Eight years after his last professional bout, former two-weight champion Tim Bradley says he doesn’t “miss anything about being in that ring.”
In conversation with Dr. Margaret Goodman and me in Latest episode our Health PodcastBradley – who has always been one of the most open and honest boxers when it comes to discussing the dangers and challenges of his chosen profession – was clear about his happiness at not stepping in. Coming between the ropes since his 2016 loss to Manny Pacquiao in 2016, that leaves his career ledger at 33-2-1 (13 KOS). Diego Chaves, who escaped with a split bout in December 2014, is the opponent. Only Bradley failed to achieve a career-best performance in Hall of Fame induction in 2023.
“The ring is a very lonely place,” he explains. “Hours inside the gym; miles on the road; It’s a little too much. You are worn out and worn out. And with my boxing style not being a big boxer, with shorter arms and having to get into bigger guys at 147 pounds, even at 140, you know that would be a betrayal, I wouldn’t. lie So I don’t miss much about the fighting inside the ring at all.”
Bradley, who turned professional in August 2004 after “about 145,” amateur bouts often do things the hard way.
He went to England to face WBC 140 lb. titlist Junior Witter and left England with the belt wrapped around his waist. He won the first of three bouts with Pacquiao despite an ankle injury that left him in a wheelchair at the post-fight press conference and despite the fact that no one outside of the two judges thought he was close. will win especially And he produced the best performance of his career, a win over fellow future Hall of Famer-Manuel Marquez. Future work There are serious and lingering health problems.
Bradley revealed that he was given the opportunity to take a shortcut on his way to the top. But was adamant about refusing to consider them.
“Have I ever been offered performance-enhancing drugs?” he asked rhetorically. “Yes, I was. Yes, I was. And the person who offered performance-enhancing drugs is no longer in my life because I can’t believe it. I’m shocked that that person will even ask me I have built my career on hard work. My father is beside me. My father pushed me He put me through tough training. Training camp over and over again Created me since I was a child
“There is no way in hell I need performance enhancing pills to do my job inside the ring. I don’t want it I believe in me and I have too much respect for the sport and too much respect for my opponent to cheat – to gain an advantage over my opponent. I don’t want that. Sorry. I like fighting. I like challenges.”
However, there are times when the struggle must seem too much to endure – not least in the brutal confrontation with Prodnikov in March 2013.
Smartly following his official win over Pacquiao in his previous outing, Bradley committed to making a rather crude anti-Russian statement. A clear knockdown in the opening frame was ruled incorrectly by referee Pat Russell given a slip and attack. Provodnikov, in the second round, had a Bradley rubber attack and was hanging on for dear life. In a huge hole, Bradley called upon every ounce of heart and smarts he possessed to lead the scorecards with a skilled boxing display that left his opponent cut above and below the eye. his left Still, the Russian kept coming, and in the 12th and final round he broke through again, dropping Bradley to the canvas in the dying seconds. but finally fell in a fierce battle.
For months afterward, Bradley said he experienced “headaches (and) mood swings.” He had “trouble sleeping, light sensitivity, dizziness,” and problems with balance and positional awareness. and body movement
“I went out,” he said. “I was going for a walk and I thought I was going to clear the corner and actually I didn’t clear it all the way and I collided with my shoulder. I would lean down to pick up something and stumble. My words are a little slurred.”
Recovery took several months and how long it took Bradley said is a testament to his wife Monica’s determination.
Monica Bradley explained: “Insisted about helping me. She reached out to everyone. I went out to a concussion specialist in Pittsburgh; I went out there and I did these different tests and a color MRI of my brain. They told me ‘Look now, with the damage we saw you will have CTE, there’s no doubt about it. And from what we saw, you should retire.’ And I was like, ‘Well, I’m not ready. I can’t retire now.’ But deep down inside I felt – something wasn’t right.”
Nine months later Bradley was able to produce the boxing masterclass to Marquez, but five times later he was finished. He retired at the young age of 32 and is easily separated as a boxing analyst for ESPN and frequent appearances on Probox TV.
Still, the idea that his brain is now a ticking time bomb that at some point could explode with CTE must weigh heavily on him?
“Every fighter knows what they signed up for,” he insisted. “Every fighter, we know. We know what comes with this boxing game. We understand it. It’s a tough sport. It’s a tough way to make a living. We know the outcome or the possibility and we are all okay with it. I know that there will come a point when I get older that things will eventually change. But at the moment I’m trying to heal. I’m trying to exercise. Now I’m trying to eat better than before. I’m trying to lose weight. At least I tried to suppress it for as long as I could. And the best part about it is the commentary. It works my brain all the time.”
Bradley was determined that none of his children would follow him into the ring. Meanwhile, his boxing career brought him fame and fortune. But there was a cost he had to endure so they wouldn’t have to.
“I used to tell my wife before a fight I would say, ‘Hey, come here. Come to my room. I want to talk to you,’ he said. “And I’ll tell her. ‘Hey, look at me. Look me in my eyes.’ We’ll sit down together, so we’ll hold hands and I’ll say ‘Look at me now. I am doing this for our family. That’s what I’m for.’ I said, ‘Look me in the eye, because the person you see now will never be the same person who will leave that ring. I’m a little different every time I step out of that ring. ‘And we would cry and she would leave and I would get ready and go to my dressing room and get ready to go fight. But that’s always a serious discussion with my wife. She doesn’t want to stay any longer.”
In that situation, Bradley could be forgiven for any ambivalent feelings toward the sport that had dominated his life. But not only did he not resent the sport for what it put him through, he still loved it in What it gave him After being honored with a place in the Hall of Fame for his contributions between the ropes, he’s now focused on being the best he can be with his headset outside the ring.
“I absolutely love boxing,” he insists. “It’s a part of my life and it has to be a part of my life. Canelo said it best: ‘Boxing is life.’
“I’m more appropriate when I’m around watching it. I love (making) the comments. I love giving my opinion on it. I watch boxing every day. This is what I do The same way I’m in the ring when I fight, I’m with my opinion and as an analyst. I always have to know what’s going on. I always have to have my ears down to the floor. I always have to listen. So it doesn’t change with me. That’s just my nature. How do I create? I always have to give the best. So boxing for me is life and whether I express my opinion or not, I have to talk about boxing because that is what makes me feel complete.”
