Daniel Cann

After months of wrangling with that other Superstar of pound for pound boxing, Manny Pacquiao, Mayweather has decided to turn his sights on the man from Pomona instead. Ironically the mooted Mayweather v Pacquiao bout fell through over precisely the issue of drug testing. Whether the two boxers will ever face each other in the ring now remains to be seen.

I believe that Mayweather v Mosley will actually be a far better contest and in a way thanks to all the wrangling and mud slinging that scuppered the Pacquiao bout the real winner will be the fans and boxing itself.

The sport badly needs a shot in the arm (no pun intended). It has seen its popularity wane in the last ten to fifteen years thanks to a plethora of unsavoury episodes as well as the proliferation of World Governing bodies and titles. To add to the misery many athletes (especially in the States) are choosing the safer and arguably greater rewarded (who can blame them?) options like basketball and the NFL over boxing. The advent of Mixed Martial Arts, notably the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) has lead to mass defections of fans and potential boxers to that code.

Put simply the sport of boxing is in trouble, not in terminal decline as some commentators would lead you to believe but it is certainly not well and suffering with an identity crisis. With no heroic charismatic figure like Muhammad Ali to rally around or to have mass crossover appeal people are simply turning over or turning off. If you read the sports pages in most papers these days on both sides of the pond then you will notice that boxing is often relegated to a small column several pages in. This needs to change.

This leads me back to Mayweather v Mosley. This fight could repair a lot of damage and act as a beacon; drawing former fans back to the fold as well as recruiting new younger fans to the sport. The drug testing is in the Corinthian spirit and is a step in the right direction. For years the sport has lacked cohesion and a strong central governing body. Perhaps we are at last seeing the tiny ripples of the advent of a tidal change. These things often start small, here’s hoping…

Mosley has been calling out Mayweather for some time now and the contest is a natural grudge match. Both men possess huge egos like any great sportsmen. This one will be more than just about the money or the title. Bragging rights are at stake as well as securing a legacy in boxing and sports folklore.

Mayweather thrives on challenges and adversity, he was criticised in his last contest against Juan Manuel Marquez, and a well respected former World Champion, but arguably a ‘safe’ opponent. Marquez had the speed and the experience but he was a pumped up Welterweight. In Mosley Mayweather will be facing a naturally larger man fighting in his weight division.

Both men will be ‘up’ for this one and both have an unflappable faith in their ability to win. It should be a classic as both are fast moving stylists that have proved to be among the best pound for pound today. Mayweather as we all know is an undefeated World Champion in Five weight divisions. Mosley has been a World Champion in Three weight divisions. With a 46-5 (39KOs) record Mosley has only lost to the best, he has lost twice on points to Vernon Forrest and twice on points to Ronald ‘Winky’ Wright and once on points to Miguel Angel Cotto (recent victim of Manny Pacquiao).

This tells me that Mosley has only ever lost to the best and he has never been stopped. He is dangerous right up to the last bell and although at 38 years old he has (in the last year or so) been experiencing something of a renaissance. He seems to be improving with age and his confidence is sky high since winning his title on an impressive twelfth round knockout of Ricardo Mayorga and successfully defending it again in an equally impressive ninth round TkO of Antonio Margarito.

Both men have fought and beaten the best and this fight is a natural. I just hope it delivers what it promises: A revival in the fortunes of the sport of boxing.