Harry How - Getty Images
Timothy Bradley will be making about five times his previous career-best purse on June 9 against Manny Pacquiao. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
While we've already talked about Timothy Bradley's early analysis of Manny Pacquiao being a beatable fighter for him on June, let's talk about money a little bit. Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reports that Bradley will make by far a career-best payday, as everyone knew he would, receiving the same $5 million guarantee given to Shane Mosley and Juan Manuel Marquez last year against Pacquiao -- or at least close to it.
Bradley declined to reveal terms of his agreement, which he said could be signed as early as Friday, but fight promoter Bob Arum said there was no reason to doubt that Bradley will have around the same $5-million guarantee that Pacquiao's most recent two opponents had.
Bradley (28-0, 12 KO) has made seven-figure paydays for fights against Devon Alexander (about $1.1 million) and Joel Casamayor ($1.025 million), but obviously this is another level. This is the big time. This is big time money.
I guess it's fair to say that Bradley choosing to leave Gary Shaw and Thompson Boxing last year turned out to be the right move. Though he didn't fight Amir Khan for good money, he didn't make a whole lot less to wipe out the remains of Casamayor a few months later, and now here he is gearing up to face Pacquiao on June 9 with around $5 million coming his way.
Not bad for a guy who can't draw in his own backyard, huh? (By the way, I don't mean that as a shot to anyone who points out he can't draw in his own backyard. He can't. Bradley doesn't draw fans and overcoming that will be something of a task for this show's performance both at the gate and on pay-per-view.)
Maybe Top Rank didn't want to go this route so soon. In fact, I'll guarantee that they didn't. But this is the fight they have, and it's the fight on tap. Hopefully Bradley earns that big payday now that he's got the opportunity on the grandest stage there is in boxing. This is his shot. Guys who struggle as Bradley has to bring in fans and TV audiences don't often get this sort of chance. It's all on him now.
0 recs | 23 comments
Bradley ducking Khan is a poor man's interpretation
He made a calculated business decision and it paid off HUGE.
Look at Lamont’s paydays for fighting Khan; both his last and his next. Then multiply it by two and it still falls well short of what Bradley has made and will make in this plus his last fight. In fact, mutiply it by three.
For all those that profess to want to see fighters take control of their careers, say: STAND UP TIMOTHY BRADLEY
pakinpower - February 10, 2012
Well couldn’t Bradley have fought Khan in July and still fought Casamayor in November after signing with Arum in the fall? Not fighting Khan didn’t really free him up to do anything different because he ended up not fighting in the summer anyways.
Kory Kitchen - February 11, 2012
Good article Scott
pakinpower - February 10, 2012
I was thinking the same thing
I think you called it the Winky Wright school of boxing he was following…But he was right. He out classed Alexander and looking back on turning down the fight wiht Khan didn’t sit well with me but…He is going to make $7M over his last 3, if he stayed with Shaw I think he would have been lucky to make $3-4M
DL3 - February 10, 2012
that winky wright line is dan rafael’s (lame) joke.
Victor Schultz - February 10, 2012
Dan’s got plenty of them.
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
And if he does good, or better yet beats Pacman he’ll be a multi-million dollar fighter for the next 4 or 5.
RyanSexton - February 10, 2012
tim took a risk it paid off….but if cotto had dropped down in weight, or mayweather pacman had taken off, where would tim be sitting? still in a good spot for a major pay day?
Vicmatic1 - February 10, 2012
pretty sure he got a guarantee to make at least a million per fight w/top rank. i don’t really think he’d be in any worse of a position than he’d’ve been in w/shaw.
Victor Schultz - February 10, 2012
He’d be making $1M+ on the Cotto-Pacquiao undercard, and still in line to face Manny either in November or next year.
Honestly, there’s really no way to leave Shaw/Thompson for Top Rank and lose out. There just isn’t. It’s not even really a shot at Shaw or Thompson, who I argue did very well for Tim Bradley and made him a seven-figure fighter with less than compelling evidence that he deserved to be one (other than he’s a good fighter). They’re just not near Top Rank’s level in terms of power and money and influence.
Shaw does a good job with his guys, though. He’s also turned Chad Dawson into a guy who makes money but couldn’t draw 2000 fans combined over two fights with Antonio Tarver.
Scott Christ - February 10, 2012
im sure hed be gettin 1 million plus but he made that with shaw and had he stayed with shaw hed make another million in his next fight. as always being wiht top rank is better in the financial sense..but if manny destroys him, what will become of him. granted the 5 million dollar pay day is sweet but will he go back to being the same timmy fighting in front of 1000 people in the santa anita ball rooms?
Vicmatic1 - February 10, 2012
I'm really surprised
That he would make as much money as Marquez. In fact I’m surprised even Mosley made as much as Marquez. I don’t see how this could happen given that Marquez, though not the most popular of Mexican fighters, still draws way more than Bradley and Mosley. This is evident when seeing the amount of people that watched his fight with Pac in Mexico. Marquez needs better representation!
XxZeus07xX - February 10, 2012
bradley and peterson both made great business decisions to tell khan to f right off initially
peterson turned down a fight with khan in the UK for peanuts to fight cayo in an eliminator, got the bout with khan in his hometown at around $300,000 more than he would’ve gotten if he’d agreed in the first place, and we know what happened with that
nickfoxx - February 10, 2012
for a very, very small bag of peanuts ($12,000)
Scott Christ - February 10, 2012
Really, 12G's?
No wonder Peterson told Khan were to go.
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
whhhheere
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
No, that’s what he got for fighting Cayo. Cayo made $6K.
Scott Christ - February 10, 2012
Ah, right.
I thought i had read the initial Khan offer was more, somewhere around £300,000. Maybe dollars?
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
Khan
was making a bit of an idiot of himself on Ringside last night (as usual).
I had to switch over at times because i just find some of the stuff he says cringeworthy.
One thing Johnny Nelson pulled him up on though was when Khan was saying something about how he’d made Peterson all these offers and Peterson’s side were playing hardballl and Khan says his side were ready to walk.
Then Nelson cuts him off and says “but wait a minute, Peterson’s the champion (belt holder)”. Khan looked a bit taken back and was a bit lost for words, then he acknowledged that Nelson had a point.
One thing i like about that Ringside program is that they are not afraid to ask awkward questions to fighters and promoters at times or to make a point to them.
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
Absolutely. I think Sky’s coverage has improved inordinately in the last 18 months, to be honest. They’ve clearly made a concerted effort to get the best British fighters onto the network – Froch, Khan, Brook, and I’m sure they’ll have the BoxNation fighters back when that goes upside down soon enough – but at the same time, they haven’t sacrificed any integrity in doing so. Khan doesn’t get superstar treatment by Smith and Nelson; each time he’s on the show, they really just tell him how it is. Having guys like McGuigan and Woodhall appearing on a regular basis also adds to the quality, while Nick Halling has proven himself an excellent commentator too. It’s really great stuff coming from Sky right now, as far as I’m concerned.
Oli Goldstein - February 10, 2012
I totally agree. I have no complaints about Sky at all, especially as far as boxing and sports in general go.
They are good value for money, imo, and as you say, they have a solid team of fighters and analysts on the payroll.
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
And
for all i like to mock Adam Smith and his pink shirts, there has been a noticable improvement all around, in the studio and in the quality of fights, imo, since he took over as Director of Boxing (or whatever his title is).
Matt Mosley - February 10, 2012
Yep, also true. Shocking commentator but he’s clearly a passionate guy who’s doing a good job.
Oli Goldstein - February 10, 2012
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