by Jason Bey: Shane Mosley has the opportunity of a lifetime with his upcoming clash with P4P King Manny Paquiao looming ahead this coming May 7th. The 39yr. old veteran has definitely had his ups and downs since his rise to the elite level of boxing. Shane was undefeated as a lightweight champion and after stopping all 9 challengers he jumped two weight classes to defeat Oscar Delahoya for his WBC and IBA Welterweight titles back in 2000.
Despite fighting many of the best fighters in the game from the welterweight division up to the light-middleweight division, “Sugar” has a record to be proud of. At 46-6-1 with 39 K.O.s Mosley is considered a legend in the sport. After two unspectacular performances in a row, Mosley’s stock had dropped a little, and Antonio Margarito had turned down big money to rematch Paul Williams to prey on the struggling Shane Mosley. Shane came into that fight a 4-1 underdog. Early 2009, I personally remember staring in awe at the television screen as Shane broke the feared Antonio Margarito down and annihilated him in the 9th rd. Shane’s power and boxing ability blended together so beautifully that night it immediately launched him right back to the forefront of the welterweight division.
Unfortunately Mosley looked so good that nobody wanted to get into the ring with him after they witnessed the destruction of Margarito. He was forced to sit on the shelf for a whole year waiting for a super fight to materialize. Finally WBC Welterweight Champion Andre Berto took the bait, but Mother Nature rocked Berto’s native homeland, (Haiti) and the young champion stepped up to the plate and called off the fight in order to launch a very successful humanitarian aid campaign in Haiti. Berto had lost several blood relatives in the monster quake so he was forced to step aside leaving the door open for none other than Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Suddenly boxing fans had an even bigger fight to look forward to. Mosley came up way short against Mayweather who came to the fight very well prepared along with faster hands and a superior game plan. Who is to blame? I have to say Nasim Richardson can take some of the blame off of Mosley’s shoulders, but to be completely honest who in the world could have guessed Mayweather would be the aggressor, smothering Shane’s power with constant pressure the way he did? Conditioning was definitely a factor, and Mosley was visibly struggling to maintain Mayweather’s pace. After losing a lopsided performance to Floyd, Shane didn’t help his cause by fighting to a draw against relatively unknown, Sergio Mora in the Jr.Middleweight division.
Is Manny Paquiao stepping right into the same trap Antonio Margarito fell victim to? A lot of fans are a little disappointed Paquiao chose Mosley instead of Andre Berto or Juan Manuel Marquez who has already fought Manny twice in the featherweight division. Their first fight ended in a controversial draw, and the second contest, held 5yrs. later ended in a close controversial decision in favor of Paquiao. My point is that while a lot of people are over looking Shane Mosley, he and the great trainer, Nasim Richarson are now in the perfect position to shock the world…again. I am positive Richardson is more than just excited to get the chance to outwit Freddie Roach and prove everybody wrong. They realize they now have a chance to make up for the last two fights. Maybe they can actually learn from the those fights to better prepare for what Paquiao brings to the table. Mosley is pretty fast.
I don’t know who will be faster than who but I do know Mosley has the height and reach advantage. At 5’9 Shane is 3 inches taller than Manny. Shane has a 76‘inch reach and Paquiao is 5’6 with a 67’ inch reach. once again Paquiao is giving up a size advantage, while Manny is expected to be the more conditioned fighter. One good thing for fans to look forward to is a equal fight in terms of power. Both men have the capability to hurt the other, and I am especially interested in how the early rounds will play out, when Paquiao will have to be more wary of Mosley’s power punching.
If Shane is sincere when he say’s he intends to knock Pacquiao out, I am expecting him to raise his conditioning to another level. I am also looking for Nazim Richardson to have Shane prepared for an all out war, instead of Shane depending on a one punch knock out. Shane needs to acknowledge and understand that even when he took out Margarito, it was an accumulation of shots over the course of the fight that broke the Tijuana Tornado down in the 9th round. If Shane thinks he is going to dramatically take out Manny Pacquiao with one shot, like he was depending on in the Mayweather fight,I believe Shane is going to be in for a long, rough night. If he and Brother Nasim come prepared meaning well conditioned, with a great game plan, and Shane can actually stick to and carry out that plan, “Sugar” Shane Mosley can shock the world again on May 7th!