Mosley-Mundine Fight is OFF

UPDATED MONDAY at 7:15 PM ET: Mosley’s promoter, Golden Boy, sent out a release clarifying the Mosley-Mundine situation:

LOS ANGELES (October 21) – Scheduled to face Anthony Mundine at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Australia on October 23, boxing superstar Sugar Shane Mosley will instead be going home after a breach of contract by the event’s co-promoter, Millennium Events, prompting his withdrawal from the fight.

“I’m very disappointed with this turn of events because I was planning on making a big statement by beating Mundine, but I was left with no choice but to withdraw,” said Shane Mosley. “The fans in Australia have welcomed me with open arms, and I hope to return to fight for them one day in better circumstances.”

“It’s unfortunate that this fight will not be taking place, and we apologize to all of Shane’s Australian fans, but there are contracts in place for a reason, and when the terms are not adhered to, we have no choice but to protect our fighter, and that’s what happened here,” said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions.

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Sergio Mora, the former 154 pound champion now campaigning as a middleweight, tells TSS that the Wednesday fight in Australia between Shane Mosley and Anthony Mundine is off.

Mora, present for fight week, messaged me from the airport. He said that the 42-year-old Mosley wasn’t paid funds he was promised, and thus, the fight is off.

“We’re at the airport now,” said Mora, who was providing sparring, and looks ahead to a Nov. 16 bout on the Andre Ward-Edwin Rodriguez card. “We’re all stunned. It’s all over the newspapers here.”

Indeed, a report in the Daily Telegraph confirms that Mosley (47-8-1) is pulling out and that the fight won’t go on. The promoter referenced in that piece is Vlad Wharton, and this report gives a different spin to things, saying that Mosley moved hotel rooms, to one closer to the airport, to “extract cash” from Wharton.

The vacant WBA international junior middleweight title was supposed to have been up for grabs, and ESPN3 was supposed to show the clash.

Mundine, a 38-year-old Aussie, owns a 44-5 mark. He lost his last scrap, against Daniel Geale, then IBF middleweight champ, in January.

Mosley bounced back with a win over Pablo Cano in March, after losing to Manny Pacquiao and Saul Alvarez, and retiring for a spell.

I am not clear on the terms of the contract, what portion if any Mosley was promised pre-fight, so I cannot say I’m clear on who is at fault here.

Stay tuned for more info…

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