NEW YORK ? Shane Mosley swears he wasn?t offended when oddsmakers installed Manny Pacquiao as a 7-1 favorite in their May 7 welterweight title fight in Las Vegas.
?I (couldn?t) care less,? Mosley said after a news conference Monday to promote the pay-per-view fight. ?I just figure somebody?s going to get rich.?
Betting on Mosley might be more tempting to Las Vegas gamblers if he wasn?t coming off back-to-back suspect performances against Sergio Mora and Floyd Mayweather Jr. The former three-division champion drew with Mora on Sept. 18 in Los Angeles, four months after failing to capitalize on hurting Mayweather in the second round of their May 1 bout in Las Vegas.
Mosley, 39, landed a coveted fight against Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KOs) only because the embattled Mayweather won?t commit to facing the Filipino superstar in what would be one of the biggest events in boxing history.
?I don?t know what to make of Floyd not fighting this fight,? said Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KOs, one NC), who?ll make $6 million for facing Pacquiao, plus a portion of the pay-per-view revenue. ?It?s mind-boggling to me. It?s like I said on Twitter; it feels like I?m doing Floyd?s dirty work.?
The odds would be much closer if Pacquiao and the undefeated Mayweather fought, but Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs) isn?t likely to consider boxing again until his upcoming legal battles conclude.
Mayweather, 33, is due back in a Las Vegas courtroom March 10 for a hearing on felony charges of coercion, grand larceny and robbery, and misdemeanor domestic battery and harassment charges. The charges stem from a Sept. 9 incident at the home of his ex-girlfriend, Josie Harris, the mother of three of Mayweather?s children.
Mayweather also will stand trial on a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from a Nov. 15 incident with a security guard outside his home.
?If (the Mayweather) fight happens,? Pacquiao said, ?it?s good for me because the fans want it to happen. But I just pray that everything turns out OK with his personal life.?
Mayweather dominated Mosley for 10 rounds after Mosley hurt him with a right hand early in the second round of their fight at MGM Grand, also the site of the Pacquiao-Mosley fight. Still, Pacquiao doesn?t expect an easy night against a legendary fighter who defeated Antonio Margarito two years ago in Los Angeles even easier than Pacquiao did Nov. 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
?He still can fight,? Pacquiao said. ?He still has hand speed. He still has power. … I need to train hard because they?re expecting too much from me.?
BRIEFS: Pacquiao, 32, said he won?t retire after fighting Mosley, despite the demands of the congressman?s political life in the Philippines. … Promoter Bob Arum said Monday he hopes former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik will return to the ring on the Pacquiao-Mosley undercard. Pavlik (36-2, 32 KOs) has not fought since Argentina?s Sergio Martinez (46-2-2, 25 KOs) outpointed him April 17 in Atlantic City. Pavlik, 28, underwent treatment for alcohol addiction at the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., in November and December. … Pacquiao traveled to Washington after Monday?s news conference. He?ll meet today with Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) before heading back to the Philippines to begin training camp. Reid, the Senate majority leader, befriended Pacquiao through Arum, a longtime Las Vegas resident.
