Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.: Who are you picking?

Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.: Who are you picking?

By Eric Marks (April 27, 2010) Doghouse Boxing

As May 1st swiftly approaches we are treated to the year’s biggest fight thus far as ‘Sugar’ Shane Mosley and Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather square off for Mosley’s version of the welterweight title. Fans know this fight is years in the making and predictions are pouring in on the potential outcome. There are many questions surrounding this fight: Can Mosley knock out Mayweather? Can Mayweather hurt Mosley? Is Mosley too old to compete against an elite like Mayweather? Can Mayweather stand the pressure of fighting a true elite welterweight? How will their contrasting styles play out in this fight?

While we won’t have all the answers until fight night, it’s always entertaining to postulate the unknowns…so let’s briefly dissect this fight. First, it seems that we should expect a fit, fresh, and motivated Shane Mosley.   Mosley is an elite athlete—always in shape and full of confidence—and while he is probably not the fighter of say five years ago, he is well capable of competing and beating anyone in boxing even at 38 years old. I’d put forth that he has the capability to knock out Mayweather out, though penetrating Floyd tight defense will be challenging.   With regarding to Mayweather, there is nothing that we’ve seen that leads me to believe he will stop Mosley or is even interested in trying to stop Mosley, and the probability of him severely hurting Mosley (given Shane’s chin and skill) is slim.

The most likely scenario is that Floyd will work his jab and retreat back to his tight defense when Mosley tries to counter. It will be important for Shane to get some early rounds in the bank, so he doesn’t get too far behind in the score cards, causing him to feel pressure to go for a knock-out punch. We’ve seen this happen to Shane before in his fights with Vernon Forrest, Winky Wright, and even Oscar De La Hoya to a lesser degree (the second fight). He was getting peppered with jabs and resorting to throwing one punch at a time, never really getting into any kind of a rhythm. Of course Mayweather isn’t as big and tall as the aforementioned fighters, so, it’s unclear how Shane will handle Floyd’s jab. Shane will need to apply pressure all night and do his best establish a jab of his own.   Also, Shane will need to avoid being one-dimensional, as Mayweather’s ring intelligence allows him to adapt to fighters if a given strategy isn’t working.

This match-up of styles favors Mayweather who is a little younger and a little faster.   He is not the stationary target that Mosley saw in Margarito and the stick and move style of Mayweather is likely to give Shane some problems. Floyd never takes a fight that he doesn’t think he can win (perhaps he didn’t believe he could beat Mosley five years ago, but rest assured he does now) and the interest in a Floyd Mayweather/Manny Pacquiao mega-fight later this year will certainly motivate him and probably make it difficult for Mosley to win a close decision. In the end, Floyd should win a competitive but unanimous decision.   But regardless of the outcome, let’s hope this fight lives up to the hype and fans get their money’s worth.

Comments/disputes/questions?
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Eric at: ericmarks66@hotmail.com

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