By John F. McKenna (McJack): Although Manny Pacquiao ( 52-3-2, 38 KO’s) has taken a considerable amount of flak for taking on Shane Mosley (46-6-1-1, 39 KO’s) on May 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, “Pacman” is not taking Mosley lightly and is not look past the May 7th fight.
From all reports at Pacquiao’s training camp, he is taking “Sugar” Shane Mosley just as seriously as he has taken any other opponent in the past. Manny is fully aware that Mosley at 39 years old, has the ability to put on a fight that may confound his critics who say he is washed up after a couple of lack luster performances in his recent fights. As Mosley himself points out he has good speed and is much quicker than Pacquiao’s last opponent Antonio Margartito. Although Margarito took a beating in his fight with Pacquiao, he was still able to land a considerable amount of punches on Manny.
As always, the full extent of Pacquiao’s training regimen is kept under wraps, although it is well known that he goes through a brutal routine in his preparation for any fight. Reportedly he does 4000 sit ups a day, 2000 in the morning and 2000 in the evening. Manny does not take himself too seriously and he is determined to make a good showing.
He is aware of Mosley’s speed and power as well as his height and reach advantages. Manny also knows that boxing fans world wide will be comparing his performance against Mosley to Floyd Mayweather’s performance against “Money”. Whether Pacquiao wants to admit it or not, his competitive nature dictates that he put on a great performance against Mosley. Early reports are that Manny is on target to be in terrific condition by fight time.
Mosly is equally determined to put on the performance of his life against Pacquiao. Just like everyone else, he has heard all the reports by boxing writers that his chances of pulling off an upset are slim. “Sugar” Shane is the ultimate professional. He is using all the negativity in a positive way and is actually motivated because he wants to prove his detractors wrong. At 39 years old Mosley has seen it all and done it all. He too saw what a much slower Antonio Margarito was able to accomplish against Pacquiao. Mosley and his team are confident that he can use not only his spend, but his physical advantages over “Pacman” to pull off a major upset. Mosley will work hard on using his height and reach advantages coupled with his strength to achieve his objective of victory over Pacquiao. He also wants his legions of fans to be ready for what he and his team feel will be an upset.
It will be interesting to see if Shane Mosely is able to put an effective plan against Manny Pacquiao into effect. Mosley believes in his heart that he can confound the skeptics and win against Pacquiao. Boxing history is full of instances where fighters who apparently had no chance of victory were able to win. It is what makes boxing so interesting. Every time boxing seems to be on its last legs a major upset will come along to breathe new life into the sport.
It is always a challenge to make a prediction, but it is also a lot of fun. Both Pacquiao and Mosley are good guys. No trash talking and no berating of an opponent. Both are class acts and have been so throughout their careers. Still as Manny Pacquiao said, we owe it to our fans to put on the very best performance possible. My hunch is that Pacquiao will win convincingly, leaving no room for doubt. Fans deserve and will get the best from these two fighters.
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