Not much time had passed since promoter, Gary Shaw, had watched one of his premiere fighters, Antonio DeMarco, of Mexico, fail to come out for the 10th round of Saturday night's bid to dethrone WBC lightweight (135) champion, Edwin Valero, of Venezuela, when an official from Valero's promoter, Top Rank, approached Shaw with the prospect of pitting Valero against another of his star boxers.
That fighter is 26-year-old WBO junior welterweight (140 pounds) titlist, Timothy Bradley (25-0, 11 KOs), of Palm Springs, Calif., a slick boxer who is coming off of December's one-sided, 12-round unanimous decision victory over previously unbeaten Lamont Peterson (27-1, 13 KOs) during which Bradley arguably lost only one round.
Like the 28-year-old Valero, who rose to 27-0 with his 27th knockout, and who has stopped 19 of his rivals in the first round -- including the first 18 of his career -- Bradley appears to be relatively unknown, if not, equally avoided by those fearful of skills.
And like the 5-foot-6 Bradley, the 5-6 Valero showcased much more than some thought that he would in his last fight.
Valero demonstrated boxing skills, defense, an ability to move in behind a jab and set up his power shots, as well as the heart to overcome a cut below his right eye on the cheekbone in the first round, along with a deep gash over his right forehead that resulted from a DeMarco (23-2-1, 17 KOs) second-round accidental elbow shot that also caused a laceration on that same eyelid.
Bradley demonstrated unreal punching power -- he staggered the 5-9 Peterson in the first round and floored him in the third -- as well as speed, head-movement, a general wizardy and the ability to take a good shot.
Top Rank CEO, Bob Arum, says that he wants to move Valero up against Bradley, and he got one of his soldiers to tell Shaw so.
"We're going to look to see if we can make him and a Timothy Bradley fight. It would be a great match," Arum told FanHouse on Saturday night. "We've got to see if Edwin can get a Visa to come into the United States, and we can do it in the United States. I think that it's a really interesting fight."
Arum was referring to some issues that have hurt Valero's exposure -- one being an unresolved problem stemming from a DUI last May, after which he was denied a U.S. visa pending the successful completion of an alcohol education program.
The other situation is the stigma from brain surgery Valero received as the result of a 2001 motorcycle accident that caused a blood clot that was later revealed during an MRI.
Valero was cleared to fight by a Venezuelan doctor following successful surgery that removed the clot, but was placed on indefinite medical suspension by the New York State Athletic and subsequently banned by most athletic associations which supported the NYSAC's move.
At first, however, Shaw wasn't so sure about matching Valero with Bradley. Besides, he wasn't really in the mood for too much talking after DeMarco's setback.
"I would have to speak to Tim Bradley's manager, Cameron Dunkin, and Tim himself, but [Top Rank] did come up to me after the fight and asked me if I could do that fight with them," Shaw told FanHouse on Saturday night from Monterrey, Mexico, where Valero faced DeMarco.
"So yes, it's true, we have spoken about it," said Shaw. "But I don't know if Valero can come to the United States. We don't know if we would bring Bradley (pictured at for right, throwing punch) to Mexico. So it's just talk right now."
But by Tuesday, Shaw had fully embraced the idea of a Bradley-Valero, or, Valero-Bradley matchup -- so much so that he pitched the idea back to Arum for a clash on June 5.
"I have made an offer for Bradley to fight Valero on Showtime on the first Saturday in June. And I'm waiting for a call back from Top Rank to see if they want to enter into a negotiation with me," said Shaw.
"Bradley and Valero -- they're both action fighters. One -- Valero -- comes full speed ahead, and the other, Bradley, is a lot more clever. Bradley holds a 140-pound world championship, and is looked upon by everyone as the No. 1 fighter currently in that division," said Shaw.
"I think that it will be a great fight, and I can't wait for them to take it," said Shaw. "They wanted the fight, they called out Bradley, and, probably, shockingly to them, Bradley said, 'Fine, let's get it done.'"
Bradley and Valero have envisioned moving on to bigger and better things, even as they have expressed frustration at being ignored by other, top-notch fighters.
"Manny Pacquiao is my dream fight. But I'm tired of asking for it. All of the true boxing fans would want to see that fight," Valero, nicknamed, "Dynamite," told FanHouse earlier last week. "They can be sure to know that that fight would be explosive and there would surely be a lot of bloodshed."
Nicknamed "The Desert Storm," Bradley's effort against Peterson earned him honors as FanHouse's Most Dominant Performance Of The Year for 2009.
Bradley told FanHouse in December that he would be willing to face seven-division king, Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) or five-time titlist, Floyd Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs).
"I'd go up to 147 pounds to face any of these guys. And I'm a 140-pounder. I'll do whatever it takes. Even if they tell me that I have to fight this guy and then that guy and that if I beat this guy over here then I have an opportunity," said Bradley. "Just let me know what I need to do to get a fight with [Mayweather.] Just let me know what I need to do. Please let me know."
Although Pacquiao is slated to defend his WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title against Ghana's Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs) on March 13, and Mayweather, to challenge WBA welterweight super champion, Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) on May 1, the winner of a Valero-Bradley bout might certainly open their eyes.
At any rate, a fight against one another would offer the winner, and, probably both combatants, more open doors to walk through for more lucrative paydays.
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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