When Shane Mosley steps into the ring against Manny Pacquiao on Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, he will, at least according to some of the boxing cognoscenti, undergo some of the same torments of the damned found in a Hieronymus Bosch triptych or a detail from Breughel the Elder.
No sooner was Pacquiao-Mosley announced, in fact, than the baying began. Since this bout was signed, however, the fighters put forth as suitable opponents for Pacquiao have proven their (un)worth. Tim Bradley, for example, hardly boosted his stock by participating in an absurd cotillion with Devon Alexander in Pontiac, Michigan, in the SUPERFIGHT of 2011; and Andre Berto, who was probably little more than a red herring thrown into the mix last January by Bob Arum, was given the ?Marathon Man? treatment by Victor Ortiz. One thing is for sure: If Berto was indeed a red herring in the Pacquiao-Mosley negotiations, it remains his biggest accomplishment thus far in boxing. In addition, Juan Manuel Marquez reportedly talked himself out of a third fight with Pacquiao and, as of this writing, remains a lightweight. Enter Shane Mosley, to the derision of most.
This kind of fight has been a staple of boxing for well over 100 years. From Jim Jeffries whittling down Bob Fitzsimmons to Joe Louis pummeling Max Baer and Jack Sharkey to Sugar Ray Robinson carrying a creaky Henry Armstrong to Muhammad Ali upsetting the dope against George Foreman?faded ex-champions have always earned bouts simply by having a name and a readymade history to recall. (You can almost hear the cyber-echo now: ?Just because something has been happening for 100 years?does that make it right?? Well, go on and ask yourself that when you reach for the remote control, buddy.)
It is also worth noting that Pacquiao has had more fights than Mosley, has been knocked out twice, and is fighting above his best weight. Mosley has been a pro for 18 years and Pacquiao has been fighting for 16 years. In other words, this is not Rocky Marciano, on the rise, pummeling Joe Louis. Nor is it Terry Norris, approaching his peak, battering Sugar Ray Leonard. With guys like Saul Alvarez (two of his last three fights have been against men with nearly 20 years on him) and Chad Dawson (whose record of elder abuse is unmatched) running amok, you would think that Pacquiao, at 32, would get a break at least in the age advantage department.
Still, boxing almost always eats its young, and what it does to its middle-aged is even worse, if you can imagine that. It will be a miracle if Mosley, 46-6-1 (39), can avoid the same destiny most shopworn ex-champions suffer, and his last performance, a draw against Sergio Mora, makes it seem even unlikelier. Mosley looked like he crawled out of an opium den just before the opening bell against Mora, and he spent 12 desultory rounds trying to work his limbs through some sort of low-grade fever. But Mosley was aggressive, made the fight?such as it was or was not?and appeared to earn the ?W.? To make things worse, Mora would go on to lose a decision to a rudimentary clubfighter, Brian Vera, in his next bout.
Before his struggles with Mora, Mosley nearly dropped Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the second round, but he failed to score the knockout, and Mayweather Jr. recovered to give ?Sugar? a cringeworthy beating. Naazim Richardson, with all his wisdom and wit, may be the 21st century boxing equivalent of Oscar Wilde (at least to most boxing writers, who, of course, are great admirers of gibberish), but allowing Mosley to take drawn out punishment round after round, at age 38, hardly seemed like a wise move.
So, why is this fight being made? How about roughly $70 million in revenue just from pay-per-view buys alone? Add to that foreign broadcast rights, a healthy site fee, a multimillion dollar gate, replay rights, and advertising returns and you have all the reasons that ultimately matter in boxing.
Even so, Mosley has practically been declared DOA for this bout despite the fact that chalkeaters all over the world have been choking on their bets the last few weeks as longshot after longshot has upset the odds. Erik Morales, who got some of the treatment (certainly on TCS) before his bout with Marcos Maidana, also came close to turning conventional wisdom on it head. Unlike Morales, however, Mosley did not lose four fights in a row?half of them by KO?and he did not retire for two and a half years (after complaining about buzzing in his head) and return to the ring 15 pounds over his best fighting weight.
Is Mosley really a 100% no-hoper when he ducks through the ropes against Pacquiao? The first thing to note is that Mosley is not Peter McNeeley or Freddy Hernandez. He has been a topnotch professional fighter for well over a decade. Of course, he has never been the ?P-4-P? great that kneejerk experts have claimed from fight to fight, according to his fortunes at the moment, but he is a world-class boxer with a slew of accomplishments.
In addition, Mosley, 39, is the hardest hitter Pacquiao has faced in years. With power in either hand, Mosley can still pose a danger?albeit it a limited one?to any fighter with defensive lapses. And Pacquiao?who has ended most of his fights at welterweight scraped and bruised?certainly fits that description. Although Pacquiao beat Antonio Margarito like a Penitente last November, he also took some heavy shots and looked exhausted at the final bell.
Pacquiao, 52-3-2 (38), has also taken to curiously absorbing blows for no apparent reason. This is a fairly recent mannerism, one seen mostly in his welterweight fights. Against Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, and Antonio Margarito, Pacquiao would simply set himself in the middle of the ring, put his gloves up, and let his opponent chop at him like a lumberjack going at an oak. Against Mosley this mannerism can turn into misfortune in a flash. Either Pacquiao does not have the legs at welterweight to move for three minutes of every round, or he is playing to the crowd in an effort to make things a little more interesting. Either way, letting a man who hits as hard as Shane Mosley get free shots is not the MENSA thing to do. If Pacquiao decides to indulge in this new habit, it might cost him more than anybody could have imagined.
Other than that scenario, however, things look pretty bleak for Mosley, Pomona, California. Mosley will look to circle to his left in order to keep Pacquiao turning and then try to drop a right over the top. Whether he has the footwork or coordination to stick to this plan is another question altogether. Most likely not. In that case, his chances are reduced to landing a single well-timed counterpunch when Pacquiao darts in to flurry. In close, where Pacquiao is not effective, Mosley will have to keep busy and work the body. He is a middling infighter at best, but when some space opens up in the clinches, he looks to rip hard lefts from body to head and back again. Mosley, like most Pacquiao opponents, will have a significant edge in height and reach.
As for Pacquiao, he will fight in his customary fireball style throwing everything he can at Mosley in jolting bursts. Nearly every one of his fights is exciting, including his washout of Antonio Margarito last November, a fight that some members of the moral brigade excoriated in limited English before easing back into their La-Z-Boys to watch it. Pacquiao, General Santos City, Cotabato del Sur, Philippines, has had only a handful of sub par performances over the last 10 years against Agapito Sanchez, for example and has been dull only once, when Joshua Clottey decided to play innocent bystander for 12 rounds last year in Dallas. When he enters the ring against Mosley on Saturday night, Pacquiao will do his best to make the fight entertaining. And Mosley will do his best to win for as long as he can withstand the inferno in the ring with him.
