Mosley wants to shock the world, says trainer

Source: GMANEWS.TV


To those who may not be fretting at all about the Manny Pacquiao-Sugar Shane Mosley fight, Naazim Richardson said they may be in for the biggest surprise of their lives.

He opines that although nearing 40 this year and looking average in his last two fights, Mosley has what it takes to pull off a stunning upset against the world’s top fighter today when they square off in the ring at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada five months from now.

Richardson, the soft-spoken and well-respected trainer of Mosley, said the 39-year-old native of Pomona, California is definitely not going to let this big opportunity pass by without giving Pacquiao a good fight — a good fight which Mosley can translate into a shocking win.

“Shane’s got a chance to shock the world," said Richardson in an interview with the Examiner. 

“You don’t get these opportunities. Very seldom do you get these opportunities. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Shane has to rise to the occasion."

Mosley edged long-time Pacquiao nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez and reigning World Boxing Council (WBC) welterweight champion Andre Berto in the Pacquiao sweepstakes.

Mosley was personally handpicked by the Filipino ring icon and Top Rank promoter Bob Arum.

It didn’t come as a surprise then that Pacquiao, 32, was readily installed as a heavy favorite in their welterweight fight. The pound-for-pound king was even picked at 9-1 odds.

But Richardson believes the underdog tag will work wonders for Mosley, a three-time champion, who is looking to give Pacquiao his first loss in the last six years.

“I look forward to the confrontation between those two, because you’ve got two outstanding fighters and two outstanding fighting spirits in Shane Mosley and Pacquiao," he said.

“I believe they are both committed to the project and committed to the sport. So, I think this is going to be a barnburner. I feel sorry for those who write it off thinking Shane is done. Then they’ve got to go back and see the replay."

Following his impressive stand against Antonio Margarito in a fight where Richardson caught the Mexican loaded with an illegal substance in his handwraps, Mosley looked mortal in his two fights last year against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Sergio Mora.

Although Mosley staggered Mayweather early in their non-title bout in Las Vegas, he lost the match by a lopsided 12-round decision.

Against Mora, a former world champion but obviously just an average fighter, Mosley was forced to a split draw.

But Richardson, a native of Philadelphia who also trains Bernard Hopkins, said all Mora did during the fight was to run and survive.

“The Mora fight was the kind of fight where Shane didn’t look good. Like Bernard (Hopkins) with Roy Jones, you can’t look good when a guy is not trying to fight you," he stressed.

While they are considering other places to serve as training camp, Richardson said training will most likely be held at the Big Bear in California.

Wherever it will be, Mosley’s trainer stressed that the American fighter is going to train doubly hard than he ever used to. 

“In camp Shane is a dedicated athlete," said Richardson, a devout Muslim. “But older athletes have to fight differently because you don’t have the same reflexes that you did when you were 20 years old. There are adjustments that Shane must do to move on with his career."