Former world champion and boxing analyst Tim Bradley faced the wrath of fans after commenting about Canelo Alvarez on ESPN.
Bradley, a two-weight world titleholder, was working on Top Rank’s show, highlighted by Christian Mbilli vs. Sergiy Derevyanchenko. Bradley summarized the Quebec City fight after Mbilli scored a ten-round decision over the tough Ukrainian.
When doing so, Bradley labeled Mbilli as a dangerman for Canelo, who holds the WBC, WBA, and WBO super middleweight titles. Desert Storm added, “If Canelo is smart, he’ll stay far away from this monster Mbili,” which caused a significant reaction. This firestorm erupted when Derevyanchenko fought for six rounds with only one arm due to an injury in round four.
Derevyanchenko explained, “My legs were good. I only had one arm. I needed to move. When I stayed, he punched in combinations. He’s a good boxer, a strong boxer, but if I had two hands, I think it would be another situation.”
Mbilli won the fight but couldn’t get a one-armed contender, who is – for comparison purposes – a world title gatekeeper, out of there. Conversely, Canelo is one of the best boxers on the planet and consistently fends off challenges from undefeated stars like Mbilli at will.
Tim Bradley’s comments on Canelo cause a stir
It’s fair to say Bradley’s remarks caused a reaction, even more so than his wearing a crash helmet.
“When Tim Bradley said Canelo was gonna stay away from him, he stumbled because he didn’t believe the BS that came out of his mouth,” said one.
Another added, “This is why I do my own commentary space. Tim Bradley said Canelo would stay from Mbilli. Yet Mbilli couldn’t knock out a smaller guy. What makes him think Mbilli will be a problem for Canelo? Tim Bradley’s brain is the size of a peanut.”
A third stated, “Did Bradley say Canelo will stay far away from Mbilli? Canelo would make Mbilli look like an amateur.”
Canelo has Edgar Berlanga, another hungry undefeated contender to deal with in September, and is then linked to facing Chris Eubank Jr. in May 2025. However, Mbilli could feature on the 2025 schedule as he’s closing in on the WBC mandatory order.
It’s well-documented that Canelo doesn’t listen to those stipulations, as David Benavidez and William Scull recently found out. And with Mbilli at Top Rank, the 28-0 Cameroonian-Frenchman could have a long wait.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
