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Shane Mosley At the End
LAS VEGAS – Shane Mosley sat uncomfortably at a podium inside the MGM Grand last week, age etched across his flattened nose and tired looking face. What made him uncomfortable was not sitting there, for he was well used to the kind of attention he was receiving. What he was not used to was the reason for it.
On many occasions the three-time world champion has been the focus of a big Las Vegas fight card. He had the lights shining brightly on him the two times he defeated Oscar De La Hoya. He had them when he beat down Fernando Vargas and beat up Antonio Margarito. They reflected off his features even on nights when he was defeated but now that has happened too often and so the focus has changed. The lights have dimmed.
As he sat in silence a few short feet away from undefeated young Mexican phenom Saul “Canelo’’ Alvarez, Mosley heard himself categorized in a way he did not recognize. Although now 40 years old and having not won a fight in nearly 3 ½ years, Shane Mosley still thinks of himself as “Sugar.’’ In his mind he is still the rapidly moving lightweight, welterweight and junior middleweight champion of the past. In the bleariness of his mind’s eye he remains the man who beat The Man, the young fighter who twice outfought the Golden Boy, Oscar De La Hoya.
Of course, the first of those wins came 12 years ago and the second nearly nine and now De La Hoya stands behind him in civilian clothes, a full-time promoter since retiring nearly four years ago himself.
Mosley is not in a financial position to do the same despite the millions he once made. He was the financial and emotional victim of an ugly divorce that cost him even his world championship belts and a lifestyle not profligate but perhaps more than he could sustain. So now he sits wearing a cock-eyed smile as Alvarez’s cocky young manager, Jose Chapo Reynoso, assaults him with words he thought he’d never hear.
“Shane Mosley is going to be the door Canelo is going to walk through into the big leagues,’’ Reynoso crowed several days before the peach-fuzzed, 21-year-old Alvarez will risk both his undefeated record and his WBC light middleweight (154 pound) title by facing Mosley in the semi-main event before Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Miguel Cotto meet at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Saturday night.
This is what it has come to for Mosley. He is not only no longer the main event, he is not even the A side of the semi main event. He is now what then fading former champions like James Leija and John John Molina were to him 14 years ago. He is a stepping stone.
Mosley (46-7, 37 KO) never would have envisioned this day would come back when he was all upside. He was well on his way to becoming one of boxing’s biggest names 12 years ago and to get there he had to beat up faded stars like Leija and Molina, who were then 32, 33 years old. Now he’s 40 and Saul Alvarez looks at him as little more than a whetstone, a fighter brought in to help him hone his skills and sharpen his reputation.
Alvarez (39-0-1, 29 KO) is already a star of significance in Mexico, perhaps that fighting country’s most popular active boxer. He possesses the kind of punching power that stirs up interest and the Mayan warrior’s obsession with engagement against all odds. He is in Las Vegas then not merely to win. He is here for the same reason many people come to Las Vegas. He has come here to become a star. If he does it must come at the expense of Mosley, who hasn’t won a fight since January 24, 2009 and is 2-3-1 in his last six outings and 0-2-1 in his last three.
He is, in other words, a shadow not Sugar any more. Yet as he sits discussing this with a small group of familiar faces after the press conference ends, Mosley insists, “I don’t want to sound like a broken record: ‘I’m ready, I’m ready, I’m ready.’ But I am ready.
“He wanted to test himself to see if he’s among the elite fighters. He’s a great young fighter but he probably shouldn’t be in the ring with me.’’
Perhaps Mosley is right about that because the jury remains out for guys like Alvarez until they make miserable the nights of people like Mosley. It is how it is done in this cruel sport, the young destroy the old.
As Leija and Molina once said before Mosley battered them, now Mosley says the same words. He talks of the value of experience over youth and insists his speed remains superior to what Alvarez’s people think.
He talks, too, of excuses for defeat, speaking of injuries and how his problems outside the ring deflected his focus and his training and cost him dearly against Margarito and Pacquiao.
Mosley insists, too, that critics who have labeled him a hollowed out version of what he once was are not his motivation. His motivation is he said, “To fight the type of fight I know I can fight.’’
He believes he hasn’t done that since 2009 but others are convinced he fought the only way he can against top competition at 40, which is to say not good enough to win and barely good enough to avoid embarrassment.
“I think Canelo wins but what makes Shane dangerous in this fight is he was embarrassed by the way he’s looked the last few fights,’’ one long-time southern California boxing figure said, not wanting to put his name on his words out of respect for Mosley. “Shane can still punch and that makes him dangerous. Not dangerous enough if Alvarez doesn’t get stupid or cocky but dangerous.’’
That kind of danger is not the kind Mosley once was known for. He was never before seen as a guy with “a puncher’s chance.’’ That was left for the kind of people he regularly beat up. Now he is on the other side of the equation. He’s on the dark side, where it is difficult to see clearly.
“They said he’s going to walk through a door, well there’ll be a big toll to pay,’’ Mosley said. “He’ll have to pay a hefty price in the ring to walk through it. I’m not even thinking about a decision. I’m 21-0 vs. Mexican fighters. He’s going to be No. 22.’’
Mosley insisted he would stop Alvarez, his experience and skills luring him into some dangerous trap from which only unconsciousness could free him. He may really believe that or maybe not but one thing he did admit was how odd it seemed to be facing someone the same age as his son.
“I do feel a little bad about that,’’ he joked. “But I’m not going to hand him a victory. I was him when I fought James Leija and John John Molina. I had to prove it to them. He’ll have to prove it to me.’’
Most of the boxing world expects Saul Alvarez will do that, just as a young Shane Mosley once did at the expense of his elders so many years ago. Although Mosley was not ready to concede that without some harsh convincing from Alvarez, the larger point was clear to him: win or lose he’s on the wrong end of boxing now
“We all have to go through this,’’ Mosley said. “When Canelo is 35 36 they’ll have another 21 year old guy and he’ll be his stepping stone. That’s boxing.’’
Saturday night that’s very likely what Shane Mosley will be – a door who once was a star.
How good is Bakhodir Jalolov? Some would argue that in terms of pure talent, the six-foot-seven southpaw from Uzbekistan who has knocked out all 14 of his opponents since turning pro, is better than any heavyweight you can name. Others say that this can’t possibly be true or his braintrust wouldn’t keep feeding him junk food. Jalolov has been brought along as gingerly as Christopher Lovejoy who was exposed as a fraud after running up a skein of 19 straight fast knockouts,
One thing that’s indisputable is that Jalolov was one of the best amateurs to come down the pike in recent memory. A three-time Olympian and two-time gold medalist, Jalolov won 58 of his last 59 amateur bouts. The exception was a match in which he did not compete which translated into a win by walkover for his opponent, countryman Lazizbek Mullojonov.
The circumstances are vague. Was Jalolov a no-show because of an injury or illness or a technicality? Amateur boxing, save in a few places or in an Olympic year, is the quintessential niche sport. The mainstream media does not cover it.
What we do know, thanks to boxrec, is that Jalolov caught up with Mullojonov in May of last year in the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk and won a split decision. And Mollojonov was no slouch. He too won a gold medal at the Paris Games, winning the heavyweight division to give the powerful Uzbekistan contingent the championship in the two heaviest weight classes.
Jalolov, whose late father was a champion free-style wrestler, has answered the bell as a pro for only 35 rounds. The Belgian-Congolese campaigner Jack Mulowayi came closest to taking the big Uzbek the distance, lasting into the eighth round of an 8-round fight. But when Jalolov closed the show, he did it with a highlight reel knockout, knocking Mulowayi into dreamland with a vicious left hook.
The KO was reminiscent of Jalolov’s most talked-about win as an amateur, his first-round blast-out of Richard Torrez Jr at a tournament in Ekaterinburg, Russia, in 2019. Torrez, knocked out cold with a left hook, left the ring on a stretcher and was removed to a hospital for evaluation.
This was the first AIBA-sanctioned international tournament in which pros were allowed to compete and WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman was incensed, calling the match-up “criminal” in a tweet that was widely circulated. (Jalolov then had six pro fights under his belt.) They would meet again in the finals of the Tokyo Olympiad with the Uzbek winning a unanimous decision.
Perhaps there will be a third meeting down the road. When Jared Anderson was roughed-up and stopped by Martin Bakole, Torrez Jr (currently 12-0, 11 KOs) vaulted ahead of him on the list of the top home-grown American heavyweights. But Torrez Jr, a short-armed heavyweight who overcomes his physical limitations with a windmill offense, would be a heavy underdog should they ever meet again.
Bakhodir Jalolov’s last bout before heading off to Paris was against the obscure South African Chris Thompson. His match on Thursday at the Montreal Casino in Montreal pits him against an obscure 33-year-old Frenchman, David Spilmont.
Spilmont’s last two opponents were the same guy, an undersized Lithuanian slug who has lost 36 of his 41 documented fights. It seems almost inevitable that Spilmont will suffer the same fate as Thompson who was KOed in the first round.
There’s talk that Jalolov doesn’t really care how far he advances at the professional level; that he has his sights set on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles where he would have an opportunity to become only the fourth boxer to win three Olympic gold medals, joining the immortal Teofilo Stevenson, Hungarian legend Laszlo Papp, and Cuban standout Felix Savon. Were he to accomplish the hat trick, they would build monuments to him in Uzbekistan. But, if that is his mindset, he’s skating on thin ice. There’s no guarantee that boxing will be on the docket at the Los Angeles Games and, if so, the powers-that-be may choose to roll back the calendar to the days when the competition was off-limits to anyone with professional experience.
While it’s true that Jalolov needs to work off some rust, a pox on promoter Camille Estephan and his enabler, the Quebec Boxing Commission, for not dredging up a more credible opponent than the grossly overmatched David Spilmont.
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Jalolov vs. Spilmont is ostensibly the co-feature. The main event is a 10-round junior welterweight clash between Movladdin “Arthur” Biyarslanov (17-0, 14 KOs) and Spilmont stablemate Mohamed Mimoune (24-6, 5 KOs). Undefeated light heavyweights Albert Ramirez and Mehmet Unal will appear in separate bouts on the undercard. The Feb. 6 event, currently consisting of seven bouts, will air in the U.S. on ESPN+ starting at 6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT.
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Claressa Shields blasted her way to the undisputed heavyweight championship and nearly knocked out challenger Danielle Perkins in the final seconds, but settled for a win by unanimous decision on Sunday.
Yes, she can punch.
“I just feel overwhelmed and so happy.” Shields said.
Shields (16-0, 3 KOs) proved that even the super athletic Perkins (5-1, 2 KOs), a true heavyweight, could not stop her from becoming an undisputed world champion in a third weight division at Dort Arena in Flint, Michigan, her home town.
In the opening round it was easy to see the size difference. Shields calmly measured Perkins long right jabs then countered with rocket rights through the guard. The speed was evident in Shield’s punches. Perkins used jabs to work her way in but was caught with counters.
“That girl was strong as hell,” said Shields describing Perkins.
Perkins, a southpaw, was somewhat confident that she was the stronger puncher and the stronger fighter overall. But when Shields connected with 10 rocket overhand rights in the third round the power moved Perkins several feet backward.
Suddenly, Perkins realized that indeed Shields has power.
Perkins became more cautious with her approaches. Though the true heavyweight was not frozen in fear, she was wary about getting caught flush with Shields rights. But bullet jabs and lightning combinations still rained on Perkins.
Finding a way to nullify Shields speed was crucial for Perkins.
The former basketball player Perkins continually proved her athleticism with agile moves here and there, but Shields just was superior in every way.
When Perkins became focused too much on the right, a Shields left hook caught the New York native flush. Suddenly there was another Shields weapon to worry about.
Many critics of Shields had focused on her lack of knockouts. But in her previous fight against another heavyweight, the two-time Olympic gold medalist surprised Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse with knockout power. It’s the same power Shields showed Perkins as if firing a fast ball by powering her right with leverage by using her left leg to produce momentum and an explosive punch.
In the 10th and final round Shields and Perkins exchanged blows. Perkins was looking to connect with one of her power shots when suddenly Shields countered with a perfectly timed right to the chin and down went Perkins with about 10 seconds remaining. She beat the count to finish the round.
“I showed I was the bigger puncher and better boxer,” said Shields. “I knew I could do it because I’m really strong at heavyweight.”
All three judges favored Shields 100-89, 99-90 and 97-92.
It was another convincing performance by Shields. So what is next for the best female fighter pound for pound?
“I want to fight Franchon Crews, Hanna Gabriels,” said Shields also naming a few others. “Flint, (Michigan) I love you all so much.”
Other Bouts
A heavyweight clash saw why there is a rule against holding. Brandon Moore (17-1) and Skylar Lacy (8-1-2) punched and held throughout their eight rounds. Referee Steve Willis finally disqualified Lacy when he tackled Moore and took him through the ropes and on to table below.
No, holding and clinching is not part of the fight game. Now you know why.
Moore was ruled the winner by disqualification due to unsportsmanlike conduct by Lacy at 1:35 of the eighth. No need to describe the fight.
A battle between undefeated welterweights saw Joseph Hicks (12-0, 8 KOs) stop Keon Papillon (10-1-1, 7 KOs) at 1:35 of the seventh round. Hicks stunned Papillon at the end of the sixth, then unloaded in the seventh round to force a stoppage.
Joshua Pagan (12-0) out-battled Ronal Ron (16-8) over eight rounds to win the lightweight match by unanimous decision.
Samantha Worthington (11-0) defeated Vaida Masiokaite (10-27-6) by decision after eight rounds in a super lightweight bout.
Featherweight Caroline Veyre (9-1) out-boxed the shorter Carmen Vargas (5-3-1) to win by decision after six rounds.
Super bantamweight Asheleyann Lozada (1-0) won her pro debut by unanimous decision over Denise Moran (3-1) in a four-round fight.
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David Benavidez showed fans why they call him “El Monstro” as he plowed through Cuba’s heavy-punching David Morrell to retain a number one ranking in the light heavyweight division by unanimous decision on Saturday.
Not even a flash knockdown for Morrell could make a difference.
Phoenix native Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) gave Morrell (11-1, 9 KOs) his first loss as a professional in front of more than 15,000 fans at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. No one needed to hear the judge’s decision.
“I prepared for everything. I know he’s a great fighter,” said Benavidez. “I thought he was going to hit harder, but he didn’t.”
Before the fight, Morrell was almost an even bet according to oddsmakers, but that was not the case once the fight commenced.
Immediately Benavidez pounded the body and exposed the weaknesses of Morrell’s peek-a-boo defense by using his own left glove to push down the Cuban’s guard. Then immediately firing a crushing right to the jaw.
For the first four rounds Benavidez pounded away on the left and right side of Morrell’s body. And when the openings came the uppercuts caught Morrell’s chin. But he absorbed the blows.
Morrell didn’t waver in trying to find a solution. Though Benavidez connected often to the body and head, the Cuban fighter who moved up from super middleweight displayed a very solid chin.
In the fourth round during a furious exchange Morrell beat Benavidez to the punch that stunned him momentarily. But the blow seemed to spark outrage and a storm of blows followed from Benavidez.
It must have seemed like a nightmare for Morrell.
At times the Cuban fighter would connect perfectly with a right hook and pause. Then Benavidez would return fire with massive blows.
The look on Morrell’s face bore traces of disappointment.
As the rounds continued Benavidez became emboldened by his success. Soon the Mexican Monster began launching lead right uppercuts through Morrell’s guard especially in the sixth round.
“He was easier to hit than I expected,” Benavidez said.
During the breaks Morrell’s corner asked him to pressure Benavidez. It was a fruitless suggestion. How do you corner a Monster?
Benavidez continued to stalk Morrell who never stopped swinging but could not seem to hurt the Monster. In the 11th round Morrell managed to catch Benavidez perfectly with a right hook and down went Benavidez. He immediately got up and the two fighters unloaded on each other. Morrell fired one punch after the bell and was deducted a point by referee Thomas Taylor. That negated the extra point gained from the knockdown.
“I wasn’t really hurt,” said Benavidez. “That bullshit knockdown caught me off-balance.”
The final round saw both resume their efforts to knock the other out. Both showed great chins and the ability to trade. Benavidez was simply better. Even Morrell didn’t wait for the decision to be read as he raised the arm of the Monster at the final bell. All three judges scored in favor of Benavidez 115-111 twice and 118-108.
“He knows this is Monstro’s world. Big shout out for Morrell, he’s a tough fighter,” Benavidez said.
Other Bouts
In a fight dedicated to honor the late Israel Vazquez, the ultimate Aztec warrior, super lightweights Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz (27-3-1) and Angel Fierro (23-3-2) battled like demons for 10 nonstop rounds. Cruz was ruled the winner by unanimous decision.
With little resemblance of defense, Cruz and Fierro whacked each other relentlessly with shots that might have stopped a moving car. Cruz was tagged by a right cross on the top of the head that staggered him momentarily. Fierro was driven back four feet by an overhand right to the chin early in the fight.
Both fighters took cruel and unusual punishment and never wavered more than a few seconds. It was brutal war and fans were the winners after 10 rounds of violent and savage action.
All three judges saw Cruz the winner 96-94, 97-93, 98-92.
“I’m so happy I gave the fans a great fight,” Cruz said.
Fulton Wins
Stephen Fulton (23-1, 8 KOs) defeated Brandon Figueroa (23-2-1, 19 KOs) again and took the WBC featherweight title by unanimous decision after 12 rounds. He had previously defeated Figueroa in 2021 for the WBC and WBO super bantamweight titles.
Most of the action took place in nose-to-nose fashion where Fulton landed the cleaner shots especially with uppercuts. Figueroa had his moments but was unable to hurt the challenger who lost to Naoya Inoue by knockout 17 months ago.
Fulton landed clean shots but as his record shows he lacks the power with only eight knockouts on his record. But Figueroa was unable to hurt or knock down Fulton. After 12 rounds all three judges saw Fulton win by scores of 116-112 twice and 117-111,
“It feels good. I’m champion again,” said Fulton.
Ramos Wins
Jesus Ramos (22-1, 18 KOs) won by technical knockout over former world champion Jeison Rosario (24-5-2) in the eighth round of a middleweight fight. Both fighters attacked the body but by the sixth round Ramos was the busier fighter and began to dominate the fight. At 2:18 of the eighth round referee Robert Hoyle stopped the fight.
“I like to throw a lot of body punches. It’s kind of my style,” said Ramos.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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Featured Articles4 weeks agoR.I.P. Paul Bamba (1989-2024): The Story Behind the Story
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Featured Articles2 weeks agoSkylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing
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