General

Can Shane Mosley Get a Lapdance Over Here or What?

Sep 3, 2009, 7:35 PM UTC

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Man,â†µSugar Shane must not be feeling so sweet right about now. The man isâ†µthe former pound-for-pound king of the sport, coming off one of theâ†µmost dominant performances of his career, and is considered by many toâ†µbe the genuine reigning welterweight champion, currently ranked #1 inâ†µThe Ring ratings at 147.
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â†µAnd nobody wants to fight him.
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â†µWell,â†µthat’s not exactly true. Josh Clottey wants to fight him. But, well,â†µnobody’s exactly knocking down doors to fight Josh Clottey either.
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â†µSoâ†µlet’s put it this way: Nobody that Mosley wants to fight wants to fightâ†µMosley. Granted that is an elite list of fighters. Mosley wanted aâ†µmega-fight with Manny Pacquiao, and said he was willing to cut down toâ†µ140 to do it. Pacquiao opted for Cotto. Mosley has long been in pursuitâ†µof a rematch with Cotto (Cotto beat him by a narrow split decision inâ†µNovember of 2007) but, of course, Pacquiao chose Cotto.
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â†µThenâ†µthere is the one and only Mr. Money May, with whom Mosley has beenâ†µtrading barbs for going on about ten years now. Although each man isâ†µpretty adamant that over that time they were ducked by the other, inâ†µthis case it decidedly seems that it’s Floyd who is not interested inâ†µpunching Shane’s dance card, opting instead for a much safer bout withâ†µthe much smaller Juan Manuel Marquez that has less chance ofâ†µjeopardizing a potentially gigundous Pac/Money 2010 cheddar fiesta.
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Butâ†µall right. Shane’s a little long in the tooth, and he’s never exactlyâ†µbeen an arena-filler (I was at that big Mosley/Margarito sell-out atâ†µthe Staples Center in January, and let me tell you something – I mayâ†µhave been the only non-Mexican in the joint – to understate the caseâ†µconsiderably, it was not a pro-Mosley crowd). Though it’s no doubtâ†µfrustrating for the man, it’s not hard to understand from a fan’sâ†µperspective why the likes of Pac, Cotto and Mayweather are going inâ†µdifferent directions than a walk down Sugar Lane.
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â†µZab Judah,â†µhowever? Et tu… Zab? I mean, this is getting ridiculous. Zab is aâ†µflipping trial horse at this point, floating on his fame as aâ†µwhat-might-have-been weirdo who’s fought (and mostly lost to) the bestâ†µof his generation. And rumor has it that Zab is passing on anâ†µopportunity to fight Mosley in December, reportedly because he’sâ†µunhappy with Golden Boy’s offer of half a mill for the fight (and byâ†µthe way, Boxing News 24â†µis reporting that Zab is back on the Mayweather/Marquez undercardâ†µagainst Antonio Diaz… I’ll believe that when I actually see him in theâ†µring).
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â†µSo, wherefore you, Sugar? Andre Berto? Doesn’t want theâ†µfight yet – his promoter, Dan Goossen wants to build it a little (notâ†µto mention that Berto evidently doesn’t want to cut weight during the holidays…â†µI wonder if he’ll have the same problems around Easter… and the 4th ofâ†µJuly… and Arbor Day…). Paul Williams? Dah… no thanks. Mosley’s bold,â†µbut not that bold.
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â†µWhat it all seems to boil down to is thatâ†µthere’s nobody really, nobody that HBO will sanction anyway. Nobodyâ†µexcept for good ole Josh Clottey, which is… man, what a pill to swallowâ†µfor Mosley. Clottey is a damn good fighter with no Q rating whatsoeverâ†µwho’s just coming off a loss. The fight does absolutely nothing for himâ†µexcept (I believe this is the case) get a mandatory out of the way asâ†µfar as his WBA belt goes.
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â†µBut just as he was for Cotto,â†µClottey is likely to prove a very tough out for Mosley. It’s easy toâ†µimagine a scenario in which Clottey wins that fight, and all of theseâ†µother massive paydays that Shane is fantasizing about will go right outâ†µthe window.
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â†µOn the other hand, I wonder if he wouldn’t be betterâ†µoff. Because if he beats Clottey, something tells me the same nobodiesâ†µwill be lining up to fight him next year as there are right now. Iâ†µdon’t see Pacquiao or Mayweather ever fighting Shane, at this point.â†µWhy would they? And Cotto? If Cotto beats Pac, no way. And if he loses,â†µis Mosley still dying for a Cotto rematch? Somehow I doubt it.
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â†µTheâ†µonly real, definitive fight waiting for Shane is Berto, whenever Bertoâ†µis ready for it (which could be “never” in my estimation). So here’sâ†µwhat Mosley has to look forward to in the next eight months or so – aâ†µfight with Josh Clottey and then maybe… maybe… a welterweight unification bout with Berto. I ask you… is it really worth it? Does he need the money that bad?â†µ