By Jake Donovan
Fighter A beats Fighter B, who previously beat Fighter C. Therefore, A beats C, right?
Wrong. Very wrong.
That’s what much of the boxing public was once again, as “Sugar” Shane Mosley, amidst a sea of pre-fight distractions and scandal, turned back the clock in delivering by far the best performance of his 15-year career. A 4-1 underdog coming in, Mosley made Antonio Margarito and the oddsmakers look damn foolish for eight-plus rounds before knocking out the steel-chinned Mexican in the ninth round of their 12-round welterweight title fight.
The bout took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, in front of an announced crowd of 20,820, the largest ever for a boxing event held at the venue.
Margarito’s pre-fight insistence that his name carries this promotion was confirmed the moment both fighters were ushered to the ring. Despite fighting less than 45 minutes from his hometown of Pomona, CA, Mosley was greeted to a chorus of boos amongst the sold out arena.
Those same rabid fans erupted the moment the Mariachi music was cued up and Margarito set foot onto the arena floor. The cheers reached deafening levels as his name was announced during the pre-fight introduction, a reminder of the overnight superstar status he achieved the moment he forced Miguel Cotto to wilt in eleven rounds last summer.
It was the last time of the evening his supporters would have cause to celebrate.
Notorious for being a slow starter, Margarito sought to ditch old habits. He came out firing the jab from the opening bell, but Mosley stood his ground and offered rapid-fire combinations in return. As has been the case throughout his career, Mosley didn’t pardon the body, but his best punches of the round were a right uppercut at the midway point and a left hook up top with about a minute left.
A brief smattering of boos came down early in the second, when Mosley initiated a clinch after a series of jabs from Margarito. The boos grew louder as the clinching became more frequent, though Margarito gave them plenty to cheer about in the final minute of the round. A jab and long right hand produced positive results, but his momentum was squandered by yet another clinch as well as a clash of heads, which earned Mosley a warning from referee Raul Caiz.
Both fighters came out strong at the start of the third, landing effective headshots. The crowd gained a false sense of hope when a right hand sent Mosley backward, where he would slip on one of the many ring logos. A right hand, left hook combination landed for Shane midway through the round, to which Margarito nodded and gave a look as if to say, “Keep bringing it.”
Margarito landed a booming right hand toward the end of the round. Shane countered with a right of his own, punctuating what was statistically his best round of the fight to that point.
Honoring his corner’s wishes to desperately pick up the pace, Margarito began to dig himself out of the early hole in the fourth. Mosley was still throwing, but Margarito kept charging forward, placing straight rights and left hooks anywhere an opening presented itself. The best Mosley could offer for most of the round was to clinch in order to stop the bumrush. That changed in the final 20 seconds, when Margarito ate two right hands, including one at the bell to end the round.
The once raucous crowd was noticeably quiet as the fifth round began. Margarito danced as hard as he could to rally the troops, taking the fight to Shane throughout the round. Mosley stood his ground for the most part, sliding out of the way only after ending a combination with a potent head shot, often an overhand right or a looping left hook.
As the fight approached the halfway point, Margarito was beginning to run out of rounds on the scorecards. Given his usual method of attack throughout his career, it was expected that he’d dramatically pick up the pace. Instead, it was right hand city for Mosley, including three big shots within a 30-second span, as well as another right just before the bell.
The right hands kept coming at the start of the seventh. The only break Margarito would receive was when time was called to repair loose tape on Mosley’s glove. When action resumed, Shane made it rain. Margarito never seemed to find his rhythm, and was absolutely clueless as to how to combat Mosley’s superior hand speed advantage.
Two-way action threatened to break out in the final minute of the round, but Margarito looked flat in throwing arm punches. Normally known for getting stronger as the fight wears on, Margarito appeared fatigued before momentarily catching his second wind just before the bell.
Momentum didn’t spill over into the eighth; Mosley shot off two right hand straight out the box. The elder statesmen continued to pour it on throughout the round, including a huge rally down the stretch, landing several right hands that eventually sent the granite-chinned Margarito to the canvas.
The count rattled off, running all the way to eight before Margarito literally staggered to his feet. Caiz Jr gave him a hard look but allowed action to continue, only for the Mexican to be saved by the bell.
Much debate came about in the Margarito corner whether or not to send him out for the ninth round. They gave their charge one more chance, and Mosley made them regret it big time. Margarito’s back was on the ropes nearly the entire portion of the abbreviated round, with crazy right hands and left hooks raining down before a final right prompted Caiz Jr to intervene.
The official time was 0:43 of round nine.
Entering the fight, Mosley had to endure the stress from the ongoing BALCO scandal, now more than five years in the making, but now carrying more heat than ever before. There was also the recently announced pending separation with Jin, his wife of seven years and now ex-manager.
All of that came on top of the fact that at age 37, he’s perhaps rounding the final stretch of his eventual Hall of Fame career. Yet throughout fight week, Mosley couldn’t have been more giddy, insisting that we would see a “special performance,” and that all of the aforementioned distractions were merely on the back burner.
The masses who refused to believe he could win the fight also dismissed the possibility that he could simply turn his back on all that was going on around him.
This is why the fights are fought in the ring and not on paper.
“Focus – I focused on the game plan,” was the direct answer from Mosley, now 46-5 (39KO), when asked how he could do it. “I know he was going to walk in to the punches and come forward. It was an easy plan to do because he fights hard, but he fights one way.
“Not anyone can beat him; he’s a great fighter, a great warrior. Not just anybody beats Margarito; you have to be a special person.”
Shane Mosley once again proved he is just that.
Thanks to the win, his second straight, he’s now in position to possibly reverse the last defeat he suffered, a close-but-clear decision win to Miguel Cotto in November 2007. That would be the same Miguel Cotto who went on to lose to Margarito eight months later, a loss the Puerto Rican was hoping to avenge later this year should he and his lone conqueror emerge victorious in separate bouts.
Regardless of what happens in Cotto’s fight with Michael Jennings on February 21, the summer rematch is takes a hit as Margarito came up miles short in holding up his end of the bargain.
“All credit to Mosley, he’s a great fighter and a great champion. My corner wanted to stop the fight (after the eighth round), but I wanted to continue,” said Margarito, now 37-6 (27KO), suffering his second loss in less than two years. This defeat was far more damaging than the points loss to Paul Williams in July 2007, as Margarito was able to readjust, bounce back and rack up three straight knockouts, including the career-best win over Cotto.
How he recovers from this remains to be seen. He had a chance to pledge an alibi for what was easily the worst performance of his career. Prior to the fight, Mosley’s trainer Nazim Richardson pointed out to the state commission that a foreign substance was placed in Margarito’s hand wraps. The action resulted in the fighter’s hands being wrapped three times before being approved.
Nothing of the sort was suggested after the fight; instead, Margarito took his defeat like a man, and hoped that a possible rematch with Cotto was still on the table.
“I had a bad night, but I will once again have my arms lifted as a champion.”
Shane Mosley promised to have his arms lifted as a champion in this fight. It was mission accomplished, as he is now the only fighter ever to fight in and win two main events at the Staples Center. Both are the biggest wins of his career, with this one surpassing his previous career-best, a 12-round split decision over Oscar de la Hoya in the first fight more than eight years ago.
It was noted afterward that with de la Hoya, absent from the event as he was promoting an MMA card 40 miles away, boasting a statue outside of the venue, perhaps it’s time they etch Shane in bronze.
“I think my statue will eventually be up there with Oscar’s.”
Thanks to his performance tonight, his career achievements are now right up there with his business partner, if not having surpassed them entirely.
The show was presented by Top Rank Inc. and Golden Boy Promotions.
Jake Donovan is a voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Comments/questions can be submitted to JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.