Manfredy and Mosley Prevail
Dateline: 04/18/99On HBO's Boxing After Dark, Angel Manfredy (27-3-1, 21 KO) used effective bodypunching to score a surprisingly easy unanimous decision victory over Ivan Robinson (27-3, 10 KO) in a 10 round lightweight bout. Robinson was the busier fighter, but it was Manfredy, needing a big win following his knockout loss to Floyd Mayweather, who landed the harder, more effective blows throughout. Final punch stats had Manfredy landing 360 of 762 (47%) to 255 of 933 (27%) for Robinson. Despite the multitude of punches, neither fighter was ever in any real danger of being knocked down. The judges score the fight 100-90, 99-91 and 99-91 all for Manfredy. HBO's unofficial judge Harold Lederman had the fight 98-92. Manfredy's impressive win puts him right back in the mix for a big fight in either the lightweight or junior lightweight division -- a fight with Shane Mosley (in the unlikely event he stays at lightweight) or a rematch with Floyd Mayweather (Manfredy still feels the stoppage in their first meeting was premature) would certainly make for good matches.
In the main event, Sugar Shane Mosley (32-0, 30 KO) successfully defended his IBF lightweight title with a win over tough John Brown (19-6, 10 KO). Brown did everything he could to neutralize Mosley's superior size and skills and, at 5'3", proved an elusive target for the champion's vaunted body attack. However, Mosley finally caught and stunned Brown in the eighth, providing the opening he needed to unload a barrage of punches. Brown took a lot of punishment, but remained on his feet at the end of the round. However, when Brown still appeared disoriented in his corner at the end of the eighth round, Dr. Paul Wallace advised the referee to stop the fight. Mosley was ahead on all three judges' cards at the time: 69-64, 68-65 and 68-65. Final punch stats had Mosley landing 185 of 428 (43%) to 71 of 342 (21%) for Brown.
This bout may have marked Mosley's final fight at 135 pounds -- a weight he finds increasingly difficult to make. Give John Brown credit -- he was willing to get in the ring with Mosley and give it his best shot. That is more than can be said for several of the division's other top fighters - Cesar Bazan, Israel Cardona, Steve Johnston, Ivan Robinson - all of whom elected to pass up the biggest paydays of their careers rather than get in the ring with Mosley. If Mosley does move up to junior welterwight, it will be difficult to ever consider any of the men who refused to fight him as a truly worthy champion.
