By Frank Gonzalez Jr.

Vernon Forrest Vs. Shane Mosley II
(34-0-0-26 KO’s) (38-1-0-35 KO’s)

22.07 - Mosley-Forrest II reminded me of Barrera-Morales II -- where hype exceeded expectations. It was a good fight, but not a great fight. It was an interesting drama of guts, glory and redemption.

After watching Mosley’s fights for years, I see him as a hybrid-fighter: A well-rounded, boxer-brawler with a great left hooks and body shots. Good chin and a fiery spirit, quick hands and respectable power. His physique is chiseled and his stamina and heart have never been in question.

Outside the ring, Sugar Shane’s always been polite and friendly to the press and has that million-dollar smile. Some say his thirst for public adoration and fame the caliber of Oscar De La Hoya’s-- might have been a distraction for Shane. In the cult that is professional Boxing, Mosley was considered by many to be one of the best p4p fighters in Boxing. That was before his January 26th meeting with Vernon Forrest, who had also beaten Shane in the Amateurs ten years earlier.

Vernon Forrest existed in relative obscurity before defeating Sugar Shane Mosley. Suddenly Forrest was having his “15-Minutes” of stardom. He convincingly beat up one of America’s favorite Boxers in just about every round. Turned out that Forrest has some personality too. He was a guest on Boxing forums all over the country, celebrating his success over the man considered the best in the game.

The under-card fight of Antonio Tarver Vs. Eric Harding ended early, with Tarver getting beat up for the first three rounds and then coming to life with a pair of knockdowns in the fourth, followed by a TKO in the fifth. So with some extra time on hand, HBO ran one of those bios on Vernon Forrest and his support for a special program for children with disabilities called Destiny’s Child. It was a touching piece about Vernon’s relationship with these underprivileged kids in his hometown of Atlanta. You could see the relationship he has with these kids is real as a group of them came all the way to Indiana to see their friend fight. A master in the ring and a servant to the community outside the ring makes Vernon Forrest is easy to like.

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On Friday night, I took a moment to watch the tape of their January 26th fight. I couldn’t think of any reason why the rematch would be much different. Vernon Forrest beat Shane Mosley in the amateurs, then again convincingly as a Pro. Anyone who believed the hype that Mosley was the ‘best pound for pound’ boxer in the world on January 25th, were sobered up quickly after Forrest had his way with Mosley for the better part of 12 rounds, including two knockdowns in the second round that occurred after the two fighter’s heads collided.

Mosley saw his own blood for the first time and perhaps lost his composure that night. At least that is what has been implied. I thought the butt didn’t have that much of an influence on the fight, as Forrest seemed fine and Mosley didn’t appear hampered by the butt, which resulted in a tiny cut on the inside of his hairline. I’m not Shane Mosley; I don’t pretend to know what’s in his head, or how he really felt after the head butt. All I know is that Forrest put a beating on him like no one ever expected, except maybe Vernon himself.

In the post fight interviews after that fight in January, Forrest asked Larry Merchant, “If Shane Mosley is the best pound for pound fighter in the world and I just beat him, doesn’t that make me the best pound for pound fighter now?” Merchant never answered him.

Saturday night at Conseco Field in Indianapolis, all the questions would be answered.

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The Fight

Round 1 featured Mosley rushing Forrest with a left-right combo to the head. Forrest was caught off guard by Mosley’s impersonation of Mike Tyson but was able to weather the initial onslaught. Mosley fought like a man possessed, single minded and hell bent. Forrest immediately sought his range and began to pop Mosley with the jab and a few left hooks as Shane wisely moved around Forrest’s left side, avoiding his overhand rights that did so much damage in their first meeting. Mosley’s strategy was to box and find a big shot to hurt Vernon. Shane continued to rush Forrest with big punches that were mostly absorbed by Forrest’s defense and excellent clinching skills. Mosley looked frustrated early. I gave the first round to Vernon, who kept his composure and scored effectively.

In Round 2 Shane was extremely aggressive again, only this time he was more effective and caught Vernon a few good times. Forrest hit Mosley with a few good shots too, but I thought Mosley efforts were enough to win the round.

Mosley was still hyper aggressive at the start of Round 3, hunting for the big shot. Forrest handles him well and gets off the better shots late in the round. Referee Laurence Cole warned Vernon for a low blow that I didn’t see. A moment later, Mosley lands a low blow but Cole says nothing. Ring generalship won this round for Forrest.

Round 4 featured more of Mosley’s aggressive tactics against Forrest’s superior ring work. Shane scores well in this round as he fought in a circle around Forrest, who spent less energy pivoting from the center of the ring to address Mosley. Shane spits out his mouthpiece and gains a 15 second breather as the mouthpiece is rinsed and reinserted into his mouth. Mosley catches Forrest with a good right hand to the body late in the round. I felt he got the better of the exchanges. Mosley wins round.

Round 5 was more of the same, with Shane building momentum and out working Forrest, who’s corner told him to make this round a ‘dog fight.’ Vernon seemed to be on a lunch break in this round. Mosley wins round.

In Round 6, Mosley attacks and holds, at times pushing, challenging Vernon’s strength and doing anything to gain an advantage. Forrest resumes his mastery of the ring, jabbing, scoring and defending. Nothing fancy but totally effective. This was possibly the least exciting round. With about 40 seconds left in the round, a fight broke out in the audience. The fans turned their attention away from the ring. The fighters, aware that something was going on, seemed almost confused. But like professionals, they kept fighting, only I couldn’t figure who won that round so I called it even.

Round 7- Mosley mostly brawls as Forrest jabs and clinches when Shane gets close. Vernon finally lands a big right hand, but Shane absorbs it well. Forrest presses the action, scoring as he gets Shane against the ropes. Vernon controls the fight and wins the round.

Round 8 was more of the same with Mosley landing some good shots that don’t seem to bother Forrest too much as he always gets the better of the exchanges. Forrest wins round.

In Round 9, Mosley fouls, shoving his forearm into Forrest’s neck against the ropes. Cole warns Mosley. Forrest dominates 80% of the round. Mosley rallies near the end of the round but not enough to steal the round. Forrest wins round.

Round 10- Forrest jabs while Mosley circles. Forrest connects on a low blow and Cole says nothing. Both exchange big shots and re-ignite the crowd. Forrest low blows again and this time gets a warning from Cole. Overall, Forrest was the more effective and wins the round.

Round 11- Shane’s desire to win was obvious. He just couldn’t find Forrest with the meaningful shots, as Vernon would clinch whenever Shane got close, rendering him ineffective. A slugfest ensues as the boards clacked ten seconds left. Cole got between the fighters as Forrest was teeing off on Mosley. The bell rang about three seconds later. I wondered what Cole was doing interfering in the middle of the action. Forrest wins another round.

Jack Mosley tells Shane he needs a knockout to win. The 12th round looked like the rest did with Mosley being the Bull to Forrest’s Matador. Forrest slips on the wet Budweiser sign at center ring. It’s ruled a slip. Shane scores with a chopping right hand, Forrest holds his own. Mosley wins the last round on sheer effort.

Vernon Forrest kept a humble face, as members of Mosley’s camp were saying, “And the New Welterweight Champion.” Mosley looked uncertain as he waited for the Judge’s scores to be announced.

The scores read as follows:

Tony Castellano—117-111 Forrest

Jerry Roth—115-113 Forrest

Gary Merritt—116-112 Forrest

HBO’s Harold Lederman scored it 115-112 for Forrest.

I had it 116-112 for Forrest

* * *

Forrest rushed out into the audience to celebrate with his special fans from Destiny’s Child, then ran back up to the ring for the post fight interview with Larry Merchant.

I was disappointed that Vernon tried to plug some names of some companies who dress him and so forth. I only hoped the money he was paid to plug those companies went to the Destiny’s Child Program. Merchant interrupted him and said, “The people saw a fight. They don’t care who put clothes on your back!”

You tell ‘em Larry.

Vernon was gracious, complimenting Mosley’s heart and strategy. More than anything, he said he wanted to go home and rest because it was a long, strenuous camp and he was tired.

Afterwards, Merchant interviewed Mosley, asking if he thought it was the right decision to go straight after Forrest after the first loss. Mosley was gracious also, saying he felt it was the right decision and that he came to win but couldn’t land the shots he wanted to against Forrest, who moved and clinched often. He credited Vernon for fighting a smart fight and made no complaints.

When Merchant asked Shane how he felt, losing two in a row and going from such glory to such a let down, Mosley pointed out that many great fighters have lost fights. And he is right. Holyfield, Sugar Ray Leonard, Hearns, and Lennox Lewis, just to name a few, have lost fights before but have come back and done spectacular things. Mosley wants to move up to 154 pounds, citing that it was hard to make 147.

The future for Vernon Forrest is still a question mark. Will he stay at 147 and win all the belts from the Alphabet Soup Organizations? I would favor him to beat the WBA’s Ricardo Mayorga, though it would be an interesting fight since Mayorga is something of a street fighter more than a professional boxer. The IBF’s Michelle Piccirillo should be easy pickings, and I like Antonio Margarito but can’t see him beating Forrest with his unglamorous, yet effective style of fighting. I would guess Forrest’s plan is to unify the titles before moving up to 154.

At Jr. Middleweight, Shane has a promising future facing the likes of Vargas, De La Hoya and Winky Wright. Shane is still in his prime and I doubt we’ve seen the best of him yet. He could conceivably rule the 154-pound division-- so long as Vernon Forrest doesn’t follow him there.

There’s no ifs, ands, or butts about it, Vernon Forrest beat Sugar Shane Mosley, fair and square.

What do you think?

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Agree or disagree? Send comments to dshark87@hotmail.com