rather, it is all because an impressive win by Desert Storm could elevate him next year for a big fight with the returning Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao.
Aside from that, many are interested as well to see if the change in trainer will do Bradley any good. After relieving long-time trainer Joel Diaz, Bradley is now under the guidance of Teddy Atlas in a bid to improve the reigning WBO welterweight champion.
As far as Rios is concerned, the 29-year-old boxer is no pushover and is riding on the momentum of winning back-to-back fights against Diego Chaves and Mike Alvarado.
His consecutive wins are a big rebound after suffering back-to-back losses against Alvarado and, ironically, against Pacquiao.
Thus Rios knows that there is an equal stake for him in this fight. Although he was not among the shortlisted opponents the Pacquiao camp is considering, a win will be big for him against big name fighters as well.
He could end up facing the winner of the Miguel Cotto vs. Canelo Alvarez fight, although there will be a lot of ironing to do or some other fighters waiting in the wings. In short, a win over Desert Storm will be beneficial to the American boxer.
Other than that, a big win will give him the distinction as well of winning world titles in two divisions.
So how does he intend to bring down Bradley?
According to his trainer Robert Garcia, it is all about applying the pressure and going for the knockout. He adds that they have mapped out a game plan to cut off the ring and turn this tussle into a real fight.
The game plan of the Rios' camp is opposite from how Bradley sees it. As far as Bradley is concerned, this fight will go the distance, with the winner being decided via decision.
Whose prediction will come true?
