Antonio Margarito vs. Shane Mosley: Predictions

The Franchise says...

Last week's Andre Berto-Luis Collazo fight kicked off the major 2009 boxing "season" with a bang, so as fans, we simply have to cross our fingers and hope this fight keeps the momentum going. It's an intriguing match-up between an aging former champion and a younger fighter riding a wave of momentum, and as we saw last year with Pavlik-Hopkins and Pacquiao-De La Hoya, these can go either way.

It's not too often that a fight comes around where both men may be their own worst enemies, but I think that may be the case here. The only fight I've ever seen Margarito lose was against Paul Williams, and in that one it was simply a case of him not turning up the pressure early enough and waiting too long to get going. If he does that here - perhaps looking ahead to a rematch with Miguel Cotto - he may find himself getting outpointed in a fight logic suggests he should win.

By the same token, Mosley seems like he could have enough speed and skill left to pull off one more (and possibly final) big win. But that would seem to hinge on him pulling off a plan of attack that includes a lot of hitting and running or grabbing, and it's very likely that Sugar Shane will simply be lured into standing and trading at some point.

I have a lot of admiration for Margarito and will certainly be wishing him well in future fights, but Mosley has been a long-time favorite of mine and I will be rooting for him tonight. My head is overruling my heart here though, and while I think Tony will find Shane too cagey and tough to KO, my pick is Margarito by unanimous decision.


Spartan117 says...

I am one of the few boxing fans who has yet to be blown away by an Antonio Margarito performance. His fight against Cotto, although very exciting to watch, didn't show me that he was the best boxer at his weight class. He did, however, show me that he has an excellent chin and top-notch accuracy.

Sugar Shane hasn't impressed me enough in his recent fights for me to believe that he can pull off a victory. In his match with Mayorga, he had one more second before that fight would have gone to decision. It should not take a boxing tactician like Mosley all 36 minutes in the ring to finish a sloppy swinger like Mayorga. It only took De La Hoya six rounds. Mosley did show that his speed is still his number one weapon.

It would be nice to see the older Mosley shock the world tonight, pull off an upset, and show the world that he still has what made him a great fighter of his generation. I just can't see it happening though. I see this fight being similar to Cotto v. Margarito. Margarito will wear down Mosley and the punches will add up in the later rounds. Mosley won't have enough power to keep Margarito at a distance. Margarito by late round TKO.

Uatu says...

Margarito by TKO in the 10th Round.