Timothy Bradley Congratulates Lamont Peterson, Offers Criticism of Amir Khan

WBO junior welterweight titlist Timothy Bradley congratulated an old foe of his via Twitter, and has offered some criticism of would-be rival Amir Khan, as well.

Bradley (28-0, 12 KO) defeated Peterson (30-1-1, 15 KO) in December 2009, via wide unanimous decision in a fight that was competitive the whole way, but also showed Bradley as the better of the two fighters.

On Saturday, Peterson upset Khan (26-2, 18 KO) by split decision, claiming the WBA and IBF titles at 140 pounds, and putting himself behind only Bradley in the weight class at this time.

More Khan-Peterson Coverage From Bad Left Hook
Recap | Oli Goldstein's Breakdown | Tim Bradley a Winner

As for Bradley's criticisms of Khan, I do imagine many will see it as unnecessary gloating, but to me, it's just Bradley scouting a guy that he's been connected to via media for the better part of this year. Bradley has taken his shots from Khan, and now he's coming back with something of his own. And honestly? I think they're valid criticisms.

From an interview with Rick Reeno of BoxingScene.com:

"I thought Khan ran around like a chicken shit. ... The rematch, it's going to be the same thing. The same exact thing. I just hope Lamont lets his hands go a little bit more. That's one thing about Khan, he let his hands go, but he has no defense. He has no defense."

... "Khan couldn't adjust. He can't adjust. Khan only has one gear and that's full speed all the time. He doesn't know how to slow it down. He's full speed all the time. He doesn't know how to slip and slide, bobbing and weaving, he doesn't know how to do all of that. His defense is his feet, running around the ring and getting away. He's an amateur but he's a professional. He's a professional amateur."

Our own Oli Goldstein broke down some of Khan's technical mistakes and flaws on Sunday in a highly recommended read, and while Khan certainly shouldn't be written off as some fool fighter who can't make changes, right now that's the story: He has to start making some changes, because he makes himself very vulnerable. If he wants to be that superstar fighter, that big-time attraction, that dominant champion, he has to make some adjustments to his game, or he's going to lose more fights.

So I don't think Bradley is being unfair or crowing so much as offering legitimate criticism that he sees studying a fighter in his weight class.