Together at last. After nearly a decade at the top of the sport pound-for-pound superstars Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather have arrived in Las Vegas on Tuesday in preparation for their much-anticipated superfight.
Shane Mosley and his team – led by trainer Naazim Richardson – have left their training camp in Big Bear, California. Floyd Mayweather, who trains in Las Vegas, is also making an appearance today at the MGM Grand, where the fight will be held Saturday. It is expected to be a huge financial hit, with a million PPV sales likely a very low estimate.
So much is at stake. Mayweather and Mosley are considered number two and three on almost all pound-for-pound lists and have had a long history with one another.
During the early years of their career it was Shane Mosley who was the older and more respected fighter. Shane had huge victories over Oscar De La Hoya and was considered the best in the sport. The slightly smaller Mayweather was eager to meet him in the ring, but a fight never happened.
As time went on, Floyd surpassed Shane’s accomplishments and became the bigger star. Floyd remained undefeated with victories over Oscar De La Hoya, Zab Judah, and Ricky Hatton while Shane suffered disappointing losses to Vernon Forrest and Winky Wright.
Still, it was a fight fans always wanted to see, and it looked like it might happen until Floyd went into a temporary retirement. Upon Mayweather’s return, Mosley – who had recently given one of the finest performances in his career in stopping Antonio Margarito – challenged Mayweather in the ring.
A near brawl broke out, and there was much vitriol between the camps, but it was only after a meeting between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fell apart over drug testing procedure that the long-anticipated fight was signed.
The winner of the bout will not only have bragging rights as arguably the best fighter of the 2000’s, but a clear path for an even bigger fight with Manny Pacquiao later this year. Pacquiao is running for congress in his native Philippines next month, but is considered likely to return to the ring later this year.
It’s been a long road, but both fighters are finally prepared to meet on Saturday night. While Mosley is in his late thirties he is still at the top of his game and considered the best fighter Mayweather has faced in his career thus far. It’s very rare to get two historically great fighters in the ring at the same time near the height of their powers; today they arrived in Las Vegas, on Saturday they’ll fight.
