Trash talk muted for anticipated Pacquiao-Mosley showdown
The last time Manny Pacquiao fought, he and his trainer had to suffer personal insults courtesy of Antonio Margarito.
Pacquiao made Margarito pay for his big mouth, pummeling him over 12 rounds Nov. 13 and sending him to a Dallas hospital.
Shane Mosley was watching that night at Cowboys Stadium, and he came to the conclusion that it probably wasn’t worth inciting Pacquiao if he were to fight him. Mosley gets his chance May 7 at the MGM Grand Garden, and if Saturday’s promotional tour stop in Las Vegas was any indication, the only fireworks will be in the ring.
“I’ve never had any animosity toward Manny Pacquiao,” said the 39-year-old Mosley (46-6-1, 39 knockouts), a four-time world champion. “I’ve always liked Manny and respected him as a fighter and as a person. We don’t need to talk trash to sell tickets.”
Mosley is right. As of Saturday, fewer than 500 seats remained inside the Grand Garden, which will seat 17,200 for the fight. The MGM has put 30,000 closed-circuit seats on sale at its various properties at $50 apiece and expects those to sell out by fight night. The fight also will be shown on Showtime Pay Per View.
The 32-year-old Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KOs), always the gentleman, appreciated being part of a promotion that didn’t have to sink to the gutter to generate interest.
“That’s what I love so much for this fight,” Pacquiao said. “We don’t need to talk trash. Shane Mosley is a gentleman and a good guy. We just have to do our jobs in the ring, and boxing will be the big winner.”
Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s longtime trainer who was ridiculed by the Margarito camp for his struggles with Parkinson’s disease, said he also is looking forward to a professional promotion.
“I may trash talk a little bit,” Roach said with a laugh. “But I do think my guy will knock (Mosley) out.”
While Pacquiao and Mosley were cordial toward each other, than didn’t stop others from taking a swipe at Pacquiao, a 10-time world champion with titles in eight weight divisions. Floyd Mayweather Jr. found time Saturday to rip Pacquiao on Twitter, pointing out Pacquiao’s three losses and two draws.
Pacquiao’s response? “I can only pray for him that one day, someday, he figures everything out.”
Pacquiao and Roach have worked out their plans to ensure that this training camp goes smoother than the one for the Margarito bout, which was fraught with distractions. Roach said the plan is to begin camp in March, spending the first three weeks training in Manila, Philippines, while Pacquiao continues his duties as a congressman. Phase two will have Pacquiao in Los Angeles at Roach’s Wild Card Boxing Club for the next five weeks, then in Las Vegas for fight week.
“There’s always going to be distractions,” Roach said. “But our mistake last time was we had to cram everything into those last five weeks. This time, we’ll keep the distractions to a minimum in Manila, and when he gets to the Wild Card, we’re fine. We can do what we need to do to finish our preparations.
“I can assure you we’re not going to take Shane lightly. He is a great counterpuncher with power in both hands.”
Mosley, who will work with trainer Nassim Richardson in Big Bear, Calif., said he wants to use his size, strength and speed to overwhelm Pacquiao, a minus-700 betting favorite at the MGM’s sports books and a minus-900 favorite at Station Casinos’ sports books.
“I’m a lot faster and stronger than Manny,” Mosley said. “Manny’s in a tough fight with me.”
Margarito said the same thing, though his tone was far more derogatory. And look where that got him.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.
