Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley: Why Sugar Isn't Sweet Anymore

"Sugar" Shane Mosley is saying all the right things.

He's in the best shape of his life, he had a great training camp, he's been watching film, he's got a surprise for Manny Pacquiao, etc. It all sounds good until you realize Shane Mosley is 39 years old and way past his prime.

Manny Pacquiao has the world in the palm of his hand right now and he's taking the fight seriously enough to inflict some real damage on the older Mosley. The battle between the old king and the new king is going to end badly. I hope for Shane's sake they won't need a stretcher to carry him out of the ring.

Why did it have to come to this?

It happens to all great fighters. You have to beat the champion out of them. Oscar De La Hoya, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roy Jones Jr, and Muhammad Ali all suffered lopsided defeats in their last fight.

After hundreds of rounds and decades of taking punishment you lose a step or two. The body will no longer do what the mind tells it to.

They see the openings, but the punches come a half second too slow. They see the punches coming, but they react a half second too late in getting out of the way. That half second is the difference between world champion and punching bag. Once the reflexes go there's no getting them back.

Shane's reflexes are gone.

We witnessed this in the Floyd Mayweather fight last year. He was a day late and a dollar short in every exchange. Manny Pacquiao is desperate to keep his legacy intact and has no time to play around with this guy.

The great thing about boxing is anything can happen.

A big right hand is always the great equalizer. The bad thing about boxing is the spirit, passion, and heart of a champion will ultimately betray them. It will get them into fights they can't win. "Sugar" Shane Mosley was a great champion, but his time has past. It would be more humane if Manny had enough power to knock him out, but he doesn't.

Shane will have to suffer for 12 rounds. Too bad, the former champ deserves better.