Sugar - Shane Mosley

IS GOOD

Congressman and boxer Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines flexes his muscles for the camera during a media workout at Wild Card Boxing Club in Los Angeles April 20, 2011.

Danny Moloshok / Reuters

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"Sugar" Shane Mosley, one of America's greatest active pugilists, lounges in his Big Bear, California, chalet and looks across a forest of wind-whipped pine trees "conjuring" how he will defeat Manny Pacquiao on Saturday in Las Vegas. Pacquiao, pound for pound the best fighter wearing gloves, is an 8-1 favorite while Mosley is an afterthought to many sports fans who are frustrated that the Filipino isn't fighting another American, Floyd Mayweather Jr., the best defensive fighter in the world.

(Archrivals Pacquiao and Mayweather have never faced each other in the ring, despite lengthy negotiations. According to Pacquiao's promoter, talks broke down for a third time after Nelson Mandela's daughter tried to arrange the matchup in honor of her father's birthday. Mayweather allegedly demanded $100 million for himself and the negotiations fell apart.)

(See the rise of Manny Pacquiao.)

Mosley, a handsome man with a whispery voice, has had a storied professional career that has spanned 18 years and earned him world titles in three weight divisions, but his matchup against Pacquiao for the welterweight championship is what he himself calls his "biggest moment, the pinnacle." Mosley, 39, insists that he will defy age and do what no boxer has done in six years: defeat the 32-year old Pacquiao. But fight fans, already frustrated that they aren't getting Mayweather in the ring, aren't hot for Mosley, who has looked creaky in his last two battles. The fight will likely be the most watched boxing event of the year because of Pacquiao's rising popularity as an athlete and as a crusader for the poor — will wear yellow gloves on Saturday as a show of unity with his country's impoverished. Mosley, fight fans argue, was chosen as an opponent based on name recognition and because he abandoned Mayweather's promoter, Golden Boy, (a rival to Pacquiao's promoter Top Rank) to get the fight. Mosley's own trainer frets that Pacquiao is the "Rubik's cube of boxing" because he is so difficult to figure out.

Given that Pacquiao has dominated the sweet science for a decade, it would be easy to dismiss Pacquiao-Mosley as a glorified exhibition. But the bout holds dangers for the Pacman, as he is called, whose rags-to-riches story and exciting style have made him the sport's biggest star. Even at his age, Mosley still possesses decent foot speed and has a respectable right hand. Last year, it found the chin of Mayweather the most elusive fighter in the world, and almost knocked him out.

In his mountain chalet, Mosley jumps off his leather couch to demonstrate how he will confuse and frustrate