The (ho-hum) Pacquiao-Mosley fight

To no one's surprise, Manny Pacquiao defeated Shane Mosley in their 12-round encounter last Sunday. What was surprising to me was watching a replay of the fight on TV5 instead of GMA-7. I suppose it was part of the perks that Smart, a sister company of the Kapatid network, wangled from the organizers for sponsoring the fight. The telecom outfit must have paid a premium because the ring announcer mentioned Smart as one of the sponsors and its logo was emblazoned on the floor of the ring.

Underwhelming bout

What was even more surprising was how underwhelming the whole bout turned out. I got more exciting moments from the RH bill debate on ABS-CBN which was aired at the same time. I would switch to this show during commercial breaks. Protagonists like Rissa Hontiveros-Baraquel, Esperanza Cabral, Joey Lina and Roilo Golez exchanged stinging verbal punches that evoked cheers from their supporters. At the MGM Grand Garden Arena, boos greeted the fighters in the middle of the bout because their fans expected more action than they were getting.

Action was what I looked forward to when Mosley was knocked down in the third round but the excitement was short-lived. I thought our hero would finish him off with punishing punches and go for a knock-out. After all, by boxing standards, this was an aging fighter, who was turning 40 in September this year. It was not to be as the two fighters seemed to be coasting along. They even touched gloves after every round, a friendly gesture I didn't notice in previous Pacquiao fights.

Too late

It was only in the 10th round when the referee ruled that Pacquiao was knocked down instead of pushed, did the Pacman react angrily. He started chasing Mosley then tried to finish him off in the 11th and 12th round. It was too late. Mosley was the slippery one avoiding Pacquiao's fists. The challenger managed to retain his record of not being knocked out in a fight.

For his colorless performance, Mosley earned at least $5 million with hardly a scratch on his face. Pacman's previous opponent, Antonio Margarito earned less but ended up with a battered face and a serious eye injury that required surgery. Pacquiao earned at least $20 million but did not work as hard as when he tangled with Margarito.

While many of the fans were disappointed, the sponsors of the TV coverage were quite pleased because the fight lasted the entire 12 rounds. They were able to air their innumerable commercials. In the Pacquiao-Hatton fight, Hatton was knocked out in the second round to the advertisers' dismay. Those who watched the bout on free TV had to make do with a much delayed broadcast. By 12:30 p.m, local time, the fight had already reached the 8th round but GMA-7 was still airing the preliminary fights.

Also very happy was the National Historical Commission which approved of the way Charice (pronounced Sharice by the ring announcer) interpreted the Philippine National Anthem. Perfect was the word the NHC used to describe her singing. Grammy award winner Tyrese Gibson did not have to follow rules on how to sing the Star Spangled Banner especially when he reached the last two lines "o'er the land of the brave and the home of the free." The Americans are more freewheeling when it comes to their national anthem.

Aksyon TV now on Sky Cable

I am finally able to watch the 24-hour news channel of TV 5. After several months, Sky Cable has allocated a channel for ABS-CBN's competitor. Aksyon TV which is on Channel 41 on free TV is now on Channel 61 on Sky.

Dick Gordon's "Duelo," Dong Puno's "Kalibre 41" and "Tayuan Mo at Panindigan" with Joey Reyes, Lourd De Veyra, Aida Sy and Carlos Celdran are some of the talk shows on the channel.

I notice, though, that many of its shows like "Totoo TV," "Public Atorni," and "Dokumentado" also air on or have been moved from TV 5. Several shows like "Cristy Ferminute" and "Todo Bigay" are televised edition of radio shows.

I trust that in due time Aksyon TV will come out with more substantial public affairs programs that can compete with the other news channels, ANC and GMA-News TV.

Manny Pacquiao vs Shane Mosley Fight Prediction

Last November 13, 2010, Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao rewrote the boxing record books one more time when he won the vacant WBC Super Welterweight World Title after beating Antonio Margarito’s face to a pulp for 12 rounds.

With the win, the current #1 pound for pound boxer in the world extended his mind-boggling record of eight world titles in eight weight divisions.

While Pacquiao has nothing left to prove, fans clamor for a superfight between him and the former #1 on the mythical pound for pound list, the undefeated Floyd Mayweather, Jr.

However, the guy seems to duck the man; choosing instead to engage Pacquiao in a homophopic and racist tirade – then seemingly wanting prison over a boxing ring just to keep his sterling boxing record clean.

So, instead of a superfight, fans are instead forced to see Manny Pacquiao face an aging has-been.

This May 7, 2011, Pacquiao returns to Las Vegas after last year’s two-fight stopover at Arlington to face “Sugar” Shane Mosley.

Filipino Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao (52 wins – 3 losses – 2 draws, 38 KOs) has won titles in a record eight weight divisions from 112 to 154 pounds beating the likes of Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, Oscar De La Hoya, Marco Antonio Barrera, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito is on a 13-fight winning streak.

At age 32, he is at the peak of his career and has shown no signs of slowing down. It seems we see a different dimension of him in each fight and he just progresses with age.

American “Sugar” Shane Mosley (46 wins – 6 losses, 39 KOs) has won world titles in three weight divisions – Lightweight, Welterweight and Light Middleweight.

My results prediction?

Shane Mosley is already 39 years old. That said, he is years away from his prime when he dominated the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, Ricardo Mayorga and Antonio Margarito.

While there are many boxers past their prime that shocked the world by winning over younger fighters, I don’t see this happening with Mosley. His last fight with Sergio Mora was such a dud that judges declared it a draw because no one deserves to win such boring fight.

Pacquiao is simply too skilled, too intelligent and too fast for him. Pacquiao has proven that size don’t matter to him – he will just pepper you with thousands of punches until you simply can’t take it anymore.

The only question now is can Manny give Shane his ever career knockout loss? In fairness to Mosley, he possess a granite chin. That will work to his advantage because he will survive the Pacman onslaught.

Manny Pacquiao will coast to a one-sided Unanimous Decision after 12 rounds.

I will post here the Manny Pacquiao vs Shane Mosley fight video after the bout once already available.

Don’t forget to watch Pacquiao vs Mosley LIVE stream free on fight night, May 7, 2011 from the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

Check out list of Pacquiao vs Mosley pay-per-view (PPV) boxing TV providers and operators that will offer the bout.

Mosley’s last stand

When Sugar Shane Mosley climbs into the ring on Sunday (Manila time) to battle pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao, it could very well be his last fight. At 39 and coming off two very unimpressive performances, Mosley is a lopsided loss away from retirement. I can't imagine any boxing promoter wanting to include him on any major boxing card if he loses big to Pacquiao, as most experts expect him to do. A loss to Pacquiao would give Mosley a 0-2-1 win-loss-draw record over his last three fights. He dropped a lopsided unanimous decision to Floyd Mayweather, Jr. in May last year, then looked uninspired in a draw against Sergio Mora four months later. If he's looking for redemption, then beating Pacquiao would certainly do it. If only it were that simple though. Pacquiao's blinding hand speed will make it difficult for Sugar Shane to win a round, let alone the fight itself.
Regardless of what happens in the ring on Sunday, it's safe to say Mosley has had a colorful — and sometimes controversial - career. On the plus side, he's won titles in three weight divisions, he never ducked anyone, and he fought and defeated an in-his-prime Oscar De La Hoya not once but twice. In perhaps one of the biggest upsets this decade, he knocked out a heavily-favored Antonio Margarito in 2009. That was the bout where Margarito was caught with an illegal substance in his hand wraps.
But losses to the late Vernon Forrest (twice), Miguel Cotto and Ronald "Winky" Wright (twice) have kept Mosley from being in the discussion of this era's greatest fighters, even though he was once briefly considered the best pound-for-pound fighter. He did win his first 38 fights, but has gone 8-6-1 since. Plus, he has publicly admitted to taking performance-enhancing drugs in the past, although he claims he did so unknowingly. (No one believes him, of course.)
Which is what makes this fight against Pacquiao his most important yet. He pulls off a big shocker, and everyone forgets about his losses and steroid use. He'll be known as the man who beat The Man. Which would make him The New Man, if that makes sense.
But does he really have a chance? I'd say his attacking style makes him tailor-fit for Pacquiao, who prefers opponents who slug it out with him because it makes them easier targets. Mosley's punches still have some sting in them, though, as he showed when he wobbled Mayweather in the second round of their fight. Pretty Boy was in serious trouble but Mosley just couldn't finish him off.
Pacquiao was also in trouble in the sixth round against Margarito, when the big Mexican caught him with a huge blow to the body that nearly sent Manny to the canvas. Later, Pacquiao admitted he was really hurt and could've easily gone down if Margarito had connected one more time. Now, Mosley has a higher knockout percentage than Margarito and is generally regarded as a pretty strong puncher, so you could say he literally has a puncher's chance against Pacquiao. And while Pacquiao loves slugfests, so does Mosley. When Pacquiao goes on attack mode, it will leave him open to Mosley's punches. With Pacquiao, he won't be facing a fighter who will go on defensive mode the way Mayweather and Mora did, which would be to his liking. Plus, Mosley has never lost by knockout, although he has been floored, which speaks to his ring savvy and ability to go the distance against tough opponents.
Expect both fighters to go toe to toe right away, until Pacquiao's relentless attacks either forces Mosley to backpedal the rest of the way, or knocks him out within five rounds. Mosley has a reputation for having a strong chin, which would help explain why he's never been knocked out, but he's also never fought anyone with the rapid-fire punches of Pacquiao. It should be a fun fight to watch for the first three or four rounds. After that, if the fight isn't over yet, it will be all Pacquiao.