Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley


Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley, billed as The Undaunted, was a welterweight fight for the WBO Welterweight championship. The bout was held on May 7, 2011, at MGM Grand, in Las Vegas. Pacquiao defeated Mosley by unanimous decision and retained his WBO Welterweight Championship. The fight was Manny Pacquiao's first PPV fight on Showtime boxing due to HBO choosing not to air the fight.

National Anthem singers

In addition, rapper LL Cool J performed as Mosley entered the arena, while vocalist Jimi Jamison of the rock band Survivor sang "Eye of the Tiger" as Pacquiao approached the ring.

Referee and judges

The referee for the fight was Kenny Bayless, and the judges were Nevadans Duane Ford, Dave Moretti, and Glen Trowbridge. Bayless had previously been referee for fights involving Pacquiao and Mosley before, including the Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley and Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto fights.

Promotion

promoted the fight, which took place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Pacquiao's team turned down a fight with Mosley twice a year before, but they accepted the fight after Mosley had a lopsided loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. and a draw to Sergio Mora. A Showtime series, Fight Camp 360°, documented Pacquiao's and Mosley's training preparations in the lead up to their bout. Shane Mosley stated that if he lost badly to Pacquiao he may retire. Pacquiao was heavily favored to win, as many fans and critics believed the 39-year-old Mosley was past his prime. Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum stated that should Pacquiao win, it could set up a third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez in November.

Fight summary

In the third round, Pacquiao knocked Mosley down, using a one-two capped with a left straight. Mosley was left dazed by the knockdown but managed to stand up. From that point on, Mosley backpedaled and seemed very reluctant to engage Pacquiao, throwing few combinations, trying to potshot with occasional counter right hands, and looking for one big punch. Mosley floored Pacquiao in the tenth round with a push, but referee Kenny Bayless ruled it a knockdown. None of the judges seemed to have agreed with this view, judging from the scores. Replays showed that Pacquiao was throwing a punch off balance, slipped and went down with a little help from Mosley's right hand and with his right foot trapped under Mosley's left foot. Bayless apologized for this mistake to Roach, Pacquiao's coach, after the fight. Pacquiao gained one-sided verdicts from all three judges – 119–108, 120–108 and 120–107.
Pacquiao reported that he had a cramp in his legs. Freddie Roach said that Pacquiao had problems with cramping before, but usually only in training sessions and not in the middle of bouts.

Main card

The fight generated 1.3 million PPV buys. These are the payouts to the fighters as reported to the executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission Keith Kizer. These are the official purses as per the Nevada bout agreements, It does not include sponsor money or other common forms of revenue paid through other streams. Pacquiao's official purse on the Nevada contract is six million, Top Rank has guaranteed Manny twenty million, because of PPV. According to fight promoter Bob Arum, Manny Pacquiao may earn US$30 million. Mosley's official purse on the Nevada contract is $3.95 million but he is guaranteed five million.