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Op-Ed: Bradley-Rios fight could be this year’s ‘Fight of the Year’

The fight is a potential blockbuster, making it easy for Bob Arum — who promotes both fighters — to sell the fight on pay-per-view (PPV).

Both fighters have become known to the PPV market after they fought Manny Pacquiao at the height of their careers when Pacquiao was the main PPV attraction in boxing along with Floyd Mayweather and Oscar de la Hoya.

Bradley (31-1-1, 12 KOs) was the hardest fighter to sell in Arum’s Top Rank Promotions stable because of his negligible fan base but when he fought Pacquiao, his popularity soared and has since become a PPV attraction in subsequent fights.

The same thing happened to Rios when he fought Pacquiao in Macau, China in 2011. Despite his loss by unanimous decision, he got himself introduced to the international audience and has since figured in many PPV fights.

Rios (32-2-1, 23 KOs) is known for his aggressive-come forward fighting style and isn’t afraid of facing superior opponents. He is a brawler and loves to fight toe-to-toe which the fans love to see.

Rios is coming off two straight wins following his loss to Pacquiao in 2013. Although he was less-impressive when he fought Diego Chavez last year, he came back with a vengeance against former foe Mike Alvarado — who gave him his first career loss — to win by TKO in the seventh round.

For his part, Bradley has fought elite fighters since his controversial win against Pacquiao in 2012. His victory gave him opportunity to face veteran PPV stars like Juan Manuel Marquez and Ruslan Provodnikov. Bradley has been hit badly in the ring but has got the ability to survive a massive attack and comes out still standing at the end of the fight.

Timothy Bradley acknowledges the fans during a weigh-in prior to his welterweight world title bout a...

Timothy Bradley acknowledges the fans during a weigh-in prior to his welterweight world title bout against Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas on April 11, 2014
Jeff Gross, Getty/AFP

Bradley has fought common opponent Diego Chavez to a draw last year and cruise to a unanimous decision win against stablemate Jessie Vargas in June this year.

The fight is reported to take place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Nov. 21. At stake is the WBO welterweight title and will be shown on HBO pay-per-view.

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