Shane Mosley Vs Sergio Mora Saturday Night: Is There Any Sugar Left?
By Geno McGahee
This Saturday night, Sugar Shane Mosley, 46-6, 39 KO’s, returns to the ring after a one-sided beating at the hands of Floyd Mayweather, JR., to face off against Contender Champion and former WBC Light Middleweight Champion, Sergio Mora, 22-1-1, 6 KO’s. This will be the headliner on a Golden Boy Pay Per View card that has a decent undercard, but sincerely needs it considering what the main event is.
Mosley was a terror as a lightweight, dominating the division in the mid 1990s, stopping respectable opposition like Jesse James Leija, John John Molina, and Wilfredo Rivera, before moving up to welterweight and picking up the biggest win of his career, a 12 round decision over Oscar De La Hoya. That was the birth of Sugar Shane into superstardom.
Shane went on to rule the welterweight division before meeting up with Vernon Forrest. Back to back decisive losses to Forrest would move Shane away from his spot as pound for pound best and made those question his greatness. He would have back to back defeats once again, this time to Winky Wright, in 2004, proving the inability to adjust inside the ring.
Mosley would rebound, beat up a washed up Fernando Vargas twice, and land a high profile showdown with Puerto Rican superstar, Miguel Cotto. Doing better than expected, Mosley’s stock went up, although he lost a decision. A struggle with Ricardo Mayorga, ending with a devastating KO win for Shane, led to another high profile showdown with Antonio Margarito.
Prior to Margarito, Mosley was considered a spent force by many. He did defeat Vargas and Mayorga, but not easily. He struggled with both. In the meantime, Antonio Margarito would be on top of the world, knocking out the previously undefeated Miguel Cotto, battering him into submission. Most thought that Mosley didn’t have a chance. Most thought that he was shot. They were half right.
Mosley was shot, but Margarito was a fraud, using plaster in his hand wraps to devastate his opposition because there is no way he could compete on a level playing field. The cheating was detected prior to the Mosley fight and he had to fight him fair and square and without his loaded gloves, he was easy prey for an old Mosley.
With Margarito left in a mangled heap, it gave the impression that Mosley was reborn and had defeated not only Margarito, but father time as well. This led to a collision with Floyd Mayweather, JR., and it would lead to the truth about Mosley. He was a spent force. He has zero outside of a punch that he landed once, and was otherwise dominated and battered. Now, he has elected to keep going for the green and found a worthy fighter…worthy not dangerous.
Sergio Mora, the “Latin Snake,” became a fan favorite during his run on the Contender, the reality show featuring up and coming boxers. Mora would go on to win the show and would have a good run, living off the success of the program. In 2008, he would have a real opportunity at a real champion in WBC Light Middleweight Champion, Vernon Forrest, and to the shock of most, Mora outworked and took the title from the older champion. He was more than a contender after all.
The fall would happen quickly after the rise, losing the title decisively to Forrest in a rematch. The difference in class that many pointed to before the first fight was on display in the rematch. Forrest took Mora lightly and paid dearly for it the first time and came back focused and ready and dominated. Since then, Mora has one victory, a stoppage of Calvin Green.
Mora has a big heart, but he doesn’t have the punch to concern Mosley. Mosley has better skills and is just a better fighter overall, even at this stage of his career. This fight is sort of a feel good fight for Mosley. He gets back on the big stage and will most likely win by one-sided decision or stoppage and may fool some people into thinking that he is back on his game. The only hope for Mora is that Mosley has fallen so far over the deep end and is so shot that he cannot pull the trigger, giving him an opportunity to steal a decision. Other than that unlikely scenario, expect the older Mosley to dominate.
The undercard begins with light welterweight Victor Ortiz, 27-2-1, 21 KO’s, taking on Vivian Harris, 29-4-1, 19 KO’s, in a ten round contest. Ortiz is being brought along the right way now, getting experience. He was on the fast track to a title shot before running into Marcos Maidana, losing a TKO in 6. He has rebounded with three straight wins, including a decision over veteran Nate Campbell in his last fight. Now, he takes on another veteran in Harris.
Harris was on the verge of a showdown with Floyd Mayweather, JR., when Carlos Maussa knocked him out. He has been 4-2 since, losing both times by stoppage to Junior Witter and Lucas Martin Mathysse. In the defense of Harris, the stoppage loss to Mathysse was one of the worst stoppages I have ever seen, but he was in trouble in the fight, and his chin is in question. This is why he is matched with Ortiz. He has an older fighter with a big name and a questionable chin. Harris will have to fight to survive and hope for the best.
A WBO Featherweight Eliminator between Carlos De Leon, 39-2, 32 KO’s, and Antonio Escalante, 24-2, 15 KO’s, and a WBC Silver Light Middleweight bout takes place between Carlos Baldomir, 45-12-6, 14 KO’s, and Saul Alvarez, 33-0-1, 25 KO’s. Baldomir seems to be shot, losing 3 of his last 5 fights, and struggling with his recent victories over lackluster opposition. Alvarez may have a zombie in front of him Saturday night.
The PPV card is this Saturday night. The undercard may provide some fun moments, and even maybe a shock here and there, but it’s a shame that the main event is so poor. Rent at your own risk.