Mayweather v. Mosley: Pre-fight analysis

By Mortz C. Ortigoza: April 26, 2010

Forget about Pacquiao versus Marquez. Forget about the historic $128 million all-time top grossing Mayweather versus Oscar de la Hoya fight. Forget that you’re married. Forget that you’re heart-broken. Brace yourselves baby this May 1. This is boxing's D-Day where two foremost boxing gladiators draw their “swords” to cancel each other out so one of them would be called one of the best in boxing history after Sugar Ray Robinson, Mohammed Ali, and Sugar Ray Leonard.

Just as John Lennon blurted-out on the first line of the Beatle’s “She Came in through the Bathroom Window”: Oh, Look out! 

 Yeeh man. You’ve got to look-out since this is a Joy Floyd Mayweather, Jr. – Shane Mosley’s bloodbath!

PLUSSES: Joy Floyd Mayweather, Jr.

He is a pure boxer and a non-pareil defensive fighter.

His hand speed is as fast as his machine badmouthing. He has sleek foot work reminiscence to the great Mohammed Ali. He has an excellent talent in the feigning division.

An undefeated pug with a defense that can be likened to a mobile U.S made MIM -104 Patriot anti-missile systems.

He did not only developed but subtly exploit the old school’s roll-shoulder technique - where the right hand is held normally or slightly higher than normal, the left hand is down around the midsection, and the lead shoulder is raised high on the cheek in order to cover the chin and block punches from the opponent

A defense that earned him a “pretty boy” moniker during his amateur days - where he transformed the faces of his opponents to that of movie characters Chewbacca and Dartmoul of Star Wars, while he was too skilful to retain his unscathed Martin Laurence, er,  Denzel Washington’s face in the Bad Boys’ flick.

A ring tactician where he would sacrifices some early rounds to observe the nuances of his opponents, and like an incisive but meticulous surgeon treated them the coup’d grace in the middle or in the later rounds.

One of the examples was when he fought the “haymaker” but dirty fighter Zab Judah.

He can be likened to foremost Russian sniper Vasily Zaytsev of the Battle of Stalingrad where a mere slight false move of his opponent means a point loss, a knockdown, or a knockout.

PLUSSES: Shane Mosley

He is a boxer-puncher. In a direct simultaneous slam-bang - where he and Floyd exchange a simultaneous straight hands’ flurries - he will put Floyd on a disadvantage with his two inches edge from his 74 inches  hand reach against Floyd’s 72 inches. His hand speed is much faster than that of Floyd, and also of Judah. Unlike Zab however, Mosley did not easily get tire in the second half of the rounds. He has a chin that is as formidable as to three Fort Knoxs combined. Has a faster left jab that could put into shame that of Oscar dela Hoya’s incessant jabbing that outsmarted Mayweather in the first six rounds of their fight. He has a powerful right overhand drive, and a heavy right uppercut - that helped knocked-out opponents like the brash, gross, and trash talking Nicaraguan Matador Ricardo Mayorga whom he brought to an abattoir dreamland with his signature lethal left hook.

A real super welterweight that many believe would be much stronger than Mayweather comes fight night.

He fought and defeated if not knocked out elite and once elite knock-out artists in Oscar de la Hoya (twice) and Fernando Vargas (twice).

MINUSES: Mayweather

He has not fought a tough customer in a bigger, stronger, and faster Mosley.

His conquest of slower and one-dimensional knocked-out artist Diego Corrales (where he knocked down thrice in the seventh, and twice in the tenth before the fight was ended) could not be crowed of since the latter was struggling with weight losses to the Super Featherweight Division that he should be vacating for the bigger Lightweight Division.

His tussles with real welterweight warriors Carlos Baldomir, Judah, and Oscar dela Hoya were of no moment.

Baldomir was as slow as a Hearst bound to the cemetery. A lopsided fight dominated by the whack-whack bombs of Floyd that transformed the laggard Baldomir into a target paper.

Although he fought “boxing geriatric” Oscar dela Hoya who did not even fought for a year before he tangled with him, the latter still struggled with the voluminous body punches spearheaded by the round-the-clock incessant left jabbing of Oscar in the first half of the rounds.

Dela Hoya lost in a split decision when he got tired and forgot that God has gifted him with a left hand for a jab that he can used, and not blew it out in the second half of the rounds.

He has difficulty to get an angle if rolled by an opponent whose purpose is to pin him at the ropes, or a busy punching opponent like what Judah has done to him in the early rounds of their fight in 2007.

Mosley can counter him with a straight right after Mayweather unleashes his left jab that he seldom uses to cover the side of his left face.

Shane can hit also Floyd with a left hook at the chin after the latter attacks him with his right straight.

MINUSES: Mosley

He has been defeated five times. Twice by fellow Olympic players and right lead handed genius Vernon Forrest. Twice by the much bigger and Berlin Walled protected Winky Wright (of the Junior Middleweight fame when Mosley climbed the division), and once in a disputed closed fight with Miguel Cotto.

As what Mayweather disses to Shane: "There is a blue print to beat him because he has lost five times already. But there is no blueprint to beat me.”

He added: "Mosley has problems with boxers. He lost to Winky Wright from a one-handed jab in his face all night long. Now he is facing someone sharp as a razor with two hands. He has been dropped and wobbled on numerous occasions. If he tries to bum rush me, he is going to get clipped. 

The other weaknesses of Shane are either his chin is open or he closes his eyes every time he exchanges blows or unleashed a power punch.

Gee whiz, I could not wait to see these duos “cancel” each other out on May 1 so that one could live and call himself one of the best in the hurt – business.

Look out!

(Send comments to totomortz@yahoo.com)