By Chris Williams: With all the other potential opponents out there for Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KO’s) to fight his promoter Bob Arum chose 39-year-old Shane Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KO’s) for May 7th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Whether this fight does turn out to be exciting or not, it’s going to be going against what we’ve seeing from Mosley in his last two fights. Mosley has looked anything but exciting in his last two fights. Indeed, he’s looked terrible.

Arum said this about the Pacquiao-Mosley fight: “My matchmaker said Shane would make the most entertaining fight for the fans. For pure recognition, Shane Mosley is the best fighter for marketability.”

That’s really sad because that’s what I think this fight is: just a marketable fight between a fighter in his prime with Pacquiao going against another fighter who left his prime behind in the rearview mirror 2000 yesterdays ago. It’s going to be a mismatch and it’s disappointing that Mosley was chosen because of his name recognition rather than how he’s fighting now. I think it’s bad for boxing for fights to be put together just because one fighter is well know but is no longer what he used to be.

Pacquiao is facing what appears to be a toothless old lion in Mosley, and it’s going to be bad to see Mosley beaten up by Pacquiao. I just hope Pacquiao goes easy on the old guy because I don’t want to see Mosley knocked out or hurt. He deserves better. It’s good that he’s getting this big payday against Pacquiao, because it’s like a gold retirement watch but it’s bad that he’s probably going to get slaughtered so badly in this fight.

This is a fight where Mosley needs an age handicap in my view. They need to give Mosley like four or five rounds right off the bat so that it’s even. Pacquiao could then battle hard to catch up to Mosley and try to even out and then beat him. I think that’s what boxing needs to come to if they’re going to have mismatches between younger fighters in their prime and older guys that are pretty much shot.