By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse
Although trainer, Roger Mayweather, is confident that Floyd Mayweather will emerge victorious from Saturday night's clash with Shane Mosley, he is not necessarily among those who believes his nephew will stop the WBA welterweight (147 pounds) champion in their HBO pay per view-televised bout.
"Yes I would be surprised," Roger Mayweather responded when asked during a live chat with Michael David Smith of FanHouse on Tuesday if he would be surprised if Floyd Jr. knocked out Mosley in the eighth or ninth round.
"My nephew is a well-skilled boxer, a great counter-puncher, and a great defensive fighter," said Roger Mayweather. "But Shane Mosley isn't a guy who is going to go out there and lay down. He's fought guys who punch harder than my nephew."
Roger Mayweather pointed out, however, that Floyd Mayweather's general talents -- not just his speed -- are what makes him, perhaps, boxing's best fighter, pound-for-pound.
"One thing people don't understand about boxing is that speed doesn't make you a great boxer. Skill is what makes you a great boxer, not how much speed or power you have," said Roger Mayweather.
"You have to have it all," said Roger Mayweather. "When Muhammad Ali got beat by Joe Frazier, it wasn't that Joe Frazier had more speed than Muhammad Ali, it was that he boxed better."
Perhaps the funniest thing Roger Mayweather may have said was in response to what worried him most about Mosley.
"Probably whether he passes the [drug] test and comes out clean, instead of coming out dirty. But I'm just worried about winning," said Roger Mayweather, making a referance to the fact that both fighters are being randomly tested for steroids by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
But then, Roger Mayweather got serious.
"I'd have to say that [drugs] are a big problem now. It wasn't big when I was fighting, but it's big now. That's all I hear about. All these guys taking this, all these guys taking that. That's what we have to have the tests for," said Mayweather.
"These tests allow guys not to have to take anything because they know the other guy won't be taking anything," said Mayweather. "If a guy is dirty and is winning fights and isn't getting tested, something is wrong. Guys shouldn't be allowed to get away with taking drugs. That's what the test is for."
The 33-year-old Floyd Mayweather takes a record of 40-0, with 25 knockouts into his match up with the 38-year-old Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs), who ranks as the largest, and, perhaps most physically powerful and imposing opponent that Mayweather has ever faced.
"Eventually Floyd will lose because everyone loses eventually," wrote one chatter, who asked Mayweather, "When he does [lose,] how do you think he will react to that?"
"Why would you say everybody loses? Rocky Marciano didn't lose. He fought a bunch of old dudes but he didn't lose. Not everybody has to lose," said Roger Mayweather. "But it's not all about whether he loses. He has already done great, no matter what else he does. Not many guys have won six world championships like Floyd has."
Mosley is coming off of January's ninth-round knockout of Antonio Margarito, stopping the hard-punching Mexican fighter for the first time in his career and dethroning him as WBA titlist.
A former IBF lightweight champion, Mosley has fought at welterweight or higher exclusively since relinquishing his lightweight belt in 1999, including seven bouts at junior middleweight (154 pounds), and one other at 148 pounds -- an April, 2005 decision over David Estrada.
At junior middleweight, Mosley has twice stopped former world champion, Fernando Vargas, knocked out former world titlist, Ricardo Mayorga, and earned his second win over former world champ, Oscar de la Hoya -- the latter for the WBC and WBA crowns in September of 2003.
Mosley also twice lost to Winky Wright at 154 pounds.
Mayweather has fought at welterweight five times, and, once as a junior middleweight, weighing 150 pounds against the 154-pound de la Hoya during his May, 2007 split-decision victory.
Mayweather's welterweight victories were knockouts of Sharmba Mitchell and Ricky Hatton, and decisions over Zab Judah,
Carlos Baldomir, and, Juan Manuel Marquez, with Marquez, and, Hatton, respectively, rising from lightweight (135 pounds), and, junior welterweight (140 pounds) to face him.
Roger Mayweather said that he doesn't believe that his nephew has much time left in the sport, and that retirement may be closer than most people realize.
"I don't think he's going to fight that much longer. Floyd has had a tremendous career. I don't think he has much to prove. He's already the greatest fighter in the world, and has several world championships," said Mayweeather.
"So Floyd can retire and be remembered as one of the greatest fighters ever," said Mayweather. "For him, anything else he does is just another step in achieving greatness, retiring as the greatest fighter ever."
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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