Pacquiao claims Mosley didn’t want to fight, Roach tells him to retire

Manny Pacquiao and Freddie Roach have questioned Shane Mosley desire to win the fight and his future in boxing after losing a one-sided unanimous decision to Pacquiao.

 

Both Manny Pacquiao and trainer Freddie Roach believe Shane Mosley wasn’t there to fight when he challenged Pacquiao for the WBO welterweight title on Saturday. Pacquiao floored his opponent in the third round en route to a unanimous points victory and it was clear Mosley was happy to just end the fight on his feet.

While Pacquiao claimed Mosley wasn’t interested in fighting, Roach went further by calling on the former three-weight world champion to retire. Pacquiao, whose record now stands at 53-3-2 (38 KOs), attempted to explain why the fight wasn’t as entertaining as the fans in attendance had expected.

“It wasn’t my best performance but I did my best,” said Pacquiao. “My leg tightened up in the middle rounds and I couldn’t move. This is the same problem I had when I fought [Juan Manuel] Marquez so we are going to have to work on this.”

Pacquiao looked to be on the verge of stopping Mosley for the first time in the 39-year-old’s career, but after surviving the round Mosley was then on the run for much of the fight.

“I got him with a lucky shot,” Pacquiao said of the knockdown, which stunned Mosley. “Mosley is not slow. He is fast. He was waiting for me to make a mistake and he wanted to counter. I was careful with that.

“I think he felt my power. But what am I going to do if my opponent doesn’t want to fight toe-to-toe.”

Mosley’s tactics were booed by the sell-out crowd at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas due to his defensive tactics. He failed to demonstrate his ability or create the most entertaining spectacle of a fight he promised would be between two warriors in a pre-fight press conference.

“Manny is an exceptional fighter with good speed and power, power that I didn’t get hit with before,” said the American. “It was a strong knockdown punch. I really felt it. I was pretty stunned, surprisingly stunned.

“It didn’t seem like a big shot to me when he threw it but the impact was very strong. I fought my best but I came up a little short. We will go back to the drawing board.”

Mosley may be planning to return to the drawing board, but Roach, who clearly admired Mosley for his boxing ability since his first world title success in 1997, has suggested he hangs up the gloves for good.

“I don’t think he tried to win this fight,” said Roach, who operates from his Wildcard Gym in Hollywood. “I think he just tried to survive and when you get to that point in boxing, it’s time to call it a day.”

By Graeme Bradley @stv sport