Mosley Shocks the Boxing World

Shane Mosley earned the greatest victory of his fabulous career by knocking out welterweight champion Antonio Margarito in the ninth round of their Saturday title fight. Mosley’s dominating performance was witnessed by the largest crowd in the history of the Staples Center, and sent ripples throughout the division. The shocking upset should bring new life to Mosley’s Hall of Fame career, as he has now become the man at 147 pounds.

TheDailySportsHerald.com’s boxing prophet, Kweku Turkson, correctly foresaw a Mosley victory by knockout.

The keys to Mosley’s success were his intelligent tactics and superior hand speed.

Mosley’s hand speed allowed him to get off first in the exchanges. As a result, Mosley landed numerous, clean shots to Margarito’s head and body. More importantly, those shots were thrown with ferocity by Mosley, as he was determined to stand his ground and not go backward against the pressing Margarito.

Mosley slowed Margarito’s charge by wisely attacking his body immediately. He also kept Margarito at bay by employing an effective jab, as he sometimes tripled up with that punch.

But the smartest strategy on Mosley’s part was his use of the clinch. After landing his shots, Mosley would then immediately tie up Margarito. This strategy proved far more effective against Margarito than Miguel Cotto’s hit-and-retreat method, as Mosley was able to rest during the clinches. In addition, those tie-ups allowed Mosley to keep the action away from the ropes and in the center of the ring. Once in the center, Mosley’s superior speed gave him the advantage.

The final punch statistics indicated that Mosley landed 178 punches to Margarito’s 108.

Prior to the fight, Mosley’s trainer, Naazim Richardson, caught Margarito inserting a plaster-like substance into his hand wraps. Margarito had to have his hands re-wrapped three times before they met the acceptable standards.

Here is how TheDailySportsHerald.com scored the fight round-by-round:

Round 1

Mosley began the fight by attacking the body of Margarito. He also threw several combinations, and some good counter hooks. In this round, Mosley beat Margarito to the punch in most of the exchanges.

Margarito complained to the referee of head butts. Margarito got in a few long jabs as well.
10-9, Mosley

Round 2

Mosley threw several combinations at Margarito, forcing him backward. Mosley threw multiple jabs throughout the round, often tripling his jab. Margarito appeared to get in a rhythm late, but it was not enough, as Shane outconnected him 13 punches to 10.
10-9, Mosley

Round 3

Mosley landed several thunderous right hand leads. He kept the action in the middle of the ring and landed clean shots. Again, Mosley had more connects, as he tallied 15 punches to 11. Margarito displayed almost no effective offense.
10-9, Mosley

Round 4

Mosley demonstrated his ring generalship by loading up with powerful right hands and combinations, and then tying up Margarito. Margarito generated little offense throughout the round. Mosley concluded the round with yet another great, clean right hand to the face of Margarito.
10-9, Mosley

Round 5

Mosley stood his ground once more as the fighters engaged in some infighting in the center of the ring. Mosley repeatedly beat Margarito to the punch with his quicker hands. A solid Mosley left to the head drew blood from Margarito’s mouth. Mosley followed up that activity with a left hook and a clean right to the head.
10-9, Mosley

Round 6

Margarito displayed much more caution in chasing down Mosley. He appeared gun shy and looked confused as to how to attack his opponent. Mosley continued to beat Margarito to the punch, and began to back up Margarito. When a Mosley right hand sent Margarito to the ropes, Margarito did little in retaliation. Instead, he leaned against the ropes and appeared fatigued.
10-9, Mosley

Round 7

Mosley landed another crisp right. Mosley also scored with multiple jabs. In the clinches, Mosley essentially manhandled Margarito, and pushed him back at will.

Margarito showed some heart by rallying with increased punch volume. Although nothing truly substantive connected, he at least attempted to walk down Mosley. Shane responded by tripling his jab. He then landed another clean right near the end of the round. Although Margarito had his best round of the fight, it was not enough to win the round overall.
10-9, Mosley

Round 8

Mosley again landed another clean right and then tied up his opponent. Mosley wrestled with Margarito, and prevented him from mounting much of an attack. Late in the round Mosley hurt Margarito with a huge left. Mosley then threw a series of massive shots, and scored the fight’s first knockdown at the bell.
10-8, Mosley

Round 9

Mosley resumed his devastating attack by immediately throwing multiple power punches to Margarito’s head while Margarito was against the ropes. The referee jumped in and stopped the fight 43 seconds into the round.

TheDailySportsHerald.com’s score at the time of the stoppage was 80-71 for Mosley. Our scorecard had Mosley winning every round.

WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THIS FIGHT:

#1 The Right Trainer Makes All the Difference

The smartest thing Mosley did in preparation for this fight was to fire his father, and instead hire Naazim Richardson as his trainer.

Under Jack Mosley, Shane had regressed into a predictable, limited fighter. Although he always seemed to be in top condition, his skills had regressed. Gone was the explosive combination punching of youthful days. In its place, Shane had become a one-punch-at-a-time fighter. His left jab had deteriorated into a weak, flicking punch that only seemed to measure for distance. Mosley had devolved into a fighter who merely loaded up with individual right hands, hoping to overcome opponents with his iron will alone.

When Mosley briefly hired the Goosens to train him in his Winky Wright rematch, some of that earlier trademark combination punching returned. However, Shane immediately brought Jack back on board, and all progress was lost.

Under Richardson, Shane got it back in one training camp.

For the first time in years, Mosley’s jab was a stinging, effective punch. More importantly, he often tripled up on the punch, jabbing effectively to both the head and body.

When he threw his power shots, he did not simply throw individual right hands. Mixed in were left hooks, and numerous combinations. After years, Shane finally was letting his hands go once again.

Shane looked so much better in this fight that one has to wonder what the boxing world could have witnessed from him over the years had Jack Mosley not been his trainer.

This version of Shane defeats Miguel Cotto handily, as he would have given Cotto a more diversified attack. This version of Shane finishes Ricardo Mayorga much earlier than the twelfth round. This more entertaining version of Shane also would have been a much bigger pay-per-view draw, and would have garnered more memorable matchups along the way.

#2 The Margarito Myth is Forever Gone

Because of the manner in which Margarito defeated Miguel Cotto – by walking through every Cotto punch unfazed – he had developed an aura of near-invincibility. It was taken for granted that Margarito simply could not be hurt, and that the only way to beat him was via decision.

Now thanks to Shane Mosley, he has been exposed.

First, Mosley showed the world that Margarito’s chin is not invulnerable. Although it took some hellacious shots over 8 rounds, Shane finally was able to chop Margarito down, and prove, that yes, he can be knocked out.

Second, all the questions that had surfaced about Margarito before his Cotto victory, now seem more relevant than ever. In other words, can a man who has slow hands, and who lacks any one-punch KO power, really beat a determined, elite fighter with his tough chin, work rate, and will alone?

Thanks to Mosley, we know the answer is no.

In Shane, Margarito found a man just as determined as himself. Because the two fighters’ wills were essentially even, the fight then came down to which man had the better skills. Against Mosley’s boxing skills, Margarito’s slower hands made him look like a one-dimensional, glorified club fighter.

Third, let’s drop all the “Chavez” and “Warrior” talk about this guy. After all, the man tried to cheat by inserting plaster into his hand wraps.

#3 Be Careful What You Wish For

When Margarito beat Cotto, he began having delusions of grandeur, and assumed that he deserved a huge payout.

He lobbied for a matchup with Oscar De La Hoya, but that effort went nowhere.

Paul Williams then offered Margarito the chance to avenge a prior loss, but Margarito avoided any Williams rematch like the plague. For Margarito, Williams was just too risky.

Then Mosley’s name surfaced.

Although the payouts for a Williams or a Mosley fight were fairly similar, Margarito preferred Mosley. To him, Mosley was past-his-prime, yet still carried a big name. So, Margarito calculatingly chose the “safe” fight.

Last night the boxing gods threw those careful ideas aside. So much for the best laid plans.

#4 Shane Deserves a Megafight

Shane’s performance was so spectacular that he immediately re-entered any conversation concerning the sport’s pound-for-pound king.

If Shane postpones retirement, his future opponents should be drawn from a very short list. All contenders – the Luis Collazo’s, Andre Berto’s, and Zab Judah’s of the world – need not apply. Shane deserves opponents with true star power at this time.

The first name that comes to mind is Floyd Mayweather Jr. Both men turned down this matchup at different points in their careers, but now the money may be right.

An alternative matchup could be against the Hatton-Pacquiao winner. Having just beaten Margarito, Mosley would likely be favored against either man.

Another possibility for Shane could be avenging his loss to Cotto. Now that Shane has a real trainer, he might want to set the record straight after what many felt was an incorrect decision.

And then there is Paul Williams. A Williams fight would be less lucrative than the previous three, and would present the most risk. Nevertheless, Shane might be forced to take this fight because it is very likely that the other big names would be afraid to fight him after last night.

By Mike Elliott
Staff Editor for TheDailySportsHerald.com