TalkingBoxing Articles
Trading Places, Freaky Friday and Mosley Collazo
TUE February 13, BUSTER PARIS - The result was exactly what one would expect it to be – the young up-and-comer heedlessly using his youth, speed and exuberance to heartily outwork, out throw and outland his older and more cautious opponent. The old guy was simply too thoughtful and waited far to long to mount an attack that never came … but wait …is this Bizarro World? – Trading Places? – Freaky Friday?
Nope – it’s professional boxing – but no matter what you call it, for the whole fight the roles of the gloved ones were wildly reversed and in the 10th round HBO’s Larry Merchant, as usual, summed it up vividly:
“What you got here is a hungry OLD fighter”
It sure seemed like Trading Places on Saturday night – February 10th 2007 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in the next best thing to Bizarro World - Las Vegas, NV – with the 35 year old “Sugar” Shane Mosley (W 44 - 37 ko's & L 4) fighting as if he were 25, and trying to make a name for himself by showing off his speed, power and youthful energy against the actual 25 year old Luis Collazo (W 27 - 13 ko's & L 3), who in turn fought like he was 35 and was the old timer as he would patiently wait for the young pup to make a mistake and then plan on beating him with his vast experience and immeasurable knowledge of Pugilism.
The first few rounds were surprisingly fast paced, as they were packed with thought and strategy. Shane was by far the busier and bolder fighter while Luis tried to play it cool, bide his time and selectively land good, and clean shots.
For the first half of the match it seemed like Mosley was a kitten pouncing all over an older cat that really couldn’t be bothered with the inconvenience of swatting the kitten away, but knew he could have it for lunch.
For those earlier rounds it was as if Collazo was waiting for something that no one else knew was going to happen – maybe he was waiting for Shane to tire or maybe he was waiting for a moment, or a sign, or something that was to signal him to pour it on.
Then in round 7 it became clear that there was no master plan on Collazo’s part. He wasn’t waiting for anything and HBO’s Harold Letterman said it straight:
“Shane Mosley is just out punching this guy”
Round 9 was a scrappy round as well as the clinchiest of the night. Rounds 10, 11 and 12 were all Mosley. He never let up and fought with an unexpected vigor and sense of purpose that you mostly see from fighters trying to break through to the next level of the sport.
It was near the end of the 11th round that Shane knocked Luis down. It wasn’t an easy knockdown as Collazo’s legs didn’t want to hit the mat. He crab walked for as long as he could and then gravity took over.
Even with the one-sidedness of the bout it was an interesting and exciting fight.
The jury is still out on what exactly was Luis’ problem – if it was Mosley just being too good and too much for him to overcome, or if he was having an off night.
For “Sugar” Shane – it was a great welcome back to Welterweight (147 lbs) and he impressively fought with a drive and passion that you usually see in a young fighter who hasn’t made it to the promised land like Shane already has.
The big question now is what’s next for Mosley? He’d like to take on Floyd Mayweather after Floyd fights Oscar De La Hoya in May, but “Pretty Boy” Floyd has made it clear that he’s not interested in Shane, and at this point – why should he be?
Here’s what should happen next in Shane’s world – 2 words that will answer all questions – 2 words that will make him more attractive to Mayweather once Floyd beats Oscar in May – 2 words that will give Mosley exactly what he wants and needs right now:
Antonio Margarito.
Buster Paris can be reached at: bparis@talkingboxing.com - and always enjoys receiving your thoughts, comments and questions.
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