LAS VEGAS (AP) — Even with two good eyes, Fernando Vargas never saw Shane Mosley’s perfect left hook.
Mosley stopped Vargas in the sixth round of their 154-pound rematch Saturday night, flattening Vargas with a walloping left hand for his second victory in the rivalry in five months.
A grotesque swelling that closed Vargas’ left eye caused the fighters’ first match to be stopped in the 10th round in February. But Sugar Shane had a plan that Vargas simply couldn’t see in the rematch — and it ended with a punch that caught Vargas completely by surprise.
“When I was in the ring, I remembered watching Oscar [De La Hoya] fight Vargas, and he threw that perfect left hook,” Mosley said, referring to the Golden Boy’s 11th-round TKO of Vargas four years ago. “I was bouncing around, and I saw the opportunity, and I threw the perfect left hook again.”
The charismatic four-time world champion is back on form after four losses from 2002-04, and he might get a matchup with Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Antonio Margarito next year if Mosley drops to 147 pounds.
Mosley was more aggressive and sharp from the opening bell, patiently landing the right hand that hurt Vargas repeatedly in their first fight. Vargas seemed frustrated and disorganized, never winning a clear-cut round.
Mosley opened a cut above Vargas’ right eye in the fifth round, but neither fighter had done much in the sixth until Vargas failed to block that crushing left hand from Mosley, buckling Vargas’ knees and sending him to the canvas.
“I thought I was doing well up until the left hook,” said Vargas, who never even saw the punch until he watched the replay. “I thought it was slowly going my way.”
Mosley climbed the ropes while Vargas twice struggled to get up. The fight resumed for 10 seconds, but Vargas couldn’t defend himself from Mosley’s final blows before referee Kenny Bayless stopped the fight with 22 seconds left in the round.
Vargas appeared weaker from the start, perhaps suffering from his weight fluctuations before the fight. He made weight on Friday, then apparently gained close to 14 pounds of hydration before the fight — which might have slowed him down.
But Mosley had a masterful plan in his first fight since reuniting with his father, Jack, who had trained him since his youth. They split after Sugar Shane’s second straight loss to Winky Wright in November 2004, but reunited for this fight with no hard feelings — and an excellent result.
“We were in the gym working real hard, and he was very inspirational, not only to me, but to everyone in the camp,” Mosley said.
Vargas was infuriated when the first fight was stopped, claiming he could have kept fighting despite the baseball-sized swelling that closed his eye. Vargas also blamed his corner for not keeping his eye open — and he blamed the injury on Mosley’s head-butts, even though few other observers agreed.
Mosley damaged Vargas in the first fight with dozens of quick right hands, not his head. The rematch was quickly set, thanks to the first fight’s entertaining matchup and impressive pay-per-view sales.
Though both fighters are from Southern California, the MGM Grand Garden crowd was solidly behind Vargas, the Oxnard native with a Mexican-American fan base that loves his mercurial style. After Vargas was cheered, Mosley received a chorus of boos when he entered the ring in a red sequined jacket.
Vargas made $3.4 million, and Mosley was guaranteed at least $3 million.
Before the fight, both boxers said their rivalry was unlikely to be a trilogy. Vargas plans to move up to 160 pounds, while Mosley almost certainly will go down to 147.
Both fighters drank water in their corners — and that was a big deal in some boxing circles. Mosley’s promoters got a temporary injunction Friday night preventing Vargas from drinking Gatorade during the fight, something that became legal earlier in the week with new rules adopted by the Nevada Athletic Commission.
On the undercard, Houston’s Juan Diaz retained his WBA lightweight title with a ninth-round TKO of Randy Suico. Daniel Ponce De Leon then defended his WBO junior featherweight belt with a stunning first-round knockout of Thailand’s Sod Looknongyangtoy.
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