When the upcoming fight between Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38KO) and Shane Mosley (46-6-1-1, 39KO) was first announced I can't say I was jumping for joy at the prospect. Mosley lost decisively to Floyd Mayweather jr. (41-0, 25KO) in May of last year, despite rocking his opponent early on. Last September, looking all of his 39 years, Mosley earned a draw in a dull affair with Sergio Mora (22-2-2, 6KO). Hardly ideal form going into a bout with arguably the greatest pound-for-pound fighter on the planet. Despite the reservations of many over the merits of Mosley as a challenger for Pacquiao, the former is probably the best opponent Bob Arum could have come up with, at least while obstacles to a potential super-fight with Mayweather remain.
If Mosley is to have any chance against Pacquiao, he will have to draw on all of his experience. The fact that he was able to hurt the slick Floyd Mayweather to the point that Mayweather was forced to tie up in order to survive, suggests that Mosley does have a very real chance of ending Pacman's night early. Bob Arum rightly assessed that Mosley fairs better against fighters who bring the fight to him, and Manny will bring the fight to him for sure. Mosley is also faster than most if not all of the opponents Pacquiao has faced from lightweight upwards. One would think that if Joshua Clottey (35-4-0-1, 20KO) was able to land clean shots on Pacquaio, then Mosley can surely do likewise.
Mosley cannot afford to cover up when faced with flurries from Pacquaio in the same manner as Clottey. Instead he will have to counter while Pacquiao is in the act of throwing punches in the hope of catching him with something. One of the key things he has to do is to alter between counter punching and getting off first, as Paquiao is a master at getting his opponents timing down. Mosley is excellent at fainting punches, but does so rarely, and will have to try and setup punches rather than throw single shots if he is to have any chance come Saturday night.
Styles make fights, and Mosley certainly has more tools to beat Pacquiao than Margarito (38-7-0-1, 27KO) and Clottey had. While Mosley certainly has a chance, it is difficult to see him put into practice everything he will need to do in order to beat Pacquiao. Mosley uses his jab not nearly enough, and his punches are not straight enough to pose Pacqiao with too many problems. The reason Juan Manuel Marquez (52-5-1, 38KO) has been relatively successful against Pacquiao is precisely because he throws short, straight punches. Mosley tends to throw wider punches, and as he nears the end of his career his tendency to wing punches has increased.
It's difficult to envisage Mosley winning this fight in any fashion other than by knockout. Mosley could enjoy some success early on, but Pacquiao will undoubtedly dominate this fight more and more as the rounds progress. Nevertheless, if Mosley can land one of his booming right hands cleanly, Pacquiao could be in serious trouble. And I'm sure few would begrudge the old warrior a return to the spotlight.
