Andy Roddick recently befriended Tim Bradley at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, CA.
Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion and a boxing fan, shared his views on what he thinks will happen when Manny Pacquiao clashes with Bradley on June 9. “I talked to (Bradley) in Indian Wells and I told him he’s gonna be like the guy who shot Bambi if he wins that fight,” said Roddick. “He hasn’t lost yet. I think we have seen with boxing, you know, we use the term ‘a puncher’s chance’ in a lot of different sporting events, and I’m pretty sure that came from boxing.”
Roddick, a three-time finalist at Wimbledon and winner of 595 career ATP matches (20th all time for career match wins), has curiosity to see how Bradley can match skills with the Filippino Destroyer. “I think one of the intriguing things is no one knows how good he is yet. He hasn’t fought someone like Pacquiao, so we’ll see. But he’s certainly quick. He has the handspeed and, you know, we’ll see. Those two guys don’t get hit very often.”
I asked Roddick, the former world ATP #1 ranked player in 2003 what he thinks about the current pound-for-pound king of boxing, Manny Pacquiao. “I watched his fight against Marquez and obviously that was probably the worst he’s looked in two or three years. I felt like he would have been the betting favorite against Mayweather before that fight and now afterwards, I feel like maybe Mayweather might have been. The thing is he’s as good as he is and then you have to adjust to being a southpaw. I think that’s a huge advantage.”
While he’s thrilled to see his pal Bradley do well against Pacquiao, Roddick seems more excited about the potential Super Bowl event of boxing history, Pacquiao vs. Mayweather. “I just hope that – I wish Bradley the best but, you know, I think we all want to see Pacquiao-Mayweather also. I wish they would just get that thing done. It’s crazy. It’s the only sport in the world where the two best in the world will never – they just won’t fight. It doesn’t happen in any other sport, and it’s frustrating as a fan.”
Roddick defeated Gilles Muller today in straight sets at the Sony Ericsson Open ATP Masters Series event in Key Biscayne, Florida. In the third round Roddick will meet his rival Roger Federer.
Also, Roddick, an avid all around sports fan, hosts a sports radio show on Fox Sports Radio which he does once a week.
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