This Saturday night two of boxing’s elite fighters will try and make up for a missed opportunity with what hopes to be a Super Fight of the ages. Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Shane Mosley will do what Mayweather vs. Pacquiao couldn’t do and that is step into the ring and attempt to give boxing a much needed facelift. Whether a casual or hardcore boxing fan, this is a rare fight that is worth shelling out the $50 to order.
There are some in boxing that have gone on record and say that Mayweather vs. Mosely could actually be a better fight than Pacquiao vs. Mayweather. Knowing that boxing fans were just a needle or two away from seeing Pacquiao vs. Mayweather this weekend is something that is still hard to shake. Yet unlike Manny Pacquiao’s camp, the Mayweather camp put their money where their mouth is and actually went out and signed a competitive fight for Money Mayweather. Shane Mosely is not going to be a pushover for Floyd Mayweather.
[adinserter block=”1″]Shane Mosley is 7-1 in his last eight fights, with his only loss in the series coming via decision to Miguel Cotto. At 38 years old, his conditioning will always be a question. Shane Mosely went the distance in most of those fights. On top of that, Mosley knocked out Ricardo Mayorga in 2008 in the 12th round, so the guy can still go. Yet as we have all seen in boxing and MMA, father time can sneak up on you without any warnings. It is fair to ask every time a 38-year old fighter steps into the ring if his next fight will be his last.
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. does nothing but win. His showmanship often turns off boxing purists, yet there is no denying his talent. He and his family’s controversy outside of the ring withstanding, there has been no sign of Mayweather slowing down. He put on a clinic against Juan Manuel Marquez in September after close to a year layoff. Nobody had ever accused Mayweather of being slow and sloppy, but his knockout power has been in question. His TKO over Ricky Hatton was enough to convince doubters of his power. Like him or not, Money Mayweather is arguably the greatest boxer of his generation.
Shane Mosley changed trainers coming into this fight. The legendary Naazim Richardson has taken over the training and corner duties in the Mosley camp. While Richardson is a huge upgrade, one has to question whether this will be a plus or a minus on fight day. Roger Mayweather is training his nephew as always and as unlikable as Roger is in some circles, there is no denying that the stability in the corner and training is a huge advantage in this fight for Money Mayweather.
I don’t claim to be a boxing expert, but I have watched the last several Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather fights. I think that Mosely has a chance, but it is going to be rough. I don’t think Shane Mosely can outbox Floyd Mayweather, Jr. I question whether he can handle the speed of Mayweather coming in and out with jabs for twelve rounds. But, I do think that Mosley has the advantage if he can turn Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather into a slugfest. If somehow or another Mosley can take a few rounds, frustrate Mayweather, and get him to engage than I feel that Mosley has a great chance of nailing a couple lucky punches. The only problem with that is in 40 fights nobody has been able to frustrate the steady Mayweather and break his focus. It just doesn’t happen.
[adinserter block=”2″]Taking a look at the sportsbook odds, it isn’t surprising to see Floyd Mayweather as a heavy favorite against Shane Mosley. Mayweather is a -450 favorite as of this writing. That sounds about right. Shane Mosley is a +250 underdog. While Mosley is probably not going to win, those are tremendous odds on a guy that does have a shot here of winning. I expected +150, but +250 aren’t bad odds if you are looking for a long shot this weekend. Although it does tell you how confident the bookmakers are in Floyd Mayweather beating Shane Mosley on Saturday night.
The biggest disappointment here is that it took fourteen years to make this fight happen. This could have been a Mega Fight if it had happened anywhere from 12-6 years ago. Claiming a win over Shane Mosley isn’t as impressive when you are beating him less than two years shy of his 40th birthday. A Mayweather win will do nothing to quell the critics that claim he is running from Manny Pacquiao and real competition. Personally, I find it mind boggling that the guy refusing to take the drug tests is the good guy but that is a different story for a different blog. Maybe Floyd is going to wait until Pacquiao turns 38 to fight him? I really do think that the Pacquiao vs. Mayweather fight will happen. Mayweather isn’t a dumb man by any means and he isn’t about to throw away the biggest payday of his career over a needle. Unfortunately he will never get the credit he deserves until Pacquiao vs. Mayweather happens.
Oh yeah, Mayweather by decision over Mosley.
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Mayweather vs Mosley is a steal. There's no other better fight for him than fighting pacquiao. PERIOD!
When u ask a guy to take a blood test thats not required by the pro boxing commission then why should he Pacquiao listen to Mayweather's never before outrageous demands of blood testing. The blood testing shows that Mayweather is obviously afraid of Pacquiao. Even if Pacquiao was to agree to Mayweather's demands Floyd will still duck the fight. Mayweather was 1st in line to fight Cotto when he was undefeated and the welterweight champ. We all saw how he ducked Cotto when Larry Merchant asked him about fighting Cotto after the Ricky Hatton fight.. Floyd ran into retirement to duck Cotto to fight the Big show instead. So why would u think Floyd is really serious about fighting Pacquiao? The reason why Floyd thinks he's on steroids is because Floyd ducked Cotto and Pacquiao beat the heck out of Cotto.
Floyd is talented but very scared to fight top elite fighter like Cotto (when undefeated), ducked Margarito, Ducked Kosta Tzu who already knocked out Zab Judah & Sharba Mitchell when Floyd fought them. Ducked the De La Hoya rematch when he won by split decision. The only reason why he's taking his chances with Shane is because Shane is almost 40. Never ever would Floyd have fought Shane when he was in his prime.
I see your point Luke BUT when a guy is willing to turn down $20 million because he won't take a steroid test, I have to ask questions. It just amazes me as to how Manny has become the sympathetic figure here. I think Floyd has done it himself just by being as cocky and arrogant as he is.
I do agree with you that Floyd's unwillingness to fight the best is an issue, although Pacquiao hasn't exactly been stepping into the ring with elite fighters lately either.