Brilliance! Mayweather Dominates Mosley

Las Vegas, NV- After an uneventful first round, Shane Mosley (46-6, 39 KOs) connected with a straight right hand in the second that buckled the knees of the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. (41-0, 25 KOs); He followed it up seconds later with a right hook that nearly dropped the trash-talking welterweight from Las Vegas by way of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Floyd Mayweather learned early on that "Sugar" Shane Mosley was not a faded veteran and that, indeed, he would be forced to step it up to elite mode.

That was the last lesson learned by Mayweather because, from that point on, Mayweather became the professor and proceeded to put on a clinic.

The rest of the bout could be considered a modern day masterpiece, featuring a more aggressive than usual Mayweather mixing things up and utterly outclassing a top 3 or 4 pound for pound fighter in Shane Mosley.

Mayweather, for the last ten rounds of the fight was simply a step ahead and a class above a "Sugar" Shane who, for the first time in his career, looked to be doubting himself and questioning his presence in the fight.

Employing his usual fluid shoulder roll, followed by accurate potshots and controlled spacing, Mayweather turned rounds three to twelve into one long session, with Mosley trainer, Naazim Richardson, at one point hinting at stopping the fight between rounds.

The judges scorecards reflected the one-sided nature of the bout: 119-109, 119-109, 118-110. The BTBC scored it 118-110, also for Mayweather.

On the undercard, undefeated 19-year old Mexican phenom, Saul "El Canelo" Alvarez (33-0-1, 24 KOs) survived a near-knockdown in the first round to stop a game, but pudgy and over-matched Jose Miguel Cotto (31-2-1, 23 KOs) in the ninth.

Daniel Ponce de Leon (39-2, 32 KOs) put in an uncharacteristically calm, professional performance against Cornelius Lock (19-5-1, 12 KOs) en route to a unanimous 10 round decision.

In the pay per view opener, Said Ouali (27-3, 19 KOs) stopped power punching Hector Saldivia (31-2, 24 KOs) in the first in a wild bout that saw both fighters hit the canvas.

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The Best of the Rest: A Recap of Saturday's Other Action

Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico

Saul Alvarez UD 12 Lanardo Tyner

Montreal Casino, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Joachim Alcine UD 12 Christophe Canclaux
Troy Ross KO1 Daniel Bispo

Arena, Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Marco Huck UD 12 Ola Afolabi (WBO Cruiserweight Title)
Alexander Povetkin KO 3 Leo Nolan

National Stadium, Dublin, Ireland

Matthew Macklin PTS 10 Rafael Sosa Pintos

Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

Tony Thompson TKO 9 Chazz Witherspoon
Carlos Quintana TKO 3 Jesse Feliciano

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Welterweights Beware! Can the division survive the fast approaching black hole?

by dafs117

As the talent rich, money making welterweights relax before the festive vacation, none of them will predict the turmoil that could eventually see the division collapsing, as one of the main money sources in 2011.

Star after star, the galaxy of welterweights will drastically fade in 2010, with retirements, defeats and weight jumping, destroying the near perfect atmosphere within the weight class.

And when Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather finally turn towards each other, they would create the biggest buzz ever created in the modern era of the sport. The 147 pound division will be the centre of the universe as both red giants collide in a battle of the supernovas.

Win or lose, retirement beckons for both fighters. Boxing would be dealt a massive marketing blow, as two of the brightest stars quickly shoot off the scale. But what about the welterweight division? The loss of Pacquiao and Mayweather cannot be put into words as the welterweight division would lose the elite class.

Where does that leave Shane Mosley? If he loses to Andre Berto, there’s no-one to fight at 147 pounds, as Miguel Cotto wouldn’t dare cross paths with Sugar Shane again. In his hour of need, will Paul Williams be his knight in shining armor and battle him at the 147 limit? Highly unlikely.

Welterweight could lose three superstars in half a year. Three pound-4-pound ranked fighters. Three legends that have truly left their mark on the sport with outstanding, but all different legacies which stand out from the rest.

And if Miguel Cotto had anything left after last year’s loss to Antonio Margarito and his split decision victory over Joshua Clottey, Manny Pacquiao would either bring it out of him, or beat it out of him. He duly delivered, and probably smashed Cotto’s half life into smithereens. That’s another slightly more faded welterweight star, gone.

Can the icons make another impact, such as Ricky Hatton, Juan Manuel Marquez and Jose Luis Castillo? They might even turn to each other, in a true crossroad elimination process that would see the loser retire, for good.

With Joshua Clottey and Carlos Quintana likely to move up in weight, and once-great Zab Judah scampering down south, the depth of the division is quickly deteriorating. Names like Luis Collazo and Carlos Manuel Baldomir are simply stepping stones in the asteroid belt, waiting for a young rocket to dent.

Is the division’s superhero and savior Andre Berto? He’s hardly impressed in his recent performances against immobile Juan Urango and a post-prime Luis Collazo. Can he step up to the thrown and take over the reigns as the leader of the new welterweight revolution?

By 2011, Saul Alvarez would surely have stepped up his level of competition, and maybe young Brit Kell Brook can cause a stir among the HBO missionaries. Could Mike Jones be the next great American welterweight?

If the stars of today hang up their gloves in 2010, the welterweight division would be in a transition period. As the greedy, inflated egos of Mayweather, Pacquiao and Mosley disappear into the black hole, they would be replaced by the hungrier bright stars of tomorrow. Could the 2010 black hole be good for the division?

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¡Viva Mexico! Mexico's Finest!

by Paul Magno

With Mexican Independence Day approaching, it's only fair to give our friends from South of the border the same attention that we've given to our American friends and our members/readers from the UK and Puerto Rico.

Here are Mexico's Top 10 Active fighters:

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Mexican Beat Report (9/7/09)

by Paul Magno

Welcome to the first Mexican Beat Report, a monthly wrap-up of the fight scene in Mexico.

The month of September is always a huge month for Mexican boxing, with many cards scheduled for dates in and around Independence Day (September 15th-16th).

There were mixed results from two prominant Mexican fighters in Panama on Saturday.

Daniel Ponce de Leon (36-2, 31 KOs) won a WBA Featherweight Title Eliminator via wide Unanimous Decision against Panamanian Roinet Caballero (27-8-1, 19 KOs). Ponce de Leon is now in line for a shot at "regular" WBA Featherweight Champ, Yuriorkis Gamboa or the winner of the "super" WBA title bout between champ, Chris John and Rocky Juarez.

On the same card, for the WBA Interim Flyweight Title, hometown boy, Luis "El Nica" Concepcion (18-1, 13 KOs) beat Mexican Omar Salado (21-2-2, 12 KOs) via TKO when Salado's corner waved off the fight in the 12th. Despite losing each round on this reporter's scorecard, Salado was game the whole night, but was hampered by two deep cuts over his left eye and swelling around both eyes.

Also Saturday, in Chihuahua, former world champ Jhonny Gonzalez (41-7, 34 KOs) KO'd Jose “Pegono” Mendoza (21-4-2, 17 KOs), of Columbia via liver shot in the first.

On the same card, hometown Marco "Dorado" Reyes (14-0, 12 KOs) won the WBC Youth World Middleweight Title via UD against Colombian, Beibi Berrocal (6-2, 6 KOs).

From contacts who frequent the Romanza Gym in Mexico City, Juan Manuel Marquez is walking around right now at about the Welterweight limit of 147 and has been absolutely brutal on his sparring partners in preparation for his September 19th clash with Juan Manuel Marquez.
Trainer Nacho Beristain is focused on targeting Mayweather's body and, based on inside sources, don't be surprised if Marquez switches over to southpaw at some point in their bout. Beristain and Marquez are doing lefty drills in sparring and on the mits.

On the verge of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.'s (39-0-1, 29 KOs) fight on the 12th against unranked Jason LeHoullier (21-1-1, 8 KOs), 19-year old, Mexican prospect, Saul "El Canelo" Alvarez (28-0-1, 21 KOs) is still intent on calling out the son of the legend.

The Jalisco-based Welterweight recently won the WBC Youth World Welterweight Title to go along with his NABF Welterweight strap and has issued public challenges via ring mic after his last several bouts. Alvarez will be fighting in Puebla, Puebla against Carlos Herrera (21-1, 8 KOs) on the same card that will see Edgar Sosa (36-5, 20 KOs) defend his WBC Jr. Flyweight Title against Puerto Rican, Omar Soto (14-3-1, 6 KOs)

On the undercard of Chavez's Jr.'s bout in Nuevo Vallarta, Fernando Montiel (39-2-1, 29 KOs) will take on southpaw, Alex Valdez (21-3-2, 15 KOs) and Manuel "Chongo" Vargas (26-3-1, 11 KOs) puts up his his WBO Interim Strawweight belt against "Full" WBO Champ, Donnie Nietes (24-1-3, 14 KOs).

September 11th will feature a bout for the vacant Mexican Flyweight Title pitting Alejandro Hernandez (22-6, 11 KOs) against Wilbert Uicab (25-5-1, 16 KOs). The fight will be held at the Salon Marbet Plus in Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl in the state of Mexico.

On September 12th, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, plays host to a rematch of Venezuelan Nehomar Cermeno (17-o, 10 KOs) against Cristian Mijares (36-5-2, 15 KOs)

There will be a huge Independence Day card on September 15th in Leon, Guanajuato:

Jorge "El Travieso" Arce (52-5-1, 40 KOs) fights for the vacant IBF Flyweight title against South African, Simphiwe Nongqayi (15-0, 6 KOs); WBC Super Featherweight Champ, Humberto Soto (48-7-2, 31 KOs) will defend his crown against Colombian Aristides Perez (15-0-1, 8 KOs); Ulises Solis (28-2-2, 20 KOs), coming off his title loss to Brian Viloria, takes on journeyman, Gilberto Keb Baas (28-20-3, 16 KOs); Omar Chavez (17-0-1, 13 KOs), after his tragic win over the late Marco Nazareth in July, will fight Tennessee journeyman, Jessie Davis (11-14, 8 KOs) in a six round Welterweight bout.

Gutsy Featherweight Tomas “El Norteno” Villa (20-6-4, 13 KOs) has signed a promotional deal with Gary Shaw Productions.

Israel Vazquez (43-4, 31 KOs) is back in training for his October 10th comeback bout against Al Seeger (28-4, 22 KOs) at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles, California. Should he win, Vazquez has hinted at a desire to fight Rafael Marquez in a part 4.

To all of our Mexican friends and fans, Happy Independence Day... ¡Viva Mexico!

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