By Lem Satterfield
LAS VEGAS -- BoxingScene.com polled 16 of the sport's insiders regarding their thoughts on Saturday night's CBS Showtime televised clash betweeen eight-division titlist Manny Pacquiao in defense of his WBO welterweight belt against five-time champion Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas.
Promoted by Top Rank Promotions, Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KOs) has a 13-fight winning streak heading into his bout against Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KOs).
Steve Carp, Las Vegas Review Journal
Manny Pacquiao UD 12 Shane Mosley: I just think that Manny Pacquiao will just be too fast and just too much for Shane Mosley over 12 rounds. So I'm going to say that Manny Pacquiao wins by a unanimous decision.
Tim Dahlberg, Associated Press
Manny Pacquiao KO 7 Shane Mosley: I can't go against Manny Pacquiao in this fight. I think that Shane Mosley is a little over the hill. So I'm going with Manny Pacquiao via seventh round knockout.
Gareth A Davies, The Daily Telegraph, London
Mosley, who has never been knocked out, will be very dangerous in the first three rounds, and can still pull the trigger if he hurts Pacquiao, who I expect to fight cautiously, in the early part of the fight. However, if Pacquiao is on his game, he should break Mosley down by the middle rounds onwards, and if he exerts his relentless attacks, could win by stoppage in around the seventh or eighth round
Norm Frauenheim, 15rounds.com
Manny Pacquiao W 12 Shane Mosley: Manny Pacquiao by decision. I don't think that he will be the first man to knock out Shane Mosley. But I don't think that he can. I think that Shane Mosley has a better chance of winning by knockout, but I don't see Manny falling into the early rush. Once he gets Shane Mosley into the sixth or seventh round, I think that Manny will take over and beat Shane by decision.
Dennis Guillermo, Examiner.com
Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley: My pick is Manny Pacquiao. But I'll play it safe and go with Manny by decision victory over Shane Mosley. I respect Shane Mosley and his chin. Shane has trained hard, but Manny is going to come out strong. I see it being a decision victory for Manny.
Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports
Manny Pacquiao UD 12 Shane Mosley:
I just think that Manny Pacquiao has not demonstrated the ability to finish these guys off. For some reason, he steps off of the gas. His trainer, Freddie Roach, says that he takes it easy on them. I just think that he will do the same thing with Shane Mosley in this fight. But I think that Manny's hands are too fast and that he's more in his prime and that Shane is not.
I think that if Manny does trade with Shane that there is an element of risk because Shane is a big puncher. But I think that Manny will be able to land enough punches to win the rounds. I expect Manny to win a unanimous decision.
Kieran Mulvaney, ESPN/Reuters
Manny Pacquiao UD 12 Shane Mosley: I think that it might be a littel bit like the Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto fight for the first few rounds. I think that Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley has the potential to be very exciting for the first few rounds. After that, I think that Manny is going to take it over.
The problem that I see is that I think that Shane's got the ability, he's got the reach, he's got the ability and he's got the experience, but he doesn't use those tools any more. If you look at the way that he beat Antonio Margarito, in that fight, he was just winging punches from the outside. The kryptonite for Manny Pacquiao are short, straight, crisp punches up the middle.
That's why Juan Manuel Marquez is Manny Pacquiao's Ken Norton, and Shane Mosley will not be. I think that Shane Mosley will start out well, but once they really get into, he will start winging those punches. I don't think that Manny will stop him because Shane is too tough, but I do think that Manny will start to get to him down the middle. I think that Manny Pacquiao will win by a wide decision.
Michael Marley, Examiner.com
Manny Pacquiao TKO 9 Shane Mosley: I think that Manny Pacquiao is going to make Freddie Roach very happy because I don't think that Shane Mosley is going to be able to take 36 minutes of what's coming. I think that Manny Pacquiao is only getting better and that he has not reached his peak. I came to Las Vegas yesterday thinking that the sure thing was that Mosley would be standing on his feet at the end.
But after being around Manny the past few days, I've changed my mind. I don't think that he's doing it because Freddie's urging him to do it. But I just think that Manny will go after the knockout because he wants to put an exclamation point on his challenge to Floyd Mayweather.
What better way to do it than to do something that Floyd Mayweather couldn't do, and that's to score a knockout against Mosley, who never has been knocked out. I think that referee Kenny Bayless either finally steps in after seeing enough at around the ninth round, or his trainer, Naazim Richardson, has a paternal sort of affection and comes to Shane's rescue in the ninth round.
Shane Mosley will still be on his feet, but I think taht the volume of Manny's punches and the crazy angles from which he punches will lead to the stoppage in the ninth round by Manny Pacquiao.
Peter Owen Nelson, Freelance Writer/Freddie Roach Biographer
Manny Pacquiao late-round KO over Shane Mosley: I think that it will be an interesting and engaging fight for three or four rounds, and then Manny Pacquiao is going to be able to open up on him. Shane Mosley's legs will leave him, and, depending on how compassionate a man Manny Pacquiao decides to be, if Manny decides to put him away, then it will t will end in rounds eight, nine or 10.
Gary Andrew Poole, Author Pacquiao: Behind The Scenes.
Manny Pacquiao KO 8 Shane Mosley: I think that Manny Pacquiao will stop Shane Mosley in eight rounds. I think that the volume of punches is going to be too much for Shane Mosley to take. It think that if you look at Shane Mosley's last two fights, he's looked like an old fighter. It seems like Manny Pacquiao is in his prime and that Shane Mosley is on the decline.
I don't think that there are many fighters who can defeat Manny Pacquiao in his prime. I don't think that Shane Mosley is the guy who is going to do it. The speed is going to kill Mosley. I do think that it's a dangerous fight for Manny Pacquiao if he exchanges early with Shane Mosley. But I think that as the fight wears on, Manny PacquiO has the foot work and the speed to win easily.
Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times
Manny Pacquiao TKO 8 Shane Mosley: I think that until Manny Pacquiao demonstrates that he's not at his peak, we have to assume that he's going to continue his domination against Shane Mosley. So I'm picking Manny Pacquiao by a eighth-round technical knockout.
Rick Reeno, BoxingScene.com:
Manny Pacquiao W 12 Shane Mosley: I think that Shane Mosley will be dangerous for the first six rounds tops. But after that, I think that after the six rounds that Manny Pacquiao's workrate will take over. I think that Manny's speed and his movement is going to overwhelm Mosley. I would be surprised if Mosley got stopped. But if he does, it will probably be in the late rounds. But I see Manny Pacquiao winning a comfortable decision.
Chris Robinson, Examiner.com
Manny Pacquiao UD 12 Shane Mosley: I can't go against Manny Pacquiao in this fight. I think that he's on a roll and I think that Shane Mosley will try to make it a dog fight early. I don't think that Shane Mosley is as past his prime as most people think, but I don't think that he has enough to derail Pacquiao. I think that for the first four or five round, it should be a tough fight, but I think that Pacquiao will figure him out and make adjustments and take control toward winning a decision.
Mike Rosenthal, Editor RingTV.com
Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley: I'm in the minority, but I think that Manny Pacquiao is going to score a knockout. I think that what's going to happen is that he's going to be too fast for Shane Mosley. I think that he's going to be throwing too many punches and just too good. Shane Mosley, at this stage of his career, is not going to be able to handle it.
In the beginning, it's going to be competitive, but I think that will be Shane's best chance to hurt Manny. But I think that Pacquiao is going to swiftly turn the fight in his own favor. What I see is that Pacquiao's just going to be landing more and more punches as the fight goes on and that he's going to wear Shane down. In the ninth round, give or take, he's going to knock out Shane Mosley. I predict that Manny Pacquiao will become the first man to knock out Shane Mosley.
Inez Sainz, Top Rank/TV Azteca Mexico
Manny Pacquiao KO 8 Shane Mosley: I truly believe that it's going to be a really good fight. I think that Shane Mosley is truly prepared for this fight. But Manny is so special. He has the best talent in all around the world. He's also in great shape and he's 100 percent ready.
So I think that Manny is going to do it again. I think that it won't go any longer than eight rounds. I don't think that it will go any longer than that and that Manny is going to win.
Ryan Songalia, BoxingScene.com/Filipino Reporter
Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley: I have to go with Manny Pacquiao. I know that everyone is going with Manny Pacquiao, but how can you not go with him? Manny is trying to sell the fight because he knows that a lot of people realize that all of the momentum is in Manny Pacquiao's favor right now. For Manny Pacquiao, it's his fight to lose.
Shane Mosley will come out of the gates fast and try to make an impression on Pacquiao, but Pacquiao's just going to run him over. I think that it will end on a stoppage somewhere between the eighth and 10th round. I'll say it will end in the 10th. The experts choose Manny Pacquiao, 16-0, over Shane Mosley.