07.02.07 – By Matthew Hurley: It was during the fifth round of the Luis Collazo – Ricky Hatton fight at the TD Banknorth Center in Boston that I leaned over to my father and said, “We’ve got a fight on our hands.” I was supposed to be in the press section but I wanted to simply enjoy the fight without worrying about a deadline and knock a few pints back with the old man. I was excited about Ricky Hatton’s arrival on American soil but I knew that Collazo would be a difficult task for Manchester’s favorite son. But for some reason I didn’t think it would be as nip and tuck as it turned out to be. Collazo, whom I’ve always considered a good fighter and a potential spoiler (which he almost did that night), truly impressed me with his unorthodox, southpaw style and his grittiness.
Collazo was supposed to be a mere footnote to an impressive Hatton victory in his welterweight debut. Even the Irish pub I was in before the bout was filled with Hatton fans chanting his name and singing “Blue Moon”, the fighter’s ring entrance theme song. But in the cavernous arena (a sad corporate substitute for the beloved Boston Garden) there were hundreds of Collazo fans who had made the trip from Brooklyn, New York.. The young, heavily tattooed fighter has a loyal and vocal fan-base and when the decision was announced in Hatton’s favor, the chants of “bullshit!” erupted from all sides of the ring. But despite the loss on his record, Collazo curried favor from hard core boxing fans and writers like me.
After a TKO in the sixth round over Artur Atadzhanov in November of last year Collazo basically sat on his hands hoping for another shot at a big name to prove once and for all that he belongs with the elite fighters in the game. That call came from Golden Boy Promotions and the fighter was Sugar Shane Mosley. Mosley, after knocking out Fernando Vargas in their return match, had made the decision to drop back down to welterweight where he feels his speed and strength will serve him best. It’s also the hottest division in the sport at the moment – what with junior welterweights growing out of the 140 pound division and big names like Oscar De La Hoya and his May 5th adversary Floyd Mayweather only seven pounds away. Mosley was looking for a fight with Kermit Cintron but when that fight fell through the classy former champion didn’t go looking for an easy touch, that’s never been his style. Instead, he zeroed in on what may be an even more difficult opponent in Luis Collazo. A Mosley – Cintron bout would have been scorching for however long it lasted. But a Mosley – Collazo match-up has all the ingredients of a stellar boxing match and the aroma of an upset.
Where Collazo has flown under the radar for quite some time, Mosley has flapped his wings on center stage for years. The past four years haven’t been particularly prosperous for the 35 year old fighter. He suffered back to back losses to Winky Wright and then looked unimpressive against David Estrada and Jose Luis Cruz. There seemed to be weariness in the fighter who once rattled off combinations that drew comparisons to a prime Sugar Ray Leonard. And then he signed to fight Fernando Vargas. Their first bout was a tough, entertaining struggle that ended with Vargas’ eye so badly swollen the fight had to be halted. The rematch ended much more succinctly following a brutal Mosley left hook in the sixth round. The “Sugar Man” was back, or so said many fans and many media scribes who were, perhaps, just happy to see Shane look so good again. But the fact remains he looked good against a fighter, irregardless of his heart and courage, who nearly everyone had labeled “shot” even before their first encounter.
Now Mosley will step in the ring against a younger, fresher and hungrier fighter. One still embittered by his controversial loss to a top ten pound for pound fighter in Ricky Hatton. Despite the fact that Collazo doesn’t hit particularly hard his speedy, left handed style may be all wrong for Shane Mosely. Collazo has remained supremely focused during the media build up for this fight. He feels that he is peaking just at the right moment and that whatever edge Mosley may think he has in power will be offset by both his southpaw stance and his speed. Although Mosley has always been known for his quick assaults Collazo feels he can counter that with his right jab and his own slick aggressiveness.
There is a feeling, at least in the corner, that the Mosley camp is placing too much stock in Shane’s knockout victory over a faded Fernando Vargas. They were champing at the bit to get Kermit Cintron in the ring because Cintron, despite his size and power, would be right in front of Shane providing an easy target for Mosley both inside and outside. Not so with Collazo. Now he will be facing a fighter nearly as fast as him and deceptive in his attack. Collazo is slick – patient and controlled but aggressive when he needs to be. The one equalizer could be Shane’s power, but remember the only fighter Shane has stopped since 2002 was a very worn out Fernando Vargas. All that being said, this corner sees a very tight, fast paced boxing match, with Luis Collazo pulling off the upset with a close, but unanimous decision.