Why the Mayweather-Mosley Fight Passes the Test -- TIME

By Sean Gregory, TIME

Go ahead, call it the "I Really Wish This Was The Pacquiao-Mayweather Fight, Part 2." On Saturday night in Las Vegas, Floyd Mayweather, still pound-for-pound the best fighter in America with a career record of 40-0 and 25 knockouts, will square off against "Sugar" Shane Mosley, 46-5, 39 KOs. A welterweight mega-fight, indeed, but after Mayweather and the man regarded as the best boxer on the planet, Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines, came tantalizingly close to staging the fight the world has waited for, it can't help but feel like a letdown; the talks for that bout broke down in late December after Mayweather demanded that Pacquiao undergo rigorous, Olympic-level blood testing for performance enhancing drugs, and Pacquiao refused, fearing it would weaken him before the fight. Since their fight fizzled, Pacquiao pummeled Joshua Clottey on March 13 in Dallas, the first chapter of the fights boxing fans wish were the real deal, and now Mayweather will fight Mosley.

Mayweather-Mosley, however, could end up being an influential fight in its own right — and ironically enough, it's because of enhanced drug testing. For the first time, two boxers have agreed to subject themselves to blood tests that can detect HGH, the performance-enhancing substance that remains undetectable in the basic urine testing used by state boxing commissions, as well as the major U.S. professional sports leagues. It's fair to wonder if Mayweather is posturing by suddenly demanding blood tests once he's about to fight Pacquiao, the Filipino phenom who threatens his unblemished record. And Mosley, who admitted to unknowingly taking steroids back in 2003, is trying to clear his name. But the bottom line is that this fight has set a precedent for fair play in a sport, and sports world, that badly needs it.

As of the Thursday evening before the bout, the boxers had been tested about 15 times between them; by subjecting themselves to the needle, they've come closer than any major non-Olympic athlete in this country to assuring fans, who will have to pay $54.94 to watch the fight on HBO pay-per-view, that the competition is truly clean. "This is significant," says Travis Tygart, CEO of the United States Anti-Doping Committee. "Hopefully this encourages others to do the same thing, and creates a groundswell movement for blood-testing in sports."

Will that ever happen? Within boxing, a sport where an uneven playing field can have dire consequences — it's one thing for a juiced-up jock to crush a ball with a bat, it's quite another for him to smash an opponent's skull — the Mayweather bout is creating some momentum. Tygart says that several state commissions have approached him about implementing Olympic drug testing. The New York State Athletic Commission has promised to improve its testing. In the heavyweight division, Russian title contender Alexander Povetkin has demanded that both he and champ Vladimir Klitschko submit blood to the World Anti-Doping Agency, the top performance-enhancing drug cops on the planet.

"Promoters who represent clean fighters are going to push this," says Marc Ganis, president of SportsCorp, a consulting firm. "They are not going to want to be at a chemically-induced disadvantage." A German television network even agreed to extend a deal with a promoter only if its fighters submitted to random blood tests.

The anti-doping initiative has Mayweather's camp thumping its chest. "Floyd Mayweather transcends his sport in so many ways," says Leonard Ellerbe, the fighter's manager. "The fact that he's leading by example speaks volumes." But just because Mayweather appeared on Dancing With The Stars in 2007 doesn't mean athletes across all sports will suddenly embrace blood testing, which, the argument often goes, is too invasive and expensive a procedure. Major league players, for example, will likely resist such a measure once the current labor contract expires in 2011, or at least use it as a crucial bargaining chip in negotiations with owners. "Boxing doesn't have anywhere near the clout to influence other sports in America, and around the world," says Ganis. "It's silly to think that boxing will be able to accomplish what the international anti-doping authorities has yet to be able to."

So at the very least, the Mayweather-Mosley bout could pressure Pacquiao into accepting the stricter testing terms Mayweather has demanded. And then the series of "I Really Wish This Was Mayweather-Pacquiao" fights could finally come to an end.

Source: time.com

Mayweather-Mosley long overdue, but should produce classic welterweight fight -- Grand Rapids Press

By Josh Slagter, The Grand Rapids Press

LAS VEGAS -- That a natural conclusion sometimes takes much longer to reach than expected does not make it less natural. And so it is when Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley share a prizering tonight, in a welterweight blockbuster, with Mayweather in his 14th year as a pro and Mosley embarking on his 18th.

If fights produce vengeful reactions by their very nature, they are quite unlike revenge itself, in that they are not necessarily dishes best served cold.

Nevertheless, a long-delayed duke does not necessarily prove unsatisfactory, as untold fights throughout history have demonstrated.

There is little doubt among most insiders that while Mayweather-Mosley could prove a few years overripe, it remains the second-best possible matchup in the sport, right behind Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao.

So when the bright lights shine down on the 20-foot ring tonight at MGM Grand Garden Arena -- where Mayweather solidified his career with historic wins over Diego Corrales, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton; and where Mosley twice resurrected his career with rematch victories over De La Hoya and Fernando Vargas -- neither man will concern himself with the myriad reasons they didn't do this before.

There only will be Mayweather's pursuit to continue fistic perfection.

And Mosley's effort to shatter it.

Experts consider Mosley a live underdog, yet an underdog nonetheless, based on creaky suspicions about his 38-year-old reflexes and never having seen the Grand Rapids native Mayweather fail.

Two seemingly contradictory theories are at play: One, never pick against an undefeated fighter, which Mayweather is; and two, never pick against the promoter's man, with Mosley a partner in Golden Boy Promotions.

Nevertheless, the fact remains that Mayweather is fighting for the fourth consecutive time under the Golden Boy banner, has brought that company massive riches in his victories over De La Hoya, Hatton and Juan Manuel Marquez, and holds far greater potential for continuing to do so, at 33, than Mosley does with five more years and five more losses.

Tonight, in 12 rounds or less, Mosley will attempt to defuse all such theories with quickness and speed more conducive to success against Mayweather than any man to test him previously, if those attributes haven’t eroded too much.

Mayweather said Mosley’s skill set never was good enough. He criticized Mosley’s defense and jab as substandard, and said the fight is a whitewash without them.

Mosley, who admits going for a knockout in every fight, also tends to overcommit to power punches. Lunging off-balance could put him at a huge disadvantages against Mayweather’s counterpunching acumen.

"I think he's a fighter that always worries about landing one big shot,” Mayweather said. “He's worried about who is extremely strong and I'm worried about being smart and winning. So we approach the fight in two total different ways, always."

Mosley, to his credit, has the best speed-and-power combination Mayweather ever has seen, and has not locked himself publicly into a game plan, saying that “What makes me Sugar Shane is being able to box, and being able to punch, and being able to slip and slide, and being able to do everything that boxing imparts."

“I never want to get into a situation where I say 'OK, I'm going to pressure this guy, I'm going to fight him,' then I've got to live up to pressuring the guy for the whole 12 rounds, and play into his game and then, when I don't pressure him, they start marking off rounds that I didn't win the fight, because I didn't pressure him,” Mosley said.

The fight didn’t happen in 1999, when Jack Mosley said the fight should be worth eight figures to his son at a time neither man was making seven figures. It didn’t happen in the first half of the last decade after Mosley surpassed Mayweather’s marketability with two wins over De La Hoya, nor in the second half of that decade when Mosley stood in this same ring after beating Vargas in 2006 and said he needed a vacation.

It only regained footing when Mayweather-Pacquiao talks failed.

Now that their near-parallel paths finally have converged in natural conclusion, Mayweather predicted that Mosley’s post-fight response also will represent a natural conclusion.

"You know what he's going to say: 'I didn't know he was that fast, I didn't know he was that strong, he's very, very difficult to hit,’” Mayweather said. “Yeah. That's what they all say."

E-mail David Mayo: dmayo@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/David_Mayo

Mayweather-Mosley: Previewing the megafight

Source: mlive.com

Who R U Kidding: Manny Pacquiao pound for pound title secure -- Examiner

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

MICHAEL MARLEY'S PHILIPPINES DIARY, PART 4

DATELINE, GENERAL SANTOS CITY

7 Things That Will Not Be Proven Or Disproven As Mosley-Mayweather Fight Unfolds:

1.No matter how this bout turns out, the Number One certainty is that, until anyone beats him in the ring and not at the ballot box, Manny Pacquiao remains the Pound For Pound king. The winner in Vegas is either Mayweather remaining Numero Dos or Mosley elbowing his way into that runnerup slot.

2.Whether Naazim Richardson is one of the top tier trainers extant. He could well be but it would be unfair to dump on him should his 38 year old horse run second to Thoroughbred Mayweather.

3.Unless this bout is exciting, Mayweather will retain his title (see illsutration) as “The Face of Boring.”

4.That Kenny Bayless is NOT the top referee in all of boxing. If he made 10 key mistakes in this bout, Bayless would retain his own, unofficial “title.” He is smoother than melted butter.

5.That Mayweather really, in his heart of hearts, wants to fight Pacquiao. Instead of telling Manny to bring it on in the wake of victory, expect Mayweather to go on another mind-numbing speech about how he wants to clean up the sport, make it drug free, blah, blah, blah. The public has long ago tuned Money May out on this broken record topic.

6.We will get a gauge as to who is a tougher opponent, Mosley for Mayweather or political rival and slick billionaire Roy Chiongbian for Pacman in Sarangani.

7.That a valiant albeit losing effort might still yield worthy foe Mosley a Pacman payday. There is real affection for Mosley within Manny's Inner Circle as opposed to Mayweather's “Gossip Girl” persona.

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

Keith Kizer: Nevada Athletic Commission won't close door on adding USADA testing -- Grand Rapids Press

By David Mayo, The Grand Rapids Press

LAS VEGAS -- The Nevada Athletic Commission allowed expanded drug testing as a contractual negotiating point for tonight’s Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley fight but that doesn’t mean it will push for such testing as its standard.

Keith Kizer, executive director of the powerful boxing commission, said it always seeks to improve its regulatory authority in practical and economically feasible methods, although blood testing is neither on the immediate agenda, nor ruled out.

"We've never foreclosed ourselves from anything,” Kizer said. “We added the steroid testing back in 2000, 2001. We added the out-of-competition drug testing a few years back. As our budget allows, we made a few changes on that.”

Mayweather pushed for random blood and urine testing, under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, in his failed negotiations for a fight with Manny Pacquiao. Mosley subsequently agreed to those terms.

Mayweather has said such testing will be a mandate for all his future fights.

The Nevada commission will conduct its own pre-fight and post-fight urine testing tonight, as per its statute. USADA officials requested the right to get its post-fight urine sample before the state commission “and we said absolutely not,” Kizer said.

Kizer called the USADA testing “purely supplemental and we appreciate that.”

As for the possibility that recent improvements in blood testing for human growth hormone might make expanded drug testing desirable -- the New York commission chairman has said that body intends to investigate that very possibility -- Kizer said the Nevada commission will “never close the door on adding to or improving our regulation."

Mayweather has faith in Garcia
Mayweather demanded enhanced drug testing even though he used pain-killing injections earlier in his career, when he suffered from frequent hand injuries. He hasn’t had a major hand issue in several years.

Asked about that issue this week, he skirted the question and said his hand issues were alleviated after he worked a few months with hand-wrap specialist Rafael Garcia, who joined his team in 2001.

“I didn't do nothing wrong,” he said. “They didn't find nothing in my system. I've got Rafael. All I've got to say is I've got Rafael and Rafael has done a tremendous job. Rafael Garcia has done a tremendous job. You get what you pay for in life. You want your hands wrapped the best, so you won't have any hand problems? Get Rafael Garcia."

Aging gracefully
Mayweather and Mosley had similar takes on how their habits have changed as older fighters.

"When you're 21, 22, even though you're in training camp, you're going out clubbing,” Mayweather said. “I didn't have no vice but you're going out clubbing and, in the last three weeks, the last two weeks, you're in the house, just chilling. But now the main thing is just coming to the gym, doing my job, just going home, watching basketball. Just living life.”

Mosley said when he was “22, 23 years old, I could work out the whole day, train the whole day, come back the next day and do the same thing, next day do the same thing. As you get older, you can't train recklessly the whole day and then expect to come back the next day."

Source: mlive.com

Odds & ends: Floyd Mayweather remains confident about his place in boxing history -- Grand Rapids Press

By David Mayo, The Grand Rapids Press

THE GREATEST?

Floyd Mayweather has talked plenty of junk, as usual, leading into tonight's fight against Shane Mosley. But not all the targets have been Mosley and some aren't even active fighters.

In stating his case that he is the greatest prizefighter in history, Mayweather took direct aim at some of the sport's legends, including the greatest of all.

"Whatever they've done, if they've done something, I've done it quicker, with no L's," he said. "You say Ken Norton, all three fights? No body shots? Huh? Leon Spinks, seven fights, beat you? OK."

The reference, of course, is to Muhammad Ali, who struggled to win two out of three against Norton -- with both wins disputed -- and lost his title, then regained it, in a pair of 1978 fights against the young Spinks.

POUND-FOR-POUND RATINGS

The Ring magazine: 1. Manny Pacquiao; 2. Mayweather; 3. Mosley; 4. Juan Manuel Marquez; 5. Nonito Donaire; 6. Bernard Hopkins; 7. Miguel Cotto; 8. Chad Dawson; 9. Paul Williams; 10. Celestino Caballero.

Yahoo! Sports: 1. Pacquiao; 2. Mayweather; 3. Mosley; 4. Williams; 5. Marquez; 6. Dawson; 7. Wladimir Klitschko; 8. Sergio Martinez; 9. Hopkins; 10. Timothy Bradley.

David Mayo's vote: 1. Pacquiao; 2. Mayweather; 3. Klitschko; 4. Williams; 5. Hopkins; 6. Dawson. 7. Juan Manuel Lopez; 8. Mosley; 9. Martinez; 10. Lucian Bute. (Mayo is on the Yahoo! Sports voting panel.)

MEDIA PICKS

•Steve Carp, Las Vegas Review-Journal: Mayweather decision.
•Tim Dahlberg, Associated Press: Mayweather decision.
•Gareth Davies, The Telegraph (U.K.): Mayweather decision.
•Doug Fischer, RingTV.com: Mosley decision.
•Norm Frauenheim, 15rounds.com: Mayweather decision.
•Ed Graney, Las Vegas Review-Journal: Mayweather decision.
•Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports: Mayweather decision.
•Kieran Mulvaney, Reuters: Mayweather decision.
•Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times: Mayweather decision.
•Dan Rafael, ESPN.com: Mayweather decision.
•Mike Rosenthal, RingTV.com: Mayweather decision.
•Lem Satterfield, Fanhouse.com: Mayweather decision.
•Tim Smith, New York Daily News: Mayweather decision.
•Bert Sugar, HBO.com: Mosley decision.
•Bob Velin, USA Today: Mayweather decision.
•Mark Whicker, Orange County Register: Mayweather decision.

NOTABLE

• A source familiar with the negotiations, and with Mayweather's career, disputed that Mayweather has requested a rematch clause before and, in fact, said there never has been one in any of his fight contracts before tonight.

• Mosley said he hopes to weigh 156-157 pounds when he actually enters the ring. His fight-night weight for his most recent bout, against Antonio Margarito, was 160. Mayweather, after making the 147-pound limit, typically gains only a couple of pounds overnight.

QUOTABLE

"We do know this: We know that Shane lies under oath. So we know one thing that is going to happen. If Marion Jones went to jail, we know that Shane is going to jail. That's one thing we do know he's going to do. He's going to do some time."

-- Mayweather, on Mosley claiming in grand-jury testimony that he unwittingly took steroids before a 2003 rematch against Oscar De La Hoya. BALCO founder Victor Conte repeatedly has insisted that he met with Mosley personally and that the fighter knew exactly what he was taking. Mosley has a two-year-old lawsuit pending against Conte.

"We're talking about Shane -- you can't trust nobody, man, who did that. Even though my son's fighting him right now, believe me -- I've still got suspicions in my head, I'm going to be honest with you. And that is the truth. I've got suspicions in my head, right now."

-- Floyd Mayweather Sr., who trained Oscar De La Hoya for that 2003 fight, on when and if Mosley stopped using steroids.

"They should show him hitting handpads between rounds of his fights. His '24/7' is the show. By fight night, he's already entertained you. Then, he's all about trying to win."

-- Naazim Richardson, Mosley's trainer, on the lack of excitement he perceives Mayweather as producing in his fights.

BY THE NUMBERS

38 -- Number of victories Mosley compiled to begin his career before losing his 39th fight, to Vernon Forrest, in a 2002 welterweight title bout.

40 -- Number of victories Sugar Ray Robinson compiled to begin his career before losing his 41st fight, to Jake LaMotta, in a non-title bout, at Olympia Stadium in Detroit.

50 -- Number of fights involving Mayweather and/or Mosley that will have been televised by HBO, or its pay-per-view arm, after tonight.

E-mail David Mayo: dmayo@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/David_Mayo

Source: mlive.com

Mayweather should rock rusty Mosley -- New York Post

By George Willis, New York Post

Floyd Mayweather Jr. will defeat “Sugar” Shane Mosley tonight in Las Vegas, and I don’t expect the fight to be that close. I see Money Mayweather winning eight of 12 rounds, if not more, en route to earning a unanimous decision.

I say this after initially thinking Mosley would win perhaps the most anticipated welterweight showdown since Leonard-Hearns in 1981. Mosley, a six-time world champion in three weight divisions, has some important intangibles on his side. He’s bigger, having fought at 154 pounds as recently as September 2008 when he stopped Ricardo Mayorga in the 12th round. He presumably has the power to hurt Mayweather, and there’s no place he would rather be tonight than in the center of the ring at the MGM Grand.

This is the super fight Mosley has long sought, a pay-per-view mega-bout that could attract about a million buys. He had exposure on HBO’s “24/7” series and can achieve life-long notoriety by handing Mayweather his first loss.

Mosley also has one of the sport’s best trainers. Naazim Richardson of North Philadelphia is a wise sage, who likely has devised a gameplan built around pressure, power and patience.

But Mayweather will prevail by utilizing the impeccable skills that have kept him unbeaten in 40 fights with 25 knockouts. Though Mosley has good hand speed, even at age 38, it can’t match Mayweather, 33, who will use quick, stinging jabs to score points and keep Mosley off balance.

“I can adjust and I can adapt to any opponent,” Mayweather said. “I can read an opponent once I get in that squared circle and do what I do best, and that’s win.”

Mosley has to hurt Mayweather to have any kind of a chance. He won’t be able to outbox the boxer. And though Mosley owns 39 knockouts in a 46-5 record, he likes to load up when throwing his power shots. That worked against Antonio Margarito, who melted into a human punching bag. But Mayweather isn’t going to be as stationary.

Mosley’s layoff also can’t be ignored. He last fought in January 2009, when he stopped Margarito in the ninth round to win the WBA welterweight title at the Staples Center. A 16-month layoff for a 38-year-old boxer is not exactly ideal, though Mosley had a full training camp to face Andre Berto in January 2010 before Berto pulled out to focus on the relief effort following the earthquake in Haiti.

“It was almost a year off before I stepped into the ring to fight Margarito and a look what happened,” Mosley said. “It’s because of the way I keep myself, the way I keep my body. I stay in the gym and train regardless if there’s a fight or not a fight.”

Still, even the slightest ring rust is a detriment when dealing with Mayweather, who trounced a respected Juan Manuel Marquez last September in his first fight back after a 22-month retirement.

“If Shane Mosley can be at his best, he can defeat Floyd Mayweather,” Richardson said. “Because when Shane Mosley is at his best, he not only defeats guys, he knocks their heads off.”

Floyd Mayweather Sr. predicted on “24/7” his son would win because he’s “too fast, too smart, too quick and too clever.”

It’s hard to argue with him. Money Mayweather may irritate some with his flashy persona and reluctance to brawl in the ring. But when it comes to making boxing an art, he is its Picasso.

george.willis@nypost.com

Source: nypost.com

Collapse of megafight clears way for Mayweather, Mosley -- Las Vegas Review-Journal

By STEVE CARP, LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

It began with a pro wrestling moment. Boxing fans hope it ends with one of the sport's best moments in years.

Shane Mosley has waited years for a chance to fight Floyd Mayweather Jr. He tried goading Mayweather into fighting him in September, crashing Mayweather's victory interview with HBO after his return to the ring against Juan Manuel Marquez.

But the reality is, it took many unforeseen circumstances to set up tonight's welterweight showdown at the MGM Grand Garden.

Mayweather (40-0, 25 knockouts) was set to face Manny Pacquiao in a March 13 megafight at the MGM Grand. Each fighter stood to make a reported $40 million. But when Pacquiao refused Mayweather's demand to submit to Olympic-style random drug testing, the fight fell through.

Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs), meanwhile, had plans of his own to fight in Las Vegas. He was to face WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto on Jan. 30 at Mandalay Bay. But Berto pulled out three weeks before the fight when a devastating earthquake struck Haiti, where he has family.

That left Mosley and Mayweather with an opportunity to finally meet, and both fighters were available. Both were in the gym. The coveted Cinco De Mayo date at the MGM Grand was open. Mosley, who had admitted to using steroids in 2003, was willing to do what Pacquiao wouldn't, agreeing to random drug testing.

HBO quickly got on board. The money got worked out, with Mayweather to make $22.5 million and Mosley $7 million. Their long-awaited confrontation was realized.

Now, the question is, can Mayweather remain perfect? Or does Mosley cap his Hall of Fame career by being the first pro to defeat Mayweather?

Both fighters made the 147-pound limit at Friday's weigh-in, with Mayweather weighing 146 and Mosley 147. Mosley's WBA welterweight title is not at stake, but he's out to prove he can still fight at age 38.

"I will knock (Mayweather) out," Mosley said. "I can see he's getting a little more nervous, a little more scared. I noticed it at the press conference (Wednesday) when we faced each other."

Mosley usually doesn't get caught up in that kind of hype. But this is a big-money fight with bigger implications to both fighters' legacies. It was also out of character for Mosley to climb into the Grand Garden ring Sept. 19 to challenge Mayweather, who had just returned from a 21-month absence to rout Marquez.

It was a WWE moment. And Mayweather, who has done work in pro wrestling, was not amused by Mosley crowding the spotlight.

"Don't go disrespecting me!" he yelled at Mosley while trying to conduct his postfight interview.

Mosley has his version of what happened.

"People forget I work for Golden Boy (Promotions), and I had a right to be inside the ring after the (Marquez) fight," he said. "I came over to Floyd because he called me over to the conversation."

Mayweather insists the incident is not fueling his fire for this fight. But it's hard to imagine he's not using Mosley's supposed disrespect as motivation.

"The ultimate goal was for him to be disrespectful," Mayweather said. "I'm not trippin', but a riot could have broken out over something that small."

No skirmishes came about, but the seed was planted for tonight. Now that Mosley finally has what he wants, can he take advantage of the opportunity?

"We've got a Plan A, a Plan B and a Plan C," he said. "If Plan A works, we won't need to go to B or C."

Mosley obviously declines to divulge that plan. But he has the speed, power and experience to make Mayweather fight. He also has Naazim Richardson in his corner, a trainer who knows how to plan for an opponent.

Richardson said the key to beating Mayweather is to force him to fight.

"You hit (Mayweather) the first time in the face and he's going to turn into a dragon," Richardson said. "He's going to be breathing fire. So what you do is step on his tail and hit him in the stomach."

But will Mosley be able to get through Mayweather's defense often enough to hurt him? Mayweather, who appears to have gained some upper body strength to offset one of Mosley's assets, said each fight brings its own set of challenges.

"You prepare different ways physically depending on who you're fighting," Mayweather said. "Mentally, it's always the same -- you want to be focused on what you're supposed to be doing. I always want to look better than the time before.

"Whatever Shane tries to do, I'll be ready. It could end in a knockout. If he comes in, it could end in a knockout. The key is for me to be smart, use my jab and do what I've always done."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.

MAYWEATHER-MOSLEY MEDIA POLL

Journalists covering tonight's Mayweather-Mosley fight pick the winner:

David Avila, Riverside (Calif.) Press Enterprise -- Mosley by decision

Ron Borges, Boston Herald -- Mayweather by decision

Steve Carp, Las Vegas Review-Journal -- Mayweather by decision

Bobby Cassidy, Newsday (New York) -- Mosley by decision

Tim Dahlberg, The Associated Press -- Mayweather by decision

Gareth Davies, Daily Telegraph (London) -- Mayweather by decision

Bernard Fernandez, Philadelphia Daily News -- Mayweather by decision

Norm Frauenheim, 15rounds.com -- Mayweather by decision

Ed Graney, Las Vegas Review-Journal -- Mayweather by decision

Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports -- Mayweather by decision

Chris Maathuis, KLAS-TV -- Mayweather by decision

Chris Mannix, Sports Illustrated -- Mayweather by decision

Gordon Marino, Wall Street Journal -- Mayweather by decision

David Mayo, The Grand Rapids (Mich.) Press -- Mayweather by decision

Kieran Mulvaney, Reuters -- Mayweather by decision

Jeff Powell, Daily Mail (London) -- Mayweather by decision

Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times -- Mayweather by decision

Dan Rafael, ESPN.com -- Mayweather by decision

Mike Rosenthal, RingTV.com -- Mayweather by decision

Lem Satterfield, AOL Fanhouse -- Mayweather by decision

Jim Slater, Agence France Presse -- Mayweather by decision

Tim Smith, New York Daily News -- Mayweather by decision

Don Steinberg, Philadelphia Inquirer -- Mayweather by decision

Bert Sugar, boxing historian -- Mosley by decision

Bob Velin, USA Today -- Mayweather by decision

TOTAL: Mayweather 22, Mosley 3

Source: lvrj.com

Story remains the same: Mayweather by decision -- Las Vegas Review-Journal

By ED GRANEY, Las Vegas Review-Journal

This is the best time. The time when all hype ceases. The time when we can stop laughing at news releases about whom Floyd Mayweather Jr. is picking to win the NBA championship or how he thinks the NFL Draft might take shape, because we are still searching to locate one soul on earth who waited for those pearls.

The time when it doesn't matter who you are picking or how many new enablers/bodyguards/hangers-on have joined the Mayweather entourage or how many new ways Shane Mosley can avoid questions about his past use of performance-enhancing drugs.

The best time. Fight time.

The question is, how good a fight will it really be?

"Hard to say," trainer Freddie Roach said this week. "Mayweather ducked this fight for a long time, and it's finally here. But while Shane is my friend and I hope he wins, Mayweather is one of the best boxers in the world. Shane is going to have trouble putting any pressure on Mayweather. I want to see their game plan for doing that."

And ...

"Shane will have to get lucky."

Roach will watch tonight's fight from the MGM Grand Garden on pay per view with more than passing interest. He is the trainer to Manny Pacquiao, the world's pound-for-pound king who is again running to win a congressional seat in the Philippines.

It is assumed Pacquiao will fight tonight's winner this year if PPV splits and drug-testing protocols and other significant matters can be settled.

It is assumed by most that the opponent will be Mayweather.

It's a good assumption.

We have been here before, only with less-talented fighters than Mosley. Someone is always going to engage Mayweather, crack through his seemingly impenetrable defense, force him to stand and trade punches.

It's a "Groundhog Day" tale, and yet the part that happens over and over is Mayweather winning. Until proven otherwise, he's an unbeaten champion who has won six titles in five weight classes and who has yet to face anyone skilled enough to defeat his style.

"Shane grew up fighting Mexican fighters who came at him all day long," Roach said. "It's the style he has always preferred during his career. Mayweather is the complete opposite. Mayweather won't engage that often. He hardly ever does.

"Mayweather gets better as the fight goes longer. He doesn't watch a lot of tape on opponents, but he sets them up along the way during the fight. He's a bit of a slow starter, so Shane's best bet is an early knockout. But (Mayweather) is a very intelligent fighter. Say what you want about him, he is very good at what he does and is very smart in the ring."

Roach has been known to lay thousands of dollars on Pacquiao fights, betting slips he has cashed far more than not. But he said this week his gambling days are finished, that he won't wager on tonight's fight or any other, that he works too hard for his money to keep risking it. But there is little doubt which way he would lean.

While Mosley is the elite welterweight lacking from Mayweather's list of 40 victims, he is also a fighter who has had trouble with counterpunchers (see the late Vernon Forrest), never mind one of Mayweather's level. Mosley has had issues against skilled boxers. Mayweather is one of the world's best.

Mosley is 38; Mayweather is 33.

Antonio Margarito, plaster-filled gloves and all, was the perfect brawling opponent for Mosley in January of last year. Mayweather is not.

"I don't know what to think about that," Mosley said. "I know I'm in great shape, ready to go, sharper than ever, faster than ever and my power is extreme. All the guys I have lost to were great fighters.

"But I'm in a great place right now. (Mayweather) is great. I've been crying about getting this big a fight for a long time. To be in one like this ... a megafight. I'm really happy."

Freddie Roach will root for this friend tonight, correct in his observation that -- while it might not be as marketable or attractive to pay-per-view buyers -- Pacquiao-Mosley would be a more exciting fight than Pacquiao-Mayweather.

Problem: It doesn't always work out the way others want.

"When I fight guys who they say will give me a tough fight, I can't help that the fight is so one-sided the fight is boring," Mayweather said. "That's not my fault. It's just that I'm that good."

He will be again tonight, by decision.

All that's missing is Punxsutawney Phil.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618.

Source: lvrj.com

Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns agree: Mayweather-Mosley doesn't match their bouts -- Grand Rapids Press

By David Mayo, The Grand Rapids Press

LAS VEGAS -- Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns hit upon a core truth in comparing their 1981 welterweight classic to tonight’s Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley fight.

They were welterweights at the beginning of their careers, fighting each other at their lightest career weights and in their youthful primes, while Mayweather and Mosley are several years older and have progressed through multiple weight divisions.

As such, it is unfair to compare tonight’s fight, and its contestants, to them.

“I think that Floyd would’ve been really too small for us,” Hearns said. “We were big welterweights. Floyd’s small. He’s a small guy. I’m not saying, because he’s small, he wouldn’t be able to do anything, but we would’ve made it very difficult. Anytime you’ve got to keep punching up to hit somebody, not hit somebody at your own level, it’s difficult.”

Both men said they give Mayweather the advantage.

“I think it’ll be a chess match, with Mayweather being the counterpuncher until he recognizes that Mosley isn’t what he used to be. Good fight,” Leonard said.

Leonard was 25 and Hearns 22 when they met as undefeated champions in a welterweight unification at Caesars Palace.

Hearns held comfortable leads on all three scorecards when Leonard rallied to stop him in the 14th round of one of the last major 15-round fights.

Hearns went on to fight as heavy as cruiserweight -- the 190-pound division -- while Leonard’s heaviest class was super middleweight, the 168-pound limit.

Mayweather started as a 130-pounder, and Mosley as a 135-pounder, which makes the comparison as patently unfair to them as when Roberto Duran -- who started his career at 135 -- is lumped into his usual chronological comparison with Hearns, Leonard and Marvelous Marvin Hagler, all of whom were naturally bigger.

Still, Mayweather-Mosley is a great matchup and considered the best 147-pound matchup since Leonard-Hearns, even if it may not rank among the top 10 welterweight bouts in history.

The same could be said for Leonard-Hearns II in 1989, which was a thriller ending in a spurious draw -- even Leonard, today, admits Hearns won -- but does not rank among the greatest middleweight bouts ever.

“This fight here, between Sugar Shane Mosley and Mayweather, it’s going to be a good fight,” Hearns said. “But I don’t see it matching Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns. I may be a little partial because it was our fight but I just don’t see them doing the same thing.

“Our fight has been talked about for decades and decades. We just set the standard and it’s kind of hard to top what we did.”

Hearns said he thinks Mayweather should “do well” by trying to “come out and dominate the fight by using his ability to move, to be able to throw slick punches.”

“But I think Shane, somewhere down the line, Shane is going to try to test him, and see how well he takes a shot,” Hearns said. “We have yet to see how well he takes a shot yet.”

Leonard said he had a “premonition” that there will be a knockdown.

“I know that most people lean towards Floyd Mayweather Jr.,” he said, “and rightfully so, so am I, I give him the edge, maybe because I don’t think you can fault his success, he’s 40-0, and I have yet to see him hurt, knocked down, or whatever. But on the other hand, I see Shane Mosley as a guy who can penetrate the defense of Mayweather, because no one’s been able to penetrate that defense.”

E-mail David Mayo: dmayo@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/David_Mayo

Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns preview Mayweather-Mosley

Source: mlive.com

Roger Mayweather: “Everybody knows Mosley was on steroids” -- Eastside Boxing

By Geoffrey Ciani, Eastside Boxing

This week’s edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio featured an exclusive interview with boxing trainer Roger Mayweather who is currently training his nephew Floyd Junior for his May 1 clash against Sugar Shane Mosley. Here are some excerpts from that interview:

Regarding Floyd’s preparations for his May 1 bout with Mosley:
“Well in camp everything’s going well, everything’s going good so far. He’s just focusing on the fight so basically everything’s been well so far altogether. I mean camp started out good, it’s going good now, so hopefully nothing happens and everything is going to be well.”

On whether he believes Shane will be at his sharpest given the long layoff:
“Well you got to remember my nephew hadn’t fought in nineteen months. He was off. He was off for almost two years so even thought the layoff that Shane Mosley had, Floyd had a layoff himself so it doesn’t really matter about the layoff. Skills are going to play the bills and that’s what boxing is all about anyway.”

His views on claims from Team Mosley that Shane will knock Floyd out:
“Well you know everybody that goes in the ring say they gonna knock somebody out whether they do or whether they don’t. The thing about Floyd, Floyd is the most skilled fighter in the sport to this day. To this day right now he is the most skilled. I’m talking about the most skilled. As far as boxing skills, as far as defense, he’s the most skilled fighter in the sport to this day right now. Everybody says what they’re going to do, going to do this, going to do that. The only way you’re going to know that is when they get in the ring and then he will find out what the truth is.”

Regarding what problems he sees Shane giving Floyd:
“To be honest, I don’t see nothing special about Shane Mosley that Floyd can’t do. I don’t see something that he can do that Floyd can’t do so as far as skill wise, Floyd is the most skilled fighter in the sport, period, defensive-wise and offensive-wise as far as boxing goes. As far as boxing goes, Floyd’s the most skilled fighter in the sport and so when you start talking about what Shane Mosley is going to do, well Shane Mosley has to do what he says he has to do. If he don’t do that, he’ll wind up having an ill or two. He’s got to do exactly what he said he’s going to do because that’s the only way he can ever come close to Floyd. He said, ‘Well, I got to press him, I got to press him, I got to press him.’ Why do you think he’s saying he’s got to keep pressing for it? He’s got to do that anyway, because he can’t outbox Floyd so obviously he’s got to press him. That’s his biggest attribute is that he’s willing to get hit and take them punches and hopefully he can press for it and hopefully something will happen.”

On whether he believes Mosley will be able to make counter-adjustments to Floyd’s adjustments which is something Zab Judah and Oscar De La Hoya were unable to do:
“Well, when I look at Shane Mosley fighting you got to remember one thing—Shane Mosley fought De La Hoya twice and out of the two fights that he fought De La Hoya, he only really won one. He didn’t win two, he won one even though they gave him the fight but I’m talking about what he did with De La Hoya. He lost the second fight as far as I’m concerned. With Zab Judah, well of course Zab Judah, my nephew had to make adjustments with Zab Judah because Zab Judah’s a southpaw. So you’re fighting a guy that’s unorthodox then you have to make an adjustment, that’s the whole part of boxing—making adjustments. So obviously he made adjustments and down the stretch he took over and that’s what it was about. It’s all about the win. It’s about winning, no matter how you have to do it.”

His views on Nazim Richardson as a trainer and whether he expects Richardson to have Mosley be the best Shane Mosley he could possibly be on fight night:
“Shane Mosley’s always been at his best. He’s always been his best before Nazim Richardson ever came along. Remember, the guy already won four championships before Nazim came along so he don’t need Nazim to say how good he’s going to be or what this fight is going to be. He’s already won four world championships. He’s actually won five, so when you start talking about this guy Nazim, ‘Oh he gonna help Shane Mosley, he gonna….’—to be honest, I don’t know what he can do. I don’t know what Nazim can do, but I know whatever he can do he can’t do it better than me. I can God guarantee you that. What I’m saying to you today, I’m going to say it again on fight night—he can’t do it better than me so I don’t even worry about what Nazim knows, or whether Nazim can do this or he can do that. I don’t worry about that. If you understand boxing, I don’t worry about that because Shane Mosley can only do a limited amount of things anyway and he ain’t going to make no big difference about what Shane Mosley’s going to do. He already said what he’s going to do, ‘What we’re going to do is, we’re going to press him, we’re going to press him, we’re going to press him for about four or five rounds and we’re going to make him give up’. To me, all he’s doing is telling Shane Mosley to go forward. That’s all you got to do is go forward. That’s all he’s saying.”

His views on Mosley’s victory against Antonio Margarito:
“Let me tell you, here’s how boxing goes. You got one guy, you got two guys who gave Muhammad Ali the most problems in boxing. Who were the two guys that gave Muhammad Ali the most problems in boxing? But remember, Ali beat George Foreman, Ali beat Sonny Liston, he beat Ernie Shavers, he beat all of them big punchers, but who were the two guys that gave Ali the most problems in boxing? Ken Norton and Joe Frazier gave him the most problems out of all these guys that he fought, but you see how George Foreman beat both of them easily. Styles make fights. That’s the only thing they do. Styles make fights. See one guy can give one guy problems but he won’t give the other guy problems and that’s all part of boxing. So what you got to do is make your fighter adapt. He has to adapt. In terms of boxing, Shane Mosley’s a great fighter and talk about Margarito, you got to understand Shane Mosley knocked out Margarito. Why didn’t he beat Cotto then? Styles make fights. He’s fighting the best fighter in the sport. In this era and time right now, he’s fighting the best fighter in the sport. I’m not saying Shane Mosley ain’t a great fighter, but he’s fighting the best fighter in the sport.”

On whether he believes Shane Mosley is the toughest test for Floyd:
“Shane Mosley wouldn’t have been the toughest for Floyd, anyway. The toughest test for Floyd is already dead. You know who that was, don’t you? That’s the one who whopped Shane Mosley’s ass twice. You know who that was, that was Vernon Forrest. So if you start talking about tests, I know because I trained Vernon Forrest to go to the Olympics, so that would have been Floyd’s most difficult test as far as in the welterweight division. That would have been the most difficult test because the guy is tall and he’s rangy and he’s much in the same field as a Leonard and a Tommy Hearns. Those are the type of fighters he is. Shane Mosley is a good fighter, but he wasn’t the best welterweight.”

Regarding the trainers he respects most, past and present:
“The guy I have the most respect for, his name was (Jack) Blackburn. He trained two of the greatest fighters in the history of the sport. I mean you start talking about guys that I know about boxing, I mean I hear a lot about a whole bunch of guys. People say, ‘Oh man, that guy is great.’ What has he done? He don’t give no guys no advice. I’m sure there are other great trainers, I mean, I don’t know them. I know ones from the past. I don’t know ones from the present. I just know ones from the past. I know guys right now that are great trainers. Right now, and they’re young, and they’re great trainers, but as far as talking about great trainers from the time I started boxing? I don’t know nobody, I can’t really tell you and I know all about boxing and I can’t really tell you. Not from what I’ve seen. I mean, I hear guys, they say Freddie Roach is great. That’s what they say. I don’t understand it, they say Freddie Roach is great. I don’t know how great he is, I’m just saying that’s what they say. I’m just mentioning him because I know him, but on top of my head do I know any great trainers? Do I know? Nope. I don’t know them. They say Nazim Richardson is a great trainer, I don’t know. All I know is what I see.”

On whether this was a fight Floyd really wanted, or whether it was something that opened up that they had to take:
“The fight happened because, basically—here is how the fight was made. The fight was made because he was supposed to fight Berto. He didn’t fight Berto. When Floyd had the fight with Marquez, then Shane Mosley wanted to have his say, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, and I don’t blame him. I mean I can’t blame the guy, because remember one thing—the sport is about money, and the only way you can get that money, you have to fight the best in the world if that’s the case. So Shane Mosley stepped up to the plate and said, ‘Listen, I’ll fight you’, and my nephew didn’t turn the fight down so that’s how the fight was made. If he was worried about the fight he would have never have taken it.”

Regarding the breakdown in negotiations between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao:
“Well, obviously, you can’t make a fight unless two people want to fight. You got to have two people who want to fight to make a fight. If one guy don’t want to fight, you can’t make him fight. The fight didn’t happen. The only reason the fight with Floyd and Pacquiao didn’t happen is because Pacquiao didn’t want to take that test. He already knew something. I am not going to tell you what was in him, but he already knew that he didn’t want to take the fight and for whatever reasons, he didn’t take it, and obviously from what I know because of drug testing. Other than that, why the fight didn’t happen is because he didn’t want to take the drug test.”

Regarding Shane Mosley’s past involvement with performance enhancers:
“Everybody knows what Shane Mosley was on. Everybody knows he was on steroids. Everybody knows that. It ain’t like it’s nothing new. My nephew knows that, too. At the same time, his job is to take the test the same way anybody else is going to take the test. He’s got to do the same thing anybody else is going to do.”

His final prediction on Mayweather’s fight with Mosley:
“The fight will wind up that Mayweather will win a unanimous decision over Shane Mosley. That’s what I truly believe. I didn’t say that he was going to knock Shane Mosley out. I never said that. I don’t even know if Shane Mosley could be knocked out to be honest. So I can’t say he’s going to knock him out because he’s been in with guys who hit much harder than my nephew, but I truly believe that my nephew will outbox him skill-wise, and I believe skills pay the bills.”

Source: eastsideboxing.com

Manny Pacquiao foe gets tough: Roy Chiongbian says Sarangani not for sale -- Examiner

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

MICHAEL MARLEY'S PHILIPPINE DIARY, PART 3:

Bullet Points, Balut Points From Big Electoral Fight Central, ROY CHIONGBIAN VERSUS MANNY PACQUIAO, Congressional seat from Sarangani Province...

DATELINE: GENERAL SANTOS CITY

1. OMELETTES—I have been so adamant that Floyd Mayweather will essentially play with SUGAR Shane Mosley Saturday night in Las Vegas (Sunday around noon, local time) that, if Mosley scores an amazing upset, I won't be wearing egg on my face. No, I will be wearing a full omelette plus some Eggs Benedict. I still say Mayweather UD after 12 less than scintillating rounds and scores along the lines of 117-117 for one judge, 118-110 for a second perhaps an off-balance 116-112 tally.

2. PROBLEM VOTER—Nice young lady working in the restaurant of my hotel made a face as though she had just drank some extremely sour milk when I asked if she would vote for Pacman over business and political mogul Roy Chiongbian in Congressional race in Sarangani. She said she would favor Manny over Mayweather, no doubt, but that she does not envision him as any shining political leader. That's a dilemma for many voters here. They all like Manny the super athlete but some can't swallow him as a national legislator despite his real, sincere good intentions of helping the masses of poor people from whence he came.

3.THRILLA IN MANILA REDUX—Political and boxing operative Hammering Hermie Rivera, on a tour of Mindanao and environs in the runup to the May 10 voting across this archipelago, came up with a nice, hysterical—or I mean historical wrinkle. HH posits that Pacman should demand that Mayweather come to Manila to fight the Pinoy Idol in Araneta Coliseum, the site of the classic 1975 “Thrilla In Manila.” HH says they can call it Thrilla In Manila II. This is among many creative ideas from Rivera which will land in the scrap heap of Neverhappenland. But he tries, oh he tries...

4. PAY PER VIEW—I keep saying Pacman has to take on Chiongbian directly, that he needs to toy with Roy. Let's see what happens at the Saturday night Pacquiao rally which I will be attending. Cocky Roy and his followers (read “employees” as many are) have teeshirts which boldly state “SARANGANI NOT FOR SALE,” thus implying Pacman is using importing the phrase “buy rate” from PPV boxing to politics. I beg to differ as buying votes is as American as cherry pie, as American as the fabled elected while in a jail cell Boston Mayor James Michael Curley. His adherents' motto was “vote often and early for James Michael Curley.”

5. HOOPS AND SIDE POCKETS: I don't want to say Pacman is overly keyed up about Mosley-Mayweather as he spent his Friday evening playing basketball and then billiards. Of course, he has his own pool hall.

6. JINKEE SCORES WITH VOTERS: You can't go far around the city without hearing favorable comments about the political work of Manny's personable, attractive wife, Sarangani native Jinkee. For whatever reason, probably the care and feeding of their four kids who each have their own nanny, Jinkee was an unused asset when Manny went down to electoral defeat against Dazzling Darlene Antonino-Custodio in his first electoral foray. Now Jinkee is working it with good effect as a kind of Sarangani answer to Jackie Kennedy, sort of and kind of like that.

7.PACMOM MISSED SEEING HATTON SCRAMBLED: Not exactly breaking news but Manny's mother went to Vegas a year ago for the Ricky Hatton bout, her first trip to see her son fight in America. But she somehow got stuck with a counterfeit ticket and did not gain admittance to the Hatton beating at the MGM Grand. Pacmom did gain entry to the postfight presser and her face lit up as Manny introduced her from the podium. Aling Dionesia does not despise the limelight and she is living in a multmillion dollar home the fighter bought her. The interior décor is said to be completely pink. Maybe it's a tribute to Pinklon Thomas, who can say?

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

Will Mayweather Ever Have To Pay The Price For Boxing Immortality? -- The Sweet Science

By Ron Borges, The Sweet Science

Whether they like it or not (and who would?) greatness for a prize fighter comes only with the display of a high pain threshold. It is a sad requirement of the sport, a demand put on boxers to define themselves not simply by their most triumphant moments but by overcoming their most difficult ones.

Would the story be the same for Ali if there had never been a Joe Frazier to knock him to the floor and challenge him at every turn? Would Sugar Ray Robinson be so sweet without Jake LaMotta, Carmen Basilio, Max Schmeling and even Randy Turpin tormenting him?

Leonard and Hagler needed Thomas Hearns as much to test their mettle as to prove their greatness. It is a truism of boxing going back that goes back to the days of bare knuckle brawling. Even though these days one can gain world rankings and even world titles without facing so much as one true challenge, the price of boxing immortality is higher for it demands a hard night or two when all seems lost and still you triumph.

That is what is missing from Roy Jones’ resume (judging by the poor performance of his chin when finally tested one can understand why he avoided such challenges for so long) and from Mike Tyson’s. Neither got off the floor to win, at least not when deposited there in the kind of crushing way that leaves the sound of wind chimes in their head long after they are again upright.

Floyd Mayweather, Jr. seems to have no interest in facing such a moment and one can understand why yet he needs such a night to validate not his boxing talent, which is obvious, but to test him in the hot cauldron of adversity.

Mayweather may finally face such a test Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena when he steps into the ring against four-time world champion Shane Mosley but he wants no part of such a test. In fact, he mocks the very idea of it and why wouldn’t he?

As Mayweather’s trainer and uncle, the former champion Roger Mayweather, said recently when asked about his nephew’s apparent distaste for being hit, “I don’t know anybody that likes to get hit.’’

It’s a good point but the difficult fact when it comes to assessing Mayweather is that we have yet to see him face the kind of adversity Leonard did in his first bout with Hearns or the type of hellish, soul-searching moments Ali encountered when in the ring with Joe Frazier.

In boxing, fair or unfair, that is when we decide who and what a fighter really is. This is not to promise Mosley will be able to take Mayweather to such a dark and difficult place but it is where he needs to go to win over the remaining doubters and skeptics who insist he is still untested even after winning 40 straight fights and world titles from 130 pounds to 154 pounds.

Yet in Mayweather’s opinion that whole concept is borderline insanity. Why must a fighter struggle to prove his greatness? Why isn’t dominance enough?

“I take less punishment, I land the highest percentage and I work the hardest,’’ he said of himself recently not long before insisting he not only compared favorably to Ali and Ray Robinson but was better than both, a position that has been hotly debated ever since.

“My father taught me defense and no one can break through it. I just know if a punch is coming. I can feel it. I know what my opponent is going to do.’’

Perhaps he does for those are the instincts that separate good boxers from great ones. But what happens to him on the night he doesn’t know? What happens on the night he takes more punishment, not less?

Can he still find a way to win then, when he is wounded and vulnerable in the way Leonard appeared to be in his first fight with Hearns or the way Ali was against Frazier? Frankly, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. would rather not find out.

“Shane is a solid welterweight with great accomplishments but I have been fighting these kinds of fighters my whole career without much appreciation,’’ Mayweather said. “Shane has talent. I have a God-given gift. No one gives me credit for who I’ve fought during my career because I can make anybody look like a nobody.

“Shane’s done some things in this sport but I’ve done a lot of things in this sport. I’ve done a lot of things that a lot of fighters weren’t able to do and didn’t do.

“I don’t rate myself. I’m a harsh critic of myself so no matter how I go I always say to myself I could have done better. When I fought (Diego) Corrales I said I could have done better. When I fought (Arturo) Gatti I said I could have done better. My main thing is I don’t worry about it.’’

He doesn’t worry about the need for a bloody night of triumph either. If Mayweather leaves the MGM early Sunday morning looking like he’s been there for a night of blackjack rather than as if he’d been hit by a blackjack it’s no bother to him because, the way he sees it, bruises are not the definition of greatness in boxing.

“I don’t get paid to get hit,’’ Mayweather insisted. “I wasn’t taught to get hit. I was taught how to hit and not get hit. That’s what I’m about. I don’t need my nose all over my face to prove I’m a great fighter. When I get in the ring I’m trying to get that boy off my ass.

“I love the fans but I fight for me first because the truth is you’re just an object. Once they’re done with you, it’s over so it doesn’t matter to me what other people say.

“There’s nothing cool about taking punishment. What’s cool is dishing it out so when your career is over you still have all your senses. When my career is over fans will appreciate my skills and my boxing ability. I know who Floyd Mayweather is. I’m a great fighter…a great fighter.’’

Maybe so great that he won’t ever need to overcome great difficulties and difficult nights to prove it but, boxing being boxing, I wouldn’t bet on it.

Source: thesweetscience.com

Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley: The Verdict -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

LAS VEGAS -- Floyd Mayweather was asked during Wednesday's press conference if he recalled the last time that he was shaken by "a really good shot" in a fight.

"I don't know," said the 33-year-old Mayweather, before being reminded of his lopsided, May, 2004 unanimous decision over DeMarcus Corley during which he was caught by two, double-lead right hands high on his left temple before a follow up left hand to the nose by the southpaw sent him wobbling to the ropes.

"Corley, You know, he's always been known as a good puncher. He caught my attention. But then, I shook it off and dropped his ass," said Mayweather, who dropped Corley in the eighth, and, 10th rounds.

If it is debatable the amount of times Mayweather has been touched, let alone, hurt while amassing a record of 40-0, with 25 knockouts and earning six titles along the way, then it is debatable to all but Mayweather, a defensive specialist whose motto is, "Ain't nothing cool about taking punishment."

"The proof is in the pudding. I'm the fighter who takes the least amount of punishment, I land at the highest percentage," said Mayweather, who is coming off of September's unanimous, 12-round decision over Juan Manuel Marquez, which ended a 21-month ring absence.

"Everybody says that they have the game plan to beat me, but it's just that defense. You just can't break through that defense can not break through the defense no matter what you do," said Mayweather. "I don't take no punishment, and that's not my fault. Once again, it's not cool to take punishment. Ain't nothing cool about taking punishment."

On Saturday night, yet another opponent will step up to take his best shots at Mayweather, as 38-year-old, WBA welterweight (147 pounds) champion, Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) tries to hand the Las Vegas resident his first loss.

Mosley will be defending his crown, although Mayweather can not win it in victory since he refused to pay the WBA's sanctioning fee.

Mayweather will earn a guaranteed $22.5 million for his efforts, which is three times Mosley's $7 million. Both fighters will receive an upside to the HBO pay per view.

Although Mayweather is facing the largest, and, most athletic opponent of his career, he maintains that, just like his past rivals, Mosley will become befuddled by his defense, and that the Pamona, Calif., native will be surprised by his under rated punching power.

"Mosley keeps talking about his punching power, but most fighters that get in there with me, do you know what they try to do? They get in there and they end up fightin for their own survival. They all say that they're good fighters, they all say that they're fast, they all say that they're strong," said Mayweather, a fierce, slicing counter-puncher.

"But afterward, they come back and they say, 'You know what? Floyd Mayweather was a lot stronger than I thought he was,' and, 'Floyd punches a lot harder than I thought that he would be,'" said Mayweather, who also appears to have what his adviser, Leonard Ellerbe, calls, "sixth sense," that allows him to almost see his rival's punches coming.

"I just know it. I just know it. I can feel it," Mayweather said of the ability. "I can just see it, brother. I just know what you're going to do."

But Mosley named the Corley fight among those he has studied with trainer, Naazim Richardson, with whom he noted that Mayweather "has had trouble with the left hand."

"The jab is very important against Floyd Mayweather, according to Oscar de la Hoya. Oscar was successful with the jab against him, and his arms are almost as long as mine. So I think the jab will be important," said Mosley, who is taller and will enjoy a reach advantage against Mayweather.

"Ricky Hatton had a couple of good left hands in there. Jose Luis Castillo did as well," said Mosley. "So the left hand shots seem to give Mayweather a little bit of a problem, but that's not the only thing. It's not just the jab."

Once a vicious power-, and, body-punching lightweight (135 pounds) titlist, Mosley said that he will vary his attack to include boxing, and, even out-thinking Mayweather.

Mosley is coming off of two, straight knockout victories over former world champions, Ricardo Mayorga, as a junior middleweight (154 pounds), and, Antonio Margarito, in the 12th, and, ninth rounds, respectively.

The victory over Margarito, who never had been stopped, earned Mosley the WBA welterweight crown.

But Mosley, himself, was 38-0, with 35 knockouts in January of 2002 when he was dropped, and, nearly stopped in the first round of his first of two, straight losses to the late Vernon Forrest.

Mosley's other losses were against Winky Wright (twice), and, Miguel Cotto, leading Mayweather to say that Mosley "has trouble with boxers."

"This is going to be an outstanding performance," said Richardson. "As I have said before, you have good fighters, you have champions, you have elite fighters and you have guys that are special. In this fight, you have a rare occasion where you see two special guys going against each other."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

Big-money fighter -- Boston Herald

By Ron Borges, Boston Herald

LAS VEGAS - Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Shane Mosley both fight to win, but they don’t fight for the same reasons.

The 38-year-old Mosley often talks of his boxing legacy. In the days leading up to tonight’s fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, he openly spoke of how beating Mayweather would not only propel him back to the top of his sport but would cement his still debatable place among the best fighters of his era.

Mayweather, on the other hand, talks incessantly of but one thing. Although he will be the first to tell you of his greatness, the back of his shirt and his refusal to pay the sanction fee to make tonight a fight for the WBA welterweight title Mosley holds tell you his fistic focus.

“MONEY MAYWEATHER” it says across his back. “PHILTHY RICH” it says on a diamond encrusted medallion he sometimes wears on nights when he wants to look like a hood ornament. The point is clear. Mayweather is more interested in economics than history.

“I go into the gyms and talk to the young fighters and I tell them the truth,” said Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs). “When you’re an amateur the trophy is the money. When you turn professional you get a different kind of prize.

“I tell them you’re just an object. Once they’re done with you it’s over. I love fighting on the network (HBO), but they don’t love me. They love what I can do.”

What Mayweather believes he’ll do tonight, with the assistance of Mosley, is challenge the all-time pay-per-view record of 2.46 million buys, a record set when he defeated Mosley’s business partner, Oscar De La Hoya, in 2007. At $54.95 per household, that seems unlikely, but Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, said Wednesday he believes the fight could do as many as 4 million buys, which is the kind of hyperbole normally expected of Mayweather.

Whatever it does it will be Mosley’s biggest payday. Yet while that may be Mayweather’s measuring stick, for Mosley the hurt business is not yet about business.

“This is our legacy on who’s the best fighter,” said Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs). “It’s a challenge I’m ready to take. I’m ready to go into the history books as the guy who beat Floyd Mayweather, the guy who beats everybody out there. The last guy standing.”

Mayweather is more concerned with being the guy with the highest standing pile of cash. He regularly travels The Strip with a gym bag stuffed with cash and during HBO’s 24/7 reality series on the fight, not an episode went by that he wasn’t piling up $100 bills.

Yet no one, least of all Mosley, should be fooled. At his core, Mayweather is a fighter. Tonight, he understands, he will be challenged by the quickest, hardest-punching welterweight he’s ever faced. It is a challenge for which he will be ready.

“Shane has talent,” Mayweather said. “I have a gift. No one has a chance to beat me. There’s a blue print to beat him because he’s lost five times already. Mosley has problems with boxers. He’s been dropped and wobbled on numerous occasions and now he’s facing someone sharp as a razor with two hands.

“They all talk about Shane’s strength. If we were in a weight-lifting match strength might have something to do with it, but we’re in a boxing match and I’m the best boxer in the sport. I can make anybody look like a nobody.”

That’s why he’s still counting his money, unafraid.

“All these fighters have a plan to beat Floyd Mayweather but it’s not that easy,” he said.

That’s true and the reason is he’s not just about counting his money after all. When the bell rings, he’s about fighting for it.

rborges@bostonherald.com

Source: bostonherald.com

Mayweather not good enough for Leonard, Hearns era -- 15Rounds

By Norm Frauenheim, 15Rounds.com

LAS VEGAS – Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns were two of the defining faces of the 1980s. Floyd Mayweather Jr. calls himself the face of boxing, better than Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali and presumably better than either Leonard or Hearns.

To Leonard and Hearns, however, that Mayweather face looks like a beaten one if it had come along during their era.

“I really think Floyd would have been too small for us,’’ Hearns said Friday at a news conference that included Leonard, his current friend and old rival. “We were big welterweights.’’

Leonard agreed and added a twist of humor when asked to say how Mayweather would have fared against Hearns.

“I don’t think anybody could have beat Tommy Hearns but me,’’ said Leonard, who scored a 14th round stoppage of Hearns in a 1981 classic and fought him to draw in a 1989 rematch.

There’s some talk that boxing would be better off if Shane Mosley upsets Mayweather Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. It would create other big bouts, including Mosley versus Manny Pacquiao. If Mayweather beats Mosley, there is doubt that he and Pacquiao will ever agree on a deal. Talks for a Pacquiao-Mayweatherfight in March fell apart over Mayweather’s demands for Olympic-style drug testing.

No matter what happens in Mosley-Mayweather, neither Hearns nor Leonard foresee a time that would approach their era, which included Roberto Duran and Marvin Hagler.

“It just happened,’’ Hearns said. “It was nothing we planned. In our day, we couldn’t pick and choose. We couldn’t duck fights. We had to fight the next guy out there. And we always did. That why, that time is remembered, even now.’’

Source: 15rounds.com

Greats Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns discuss Mayweather-Mosley -- USA Today

By Bob Velin, USA TODAY

LAS VEGAS — Two ring legends who know a big fight when they see one, weighed in Friday on Saturday's megafight between Floyd Mayweather and Sugar Shane Mosley.

Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas "Hitman" Hearns, who fought two titanic battles at welterweight and super middleweight that spanned the 1980s, say the Mayweather-Mosley matchup is a battle for bragging rights more than anything else.

"I see this fight as rather intriguing," said Leonard, looking like he could still go a few rounds. "I know a lot of people are leaning toward Floyd Mayweather. Most of the time fights don't live up to expectations. But fights like this, with Mosley and Mayweather, are highly anticipated.

"I truly believe that these two guys will indeed live up to expectations, because whether they say it or not, it is about bragging rights. Yeah it's about the money. Everyone wants the money, but for the guy who wins, it's bragging rights."

Leonard, who ended his Hall of Fame career with a 36-3-1 record, said he has yet to see Mayweather hurt or knocked down, but, "on the other hand I see Sugar Shane Mosley as a guy who could penetrate his impeccable defense," he said. "I had a premonition the other night and I saw a knockout by someone. I am not a guru, I am not a psychic, but I did see a knockout."

Hearns, whose career spanned nearly 30 years (1977-2006), said about Saturday night's matchup (HBO pay-per-view, 9 p.m. ET), "Mayweather will try to dominate with slick punches. He may do well. Shane is going to try to test and see if Mayweather can take a shot. We have to see if he can. Shane has the ability to punch and Floyd will have to be smart and slick.

"This is going to be a very good fight. I think it is going to be a very competitive fight. It is going to be a chess match."

Both fighters said this fight could not compare to their two fights — the first for the undisputed welterweight title in 1981, which ended with Leonard stopping Hearns in the 14th round, and the second for the super middleweight title in 1989 that ended in a draw.

I don't see it being the same as me and Ray," said Hearns. "We set the standard and it's going to be tough to top what we did. I am proud to know Ray Leonard.

"Ray brought the best out of me and I think I brought the best out of him. It's going to be a great fight this Saturday night, but don't look for the same thing as happened in our fight. That was a different era."

Asked to compare the state of boxing today and during their era, Leonard said there is no comparison.

"Back in the day, fights were highly anticipated. There were more personalities. There were more superstars in boxing," Leonard said. "It bothers me that we don't have an American heavyweight champion. To me it is a dark period right now. (But) boxing is a resilient sport. The amateur foundation has diminished significantly. Amateur boxers are going to be champions years later, and there needs to be more support and sponsorships for the amateur programs."

Asked about a fantasy matchup between Mayweather and one of them, Hearns said the size difference would be hard to overcome.

"I think that Floyd would have been too small for us. We were big welterweights," said Hearns, who finished his career with a 61-5-1 record (48 KOs). "Floyd is a small guy. I am not saying because he is small he wouldn't be able to do it, but it would have been very difficult. I think Ray knows more about that than I do."

Leonard certainly knew more about Hearns.

"Tommy is a freak of nature for a welterweight," he said. "He's big, strong, powerful, has a big heart, and I don't think anyone could beat Tommy Hearns… except me."

Source: usatoday.com

Knockout Nation: Mayweather-Mosley Weigh-In, Leonard-Hearns Give Their Thoughts, Prediction for Tonight! -- AllHipHop

By Ismael AbduSalaam, AllHipHop.com

Less than an hour ago, Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley faced off one last time before they’ll engage in battle tomorrow night (May 1) in the MGM Grand for the welterweight title.

Fans at the weigh-in slightly favored Mosley, who looked great coming right in at 147 despite his last fight being in January 2009.

Mayweather was well-defined, and without having to worry about a catchweight like his last fight, came in at 146 pounds.

There wasn’t much trash-talking, as both men are likely well aware the hype has run its course.
Now that you’ve seen the weigh-in, read all the interviews, and reviewed their previous, who is going to win the May 1 showdown?

Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns Discuss Mayweather-Mosley

Marquee welterweight matchups always seem to capture the public’s imagination. Some, like Leonard-Duran, exceed all expectations and become classics. Others, such as De La Hoya-Trinidad, have all the ingredients but simply fall short.

So as we approach another epic showdown, it’s only fitting that Tommy Hearns and Sugar Ray Leonard reflect on their phenomenal 1980 encounter, and what they expect tomorrow night.

"This is going to be a very good fight. I think it is going to be a very competitive fight. It is going to be a chess match,” Hearns explained. “I think Mayweather should do well with that style. I think Shane is going to try to test that and see how well he can get that shot in.”

Regarding whether the fight would be as good as his first fight with Leonard, the Hitman doubted if their styles could mesh as well.

"I don't see it being the same as me and Ray. We set the standard and it's going to be tough to top what we did,” Hearns stated. “I am proud to know Ray Leonard. Ray brought the best out of me and I think I brought the best out of him. It's going to be a great fight this Saturday night, but don't look for the same thing as happened in our fight. That was a different era.”

Sugar Ray Leonard disagreed with his former rival, believing Mayweather and Mosley can live up to previous welterweight classics.

“Most of the time fights don't live up to expectations. But fights like this, with Mosley and Mayweather, are highly anticipated,” he explained. “I truly believe that this fight here, these two guys will indeed live up to expectations, because whether they say it or not, it is about bragging rights. Yeah it's about the money. Everyone wants the money, but for the guy who wins, it's bragging rights.”

When asked how Mayweather would have done in their era, both were dismissive of Floyd’s chances.

“Floyd would have been too small for us. We were really big welterweights,” said Hearns. “He’s a small guy. We would’ve made it very difficult. Anytime you’re punching up at someone, that’s a big difference.”

Leonard agreed regarding a potential Mayweather-Hearns fantasy matchup.

“Tommy is a freak of nature for a welterweight. He's big, strong, powerful, has a big heart, and I don't think anyone could beat Tommy Hearns...except me,” Leonard quipped.

Look for footage of this special press conference after tomorrow night’s fight.

Mayweather-Mosley: True or False

In discussing this fight with fans and fellow fans, there have been several, oft repeated talking
points emerging. But are they really true? Let’s analyze.

1. Shane Mosley is the best opponent Floyd Mayweather has ever faced.

True.

Shane Mosley is a first ballot Hall of Famer and one of the best welterweights of the last decade. Since arriving in the welterweight division in 2005, Floyd Mayweather has faced Sharmba Mitchell, Zab Judah, Carlos Baldomir, Ricky Hatton, and Juan Manuel Marquez. None of these fighters are in Mosley’s league. And the same applies with his standout super featherweight and lightweight opponents in Diego Corrales and Genaro Hernandez.

Oscar De La Hoya was still good at 154 when Floyd faced him in 2007. However, Oscar was not pummeling the best of his division at that time with his sporadic schedule, unlike Mosley.

2. Mayweather is the best opponent Mosley has faced at 147.

True.

Because of the scrutiny applied to Mayweather’s welterweight record, this is often overlooked. With all due respect to Miguel Cotto, the only fighter close to Floyd on Mosley’s welterweight ledger is Oscar De La Hoya. Although the Golden Boy presented Mosley with a classic battle in 2000, I believe that Floyd is much smarter and craftier than the Golden Boy, which will force Mosley to make more adjustments in the ring that he did against Oscar, whom he was able to outwork and out brawl down the stretch to take the decision.

3. Since Miguel Cotto outfoxed and beat him, Shane has no chance outside of a KO against Mayweather.

Not True.

Before the Margarito and Pacquiao beatings, Cotto was arguably the best welterweight in world and without question had fought the best competition at the weight. Following the Mosley fight, Cotto had defeated 4 straight Top 10 welterweight contenders.

With Shane, he combined a hard jab and accurate, powerful hooks to keep Mosley honest early. Mosley’s iron chin saw him through a difficult first half, and the Puerto Rican star narrowly escaped with a close, but hard fought decision.

Cotto has much more power in his punches than Mayweather, and that was essential in keeping Mosley from overwhelming him early. Mayweather has deceptive, stinging power, but it remains to be seen if it’s enough to get Mosley’s respect. If not, Shane will continue pressing his attacks, most likely to the body. If his stamina holds after a 16 month layoff, and he’s worked on shortening his punches and continuing to enhance his jab (which looked good in the Margarito bout), there is a chance he can outwork Mayweather, who’s relegated his once great, varied combination offense to potshots at higher weights.

4. Mosley is too big and strong for Mayweather. Floyd will probably be roughed up.

Not True.

Mayweather has full grown into welterweight. When he first came back, there was talk that maybe he could still make 140. That went out the window last September against Marquez when Floyd couldn’t make the specified catch-weight of 142, costing him thousands of dollars. To date, Mayweather has shown toughness and held his ground in the trenches when faced with aggressive fighters. Against determined by lesser fighters in Emmanuel Augustus and Jesus Chavez, Mayweather dissected them with short uppercuts and hooks. When injured, he stood toe to toe in later rounds with a prime Jose Luis Castillo, which enabled him to escape with a disputed decision. Even in a division he had no business in at junior middleweight, Mayweather was able to control a bigger Oscar De La Hoya in the clinches.

A look at their weigh-in physiques show Mosley and Mayweather are very close in size, so it’s not a given Shane will the stronger man tomorrow night.

5. The winner will automatically face Manny Pacquiao next.

Not True.

There is a rematch clause in place, which most certainly will be exercised in the event the decision is disputed and the fight lives up to expectations. Top Rank and Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum rather keep his funds in-house by pitting Manny against Antonio Margarito later this year.

It’s not what the people want, but how often do promoters listen to fans?

Prediction: Mayweather Unanimous Decision

It may have been a different story 10 years ago, but at this stage I believe that Mayweather has the ring smarts and style to frustrate Shane. It will be exciting at times, but Shane himself told me that he’s a expecting to make it a tactical, technical battle, and there’s no way he can beat Floyd at that game.

Mosley is a lot slower than the fighter he was when he burst onto the welterweight scene on 2000 in beating Oscar De La Hoya, and it’ll show when he’s in the ring with someone who’s not standing directly in front of him like Ricardo Mayorga and Antonio Margarito.

Joe Calzaghe to Make Return Against Super Six Winner?

Before the weigh-in, Golden Boy brought a host of fighters to be received by the crowd. Among them was retired, undefeated super middleweight and light-heavyweight champion Joe Calzaghe.

What struck me immediately was that Calzaghe appeared to be in great shape despite his last fight being 2 years ago!

Now, there have been unsubstantiated rumblings that Calzaghe has considered facing the winner of Showtime’s Super Six tournament. Previously I’d dismissed those rumors, but there may be some credence to them based on Calzaghe’s looking in fighting shape.

I’ll do my best to track the Welshman down and get to the bottom of it. It won’t be easy; we are in Vegas and Joe is known to party hard. Who knows how many clubs he’ll hit up tonight!

Mayweather-Mosley is live May 1 on HBO PPV at 9PM. Tonight’s airing of 24/7 Mayweather-Mosley is the final episode.

Source: allhiphop.com

Mayweather’s Hands Stay Wrapped in Trust -- New York Times

By Greg Bishop, The New York Times

LAS VEGAS — On his business card, Rafael Garcia lists trainer-consultant-cutman as his occupation. But his specialty, his artistry, lies in his hands.

Garcia and the welterweight Floyd Mayweather Jr. hold that in common, although they employ their magic hands in different but related ways. Mayweather’s have delivered 40 victories against no losses. Garcia’s saved Mayweather’s career.

For all boxers, but Mayweather especially, hands hold the ultimate importance. Pain there helped force Mayweather into one sabbatical already, and had Garcia not joined his swollen entourage, Mayweather might have retired, hands down, for good.

Instead, he will fight Shane Mosley on Saturday here at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, with Garcia in his corner and hands he swears feel as fresh as the first day he laced on boxing gloves.

“Those are very important hands,” Garcia said. “In those hands, there are millions of dollars. Millions and millions of dollars. I have to take care of that.”

Garcia spoke from inside the supply closet at Mayweather’s gym this week, a humble setting befitting an unassuming hand specialist with more than six decades of experience and some 35 world champions on his résumé.

None of this was handed to him. Garcia grew up in Puebla, Mexico, and started boxing at age 15, and even then, he studied the art he later mastered.

Now 81, Garcia has wrapped hands all over the United States, as well as Africa, Germany, England, China, Korea and his native Mexico. His list of champions includes Roberto Duran, nicknamed the Hands of Stone, Alexis Arguello, Wilfredo Gomez and Chad Dawson.

Garcia never learned another business. Asked to describe his hobbies outside boxing, he answered none. For this reason, for Garcia’s methods and expertise, Mayweather repeatedly labeled his cutman the best in the business this week.

After thousands of wraps, perhaps hundreds of thousands, Garcia claimed a 100 percent success rate.

“I never, never, never had any trouble,” he said. “Nobody has asked me to redo a wrap. Ever.”

Shortly after Mayweather arrived at his gym for a recent training session, he sat on a folding chair, extended his right wrist over another chair and motioned for Garcia to begin. Garcia massaged Mayweather from fingers to shoulders, slowly, carefully, using oil brought from Mexico to soften the ligaments and tendons and increase blood flow.

The gym was filled with people, but Mayweather and Garcia conducted this ritual as if alone. Garcia wrapped Mayweather’s hands with gauze and tape, each movement performed with the precision of a surgeon.

Garcia could wrap both hands in a matter of minutes, he said, but prefers to take his time. Their process usually lasts for 25 minutes, sometimes longer, right hand first, then left.

“I don’t rush it,” Garcia said. “I like to do them perfect, in the right way, the right moment. I have a feel for it.”

There was an obvious tenderness between the men, despite their differences. Mayweather briefly dropped the cocky persona he made famous. Garcia wiped sweat off the boxer’s brow, called him Champ and bobbed his head along with Mayweather to the hip-hop streaming from the speakers.

Nearly 50 years separate the two in age, but they have more in common than most might think. Both have spent their lives in boxing, surrounded by champions. Both appreciate boxing’s beauty and understand the subtle importance provided by properly wrapped hands.

“For him to be his age, it’s unbelievable,” Mayweather said. “He still gets around like he’s 30 years old. I mean, he still drives. He don’t wear glasses. He talks about sexy ladies.”

Earlier in Mayweather’s career, he fought with smaller gloves, and that, according to his trainer and uncle, Roger Mayweather, led to bruised and brittle hands. Garcia auditioned for the role of hand specialist in late 2000, in front of a doctor and Mayweather’s advisers in Los Angeles.

He first worked Mayweather’s corner for a fight against Diego Corrales early the next year, and not immediately, but over years, Mayweather said, Garcia banished the pain that had plagued him.

The fixes were more nuanced than earth-shattering: Garcia said he wrapped Mayweather’s hands more loosely, augmenting technique with his special oil. The Nevada boxing commission even summoned Garcia to show his process to 20 of its inspectors.

That did not stop rumors from spreading that Mayweather shot painkillers into his hands, specifically Xylocaine, a substance legal only in Nevada and only under a doctor’s supervision.

“I’m from the hood,” Naazim Richardson, Mosley’s trainer, said on a recent conference call. “The only ’caine I want to hear is Big Daddy Kane.”

Mayweather and his adviser Leonard Ellerbe both vehemently denied that Mayweather had ever injected anything into his hands, insisting that jealous opponents had attempted to discredit Mayweather’s accomplishments.

Instead, they point to Garcia, the man Mayweather refers to as Granddaddy, as the solution. Garcia almost died once, his heart stopping before doctors revived him, bringing him back to life. According to Mayweather, Garcia did the same for his hands and, by extension, his career.

Thus the two head into this Mosley fight not so much brothers in arms, but brothers in hands. Magic hands, at that.

A version of this article appeared in print on May 1, 2010, on page D3 of the New York edition.

Source: nytimes.com

Bert Sugar: earning power could deter Mayweather-Pacquiao being made -- Telegraph

By Gareth A Davies, Telegraph.co.uk

It’s hard to disagree with Bert Randolph Sugar about anything on boxing. Let me re-phrase that. It’s hard to disagree with Bert about anything. He doesn’t let you. There’s no time. He’s onto the next story, the next joke, the next fight, his next book, and the next passer-by who wants their photo taken with him. Legend.

Sugar, a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School, with an MA in Business, has wound up writing about boxing for almost six decades. It started for him with Joe Louis for a local paper in Washington. He’s now 74 and going so strong that when he’s on a roll, he’s a runaway train.

I wouldn’t like to argue with him about boxing. He’s forgotten more things about the sport than I have ever learned, or will ever learn – and he also sparred with Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) as a teenager…I digress (I’m suffering from Sugarism). Well, actually Bert says as a College boxer he was known as the ‘Great White Hopeless’.

There is a point to this piece. It’s not just a eulogy to Sugar, boxing and writing historian, bon-viveur, raconteur and most importantly, a great friend to spend time with around the big fights. He made the point in the bar in the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas last night. It is this…with the amount of money Floyd Mayweather is set to earn for his night’s work against Shane Mosley (around 58.5 million US dollars if pay-per-view buys on Home Box Office reach 2 million), should he win, it may make negotiations for the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight impossible.

Bert is in the press room day in day out, working for HBO, with an encyclopaedic knowledge of the sport, taking on endless interviews and radio appearances as seamlessly as a jacket crumpling into a suitcase. “Besides the obvious bad blood between them and I say that literally and figuratively, the hurt from the fact that it was alleged that he was on steroids, I can now see the monies that Floyd will generate from this fight, the empowerment he will feel as the all-time biggest generator of money, in his mind’s eye he can ask for more than 50 per cent of the purse, and I can see that as a deterrent to the fight being made. I can’t see the fight being made for that reason. He needs this fight with Pacquiao like Imelda Marcos needs another pair of shoes.”

Source: blogs.telegraph.co.uk