Los Angeles, CA (June 22) . . . On Saturday, July 15 “Sugar Shane” Mosley and ‘Ferocious’ Fernando Vargas will continue what they started on February 25 when fight fans were treated to an unforgettable night of boxing at its best. Mosley and Vargas II, presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Main Events, takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. Mosley vs. Vargas II and will be broadcast live on HBO Pay-Per-View.
Both fighters, gearing up for their epic rematch, have been training hard in their respective camps. Big news out of Big Bear, where Shane Mosley is situated, is the return of his father, a familiar face in Mosley’s corner for most of his career. Vargas, who has selected Simi Valley, CA for the first time of his career, is reflective in the solitude of the new location, and feels confident that a win is but less than a month away..
SHANE MOSLEY TRAINING CAMP NOTES
Mosleys Reunited—With the return of his trainer/father Jack Mosley, reports from Shane Mosley’s training camp indicated the reunion was overdue.
“Camp is great and we are working hard together. Shane told me he is working twice as hard as in his last camp (Vargas-Mosley I),” said Shane Mosley’s head trainer and father, Jack Mosley.
“Shane is weighing in at 158 lbs. right now. “He eats whatever he wants (laughing) and he is strong.
“It’s been hot up here in Big Bear and we haven’t had any rain. Shane gets up in the morning and does his roadwork – 3 or 4 miles. In the afternoon we do boxing. We have been going 15, 20 rounds in sparring and when we aren’t sparring, we do bag work and mitts. We like to mix it up. The schedule determines what we do each day but it‘s an intense schedule and one that we used before.
“Our workouts are high intensity workouts. We work on technique, speed and power. Shane is looking sharp, he’s working the jab a lot and working combinations. We know Vargas is going to come out and throw hard punches. They say that he is going to box, but that will be a mistake. He will come out like he did last time…and that will not be enough.”
Among Shane’s sparring partners are Enrique Ornalles (160 lbs.), Ben Tacki, Roshii Wells and an amateur kid from New York City who’s a real fast middleweight. “All of these kids are in great shape because they are preparing for fights too,” said Mosley.
“Shane understands what I’m doing with him, but Vargas won’t understand until fight night. And by then, it will be too late. We are getting back to those things that we used to do and that he’s gotten away from doing. We are going to be ready to roll. Shake, rattle and roll.”
The last time Mosley was trained by his father was for his first fight against Winky Wright for the undisputed junior middleweight championship on March 13, 2004. Shane was coming off a huge twelve-round decision win against Oscar De La Hoya in which Shane won the WBC & WBA 154 lb. titles. Winky Wright was the IBF 154 lb. champion. Shane lost a 12-round decision to Wright and has since fought four times under different trainers…
Wright-Mosley II – November 20, 2004 (L12)
Mosley-Estrada – April 23, 2005 (W10)
Mosley-Cruz – September 17, 2005 (W10)
Vargas-Mosley – February 25, 2006 (TKO 10)
FERNANDO VARGAS TRAINING CAMP NOTES
Fernando Vargas has set up camp for the first time of his career in Simi Valley, California, where it’s quiet, focused and he can be left alone. Except for the occasional visit by his wife and children, who live about 20 minutes away, camp is all training and very intense. They stop by once or twice a week on light training days.
Looking back on Vargas vs. Mosley I, Vargas has these thoughts while counting down the days until July 15. “Shane could not hurt me. After the fight, I looked at the scorecards and saw that Shane started strong. I began to win rounds in the middle of the fight and when my eye began to swell, I felt an urgency to fight harder and I took those rounds. I was bringing up the heat and I could tell Shane was tiring when they stopped the fight. I wanted to keep going and I knew I could keep going but I understand why they did what they did.”
For Mosley vs. Vargas II, team Vargas is making some minor adjustments. The first fight, they focused on Mosley’s weaknesses but are making some modifications. This fight they plan to focus on Mosley’s assets and neutralize them to open up a gateway to an offensive attack.
“I am ready,” said Vargas. “I am going to show the world that Mosley can be stopped. I have him figured out. The last fight was a fluke because of the eye.”
Vargas rises in the morning for road work, running anywhere from 5 to 7 miles a day, contingent on how many rounds he will spar in the afternoon. For eight rounds of sparring it will be a longer run and for twelve rounds or more of sparring it will be a shorter run.
After the morning run is breakfast, Mosley fight film and rest. Vargas then does physical training which includes plenty of stretching, followed by rest, film and “team meetings.”
Boxing takes place from 6:00pm to 8:00 pm to simulate fight time.
Sparring partners—who throw a lot of punches and move around a lot and are good for three or four aggressive rounds each—in camp include Nelson Romine “fast, quick and talented;” Tiger Allen – “very strong, very fast and hits harder than Shane”; and Johnny DeJesus “young kid.”
Mosley vs. Vargas II—The Rematch
Tickets, which are priced at $800, $600, $400, $200, and $100, will go on sale Friday, April 28th, at noon. Tickets will be available at the MGM Grand Garden Arena box office and also will be sold at all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (Tower Records/WOW!, Smith’s Food and Drug Centers, Robinsons-May stores and Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (702) 474-4000. Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
The Mosley vs. Vargas II pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST on July 15, has a suggested retail price of $49.95, will be distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 56 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. For your daily Mosley vs. Vargas II fight week updates, log onto www.HBO.com.