Vernon Forrest vs Shane Mosley 2

Vernon Forrest confirmed his command over Shane Mosley at the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Saturday night, retaining the World Boxing Council and Ring welterweight championships by a unanimous decision over 12 rounds. Forrest, who had taken the title from Mosley six months earlier, received verdicts of 117–111 from Tony Castellano, 116–112 from Gary Merritt and 115–113 from Jerry Roth. There were no knockdowns, and the contest lacked the sudden violence of their first meeting, but Forrest again proved the more effective boxer. He controlled the greater part of the match with his height, reach, jab and counter-punching, frustrating Mosley whenever the challenger attempted to close the distance.

A crowd of 15,775, reported as the largest ever assembled for boxing in Indiana, filled the arena for a return contest which carried considerable importance for both men. Forrest entered unbeaten in 34 professional bouts, with 26 victories inside the distance, while Mosley stood at 38 wins and one defeat, that loss having come against Forrest at Madison Square Garden in January. Both weighed the welterweight limit of 147lb. Forrest received a purse of $3.42 million, and Mosley $2.8 million. Laurence Cole was the referee. Mosley had been knocked down twice in the second round of the first fight and badly shaken later, but on this occasion, he adopted a more cautious method, seeking to enter behind quick rushes rather than standing within range of Forrest’s long right hand.

Forrest began steadily, using the left jab to establish the distance and making Mosley reach for his attacks. The champion’s three-inch advantage in height was accompanied by a considerably longer punching range, and Mosley found it difficult to advance without first passing the jab. Forrest also moved away after punching or taking hold when Mosley came close enough to work. All three judges gave Forrest the opening round. Mosley responded in the second with greater urgency. He quickened his feet, tried to get beneath the champion’s lead hand and brought his punches forward in short bursts. His increased activity was enough to secure the round on every official card, but he was unable to sustain a continuous attack or land the decisive left hook for which he had been searching.

The third and fourth rounds returned the contest to Forrest’s preferred pattern. He met Mosley’s advances with the jab and straight right, then either stepped away or closed the space and tied up the challenger. Mosley remained dangerous when he could spring forward, but Forrest’s anticipation repeatedly prevented him from setting his feet. Mosley’s left hook, one of his strongest weapons throughout his career, was largely taken away by the distance and by Forrest’s readiness to counter whenever the challenger loaded up. Forrest was not reckless and did not attempt to reproduce the knockdowns of the first fight. He boxed with the security of a man who understood the problem before him and was prepared to win one exchange at a time. All three judges awarded him both the third and fourth rounds.

Mosley continued pressing during the middle portion of the contest, although much of his effort ended in clinches. The fifth and sixth were more closely disputed. Forrest continued to land the cleaner single blows from outside, while Mosley tried to compensate with movement, aggression and occasional combinations after darting inside. Castellano gave both rounds to Forrest. Roth favoured Forrest in the fifth but awarded Mosley the sixth, while Merritt scored the fifth for Mosley and the sixth for Forrest. The differences reflected the nature of the action: Mosley was often the man coming forward, but Forrest remained the more accurate boxer and generally decided when exchanges began and ended.

Forrest strengthened his position in the seventh and eighth. His jab continued to interrupt Mosley’s rhythm, and his counters discouraged the challenger from committing fully to his attacks. Mosley frequently had to reset after being touched on the way in or caught in a clinch before he could release a second or third punch. Forrest’s method was economical rather than spectacular. He did not remain at close quarters unnecessarily, nor did he give Mosley the open exchanges the challenger required. Each judge scored both rounds for the champion, leaving Mosley with considerable ground to recover over the closing four sessions.

Mosley produced a better ninth round, increasing his work and forcing Forrest to defend for longer spells. All three officials awarded it to the challenger. Yet the recovery did not develop into a decisive change in the contest. Forrest returned to his jab and counter in the tenth, while Mosley continued to pursue him, looking for one heavy punch that might alter the course of the fight. Roth preferred Mosley’s aggression in that round, but Castellano and Merritt gave it to Forrest. The frequent holding drew the fighters together without producing much sustained infighting, and Cole was repeatedly required to separate them. Mosley later complained that the contest had followed a pattern of clinching and moving, but he had been unable to prevent Forrest from imposing it.

Forrest took the eleventh round on all three cards and entered the last session with the championship secure unless Mosley could produce a knockout. The challenger pressed with greater purpose in the twelfth and won the round unanimously, but Forrest remained composed, avoided the damaging blow and completed the distance without serious difficulty. Mosley finished upright and in sound physical condition, unlike the first contest, but he had again failed to solve the champion’s reach and measured counter-punching. His attacks had been too intermittent, and he had not thrown enough punches when Forrest was within reach.

The decision was received without serious dispute. Forrest had won nine rounds on Castellano’s card, eight on Merritt’s and seven on Roth’s. HBO’s unofficial scorer Harold Lederman also had Forrest ahead by 116–112. Mosley believed that he had done enough, although he acknowledged afterwards that Forrest might simply possess the style to defeat him. Forrest observed that Mosley had begun aggressively but could not maintain the early pace over 12 rounds. The champion’s performance was less dramatic than his first victory, but it was equally instructive. He had beaten Mosley once by hurting him and dominating long passages; in the return, he defeated him by denying him the range, pace and exchanges upon which his best work depended. Forrest left Indianapolis with a record of 35 victories and no defeats, while Mosley suffered the second loss of his professional career, both against the same opponent.

I’ve always believed the second fight tells you more than the first. A man can get caught cold, suffer a bad cut or have one rotten night, but Shane Mosley had 12 rounds to prove Vernon Forrest’s first victory was a fluke, and he could not do it. Six months earlier, Forrest had dropped him twice and taken away his unbeaten record. By the time they met again in Indianapolis, Mosley knew exactly what was coming. It still made little difference.

Mosley was one of the biggest names in boxing then, a former lightweight king who had beaten Oscar De La Hoya and was widely regarded as the sport’s best pound-for-pound fighter before Forrest turned him over. Forrest never had the same popularity, but he had the dimensions, the discipline and, most importantly, the style to make Mosley look ordinary. He kept the fight at long range, worked behind that stiff jab and used the straight right whenever Mosley tried to rush inside. Mosley’s best punch was the left hook, but he could not land it cleanly because Forrest would punch, step away or tie him up.

It was not a thrilling fight, and I’m not going to pretend it was. There was too much clinching and not enough sustained action, but that suited Forrest. He controlled the geography of the ring and made Mosley fight at the wrong distance. Mosley pressed harder late, but he never solved the puzzle.

The scores of 117–111, 116–112 and 115–113 were fair. Forrest did not merely beat Mosley twice; he exposed the one style that Sugar Shane could never properly master.