“Sugar” Shane Mosley is desperate for a fight with Manny Pacquiao and I have the evidence to prove it.
Below you will find a press release sent by the Entertainers and Athletes Group today at 2:43 P.M. Pacific Standard Time
MANNY PACQUIAO ACCEPTS CHALLENGE TO MEET ?SUGAR? SHANE MOSLEY IN MEGA FIGHT
Los Angeles, CA, June 3, 2009?Pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao has agreed to meet WBA Welterweight Champion ?Sugar? Shane Mosley in a mega-fight at a catch weight.
In an interview today with Filipino news organization GMA News, Manny Pacquiao agreed to Mosley?s dare to meet in the ring. ?No problem, we can fight. As long we negotiate,” Pacquiao said from his hometown, General Santos City.
Mosley countered, ?Now that Manny has stated that he is ready to fight me, the only thing left to finish are negotiations. Richard Schaefer and Bob Arum are working out the details now. I will be ready to fight Pacquiao on October 17th.?
Mosley has agreed to a 40-60 split and is willing to fight at a catch weight to meet Pacquiao in the ring.
Mosley last faced Antonio Margarito in January 2009 and delivered a ninth-round knockout. Pacquiao is coming off a second-round knock-out victory over Ricky Hatton in May.
Apparently Pacquiao made public comments about his willingness to fight and Mosley’s representation took the ball and ran the rest of the 99 yards needed to score a Pac-Man touchdown.
It is clear that the release is just spin, and should be evident to any intelligent boxing scribe or media outlet, due to the fact it came from Team Mosley and not from Golden Boy Promotions — Mosley’s promoter.
When a fight is set and ready to go, the promoter will send out a release announcing the fight, not the fighter’s personal management.
Mosley has been chasing Pacquiao, or any other star in and around the welterweight class, since he upset Antonio Marga-Cheat-O in Janurary.
After that surprising watershed victory, Mosley has told anyone who will listen,including myself, that he wants a crack at the pound for pound champion Manny Pacquiao.
Taking an opponent’s words, twisting them in a press release, and making it seem like a fight between you and the said fighter is immanent looks down right desperate and bush league; two descriptors that have never been used to describe the ever-classy and gracious Mosley.
As fellow boxing thinker John Chavez wrote yesterday, Pacquiao vs. Mosley might make the most sense, but the media move Mosley no closer into the ring with Pacquiao.
Mosley deserves a fight with Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Junior, or Miguel Cotto, but this sort of press release does nothing but cheapen Mosley and make him look desperate.
For the record, promoter Bob Arum quickly nixed reports of the fight being close to finalized and stated Pacquiao will wait until Floyd Mayweather faces Juan Manuel Marquez on July 18 to make a decision on his October 17 opponent.
Bottom line, EAG’s press release made Mosley look down right silly.
Final Punch
My favorite fight pick of the week goes to Michael Carbajal vs Humberto “Chiquita” Gonzalez I. If you have ever seen a world class flyweight fight end so suddenly and surprisingly? Even more importantly, have you ever seen Michael Buffer and Jimmy Lennon in the same ring again?
