By Tom Donelson

Two weeks ago, "Sugar" Shane Mosley showed why he is one of the best fighters of his generation.  A superb lightweight, Mosley has been spending the last few years fighting in the Junior Middleweight division with mixed results.  Mosley defeated Oscar De La Hoya in a close and controversial decision and suffered two defeats at the hand of Winky Wright, probably the best junior Middleweight over the past decade.

In 2007, the 35-year-old Mosley decided to return to the Welterweight for a full time engagement and began his campaign by defeating the younger and supposedly quicker Luis Collazo.  Collazo, who once held a portion of the Welterweight title and off from a close tough loss to Ricky Hattion, was supposed to provide a dangerous test for Mosley.  Ten years younger, Collazo had youth and with it, speed as his advantage.

The problem for Collazo was that he faced a fighter above his level in Mosley.  Mosley showed that, if anything, he still had enough hand speed to neutralize Collazo's supposed advantage in speed. Mosley dominated the action from the very beginning.  While Collazo handled Mosley power, his own power failed to move Mosley back at all during the match. Occasional straight lefts and right hooks from Collazo’s southpaw stance nailed Mosley flush but to no avail.  Mosley's power, however, bothered Collazo as he was rarely able to sustain any attack without fear of being clocked by a straight counter right.

In the eleventh round, Collazo advanced toward Mosley before getting countered by one of Mosley’s right hands. Off balance, Collazo did a slow motion fall to the canvas.  While Collazo wasn’t hurt, he lost the eleventh by a two point margin and Mosley put the finishing touches on the win in the twelfth. Mosley tried for a knockout but Collazo proved his own toughness by making it to the final bell.

In boxing, when you start losing bouts to contenders and big name opponents, your marketability declines.  After the second Wright fight, Mosley was at the crossroads of his career, but two stoppages of Fernando Vargas and this recent decision over Collazo puts Mosley back on the boxing gravy train. 

For some boxing fans,  they may ask, “Who is Collazo?”  Collazo was and is one of those slick boxers that most fighters avoid; and he is still one of the better welterweights in the division.  So Mosley beat a worthy opponent and beat him easier than Ricky Hatton, who barely squeaked out a decision. 

Mosley's ultimate goal is a big money fight with Floyd Mayweather, whether Mayweather beats De La Hoya or not.  Before that happens, there are others.  Puerto Rican stars Kermit Cintron and Miguel Cotto, along with Antonio Margarito, could provide a few million bucks into Mosley, Inc.  Mosley's recent string of high profile victories have put him back in the championship pictures in the Welterweight division and more importantly, big money fights. 

If Mosley’s career is on the upswing, it is hard to determine where "Vicious" Vivian Harris is going.  Against Juan Lazcano, Harris was the superior fighter with superior power and techniques.  Yet this fight was a close affair, closer than what it should be.  Throughout the fight, when Harris fought on the outside, he dominated and made it an easy fight to score.  When Harris allowed Lazcano to get on the inside, he was outhustled.  Harris often allowed Lazcano to fight inside, either because Harris was tired or simply decided he was going to show that he could meet Lazcano head on.  All he did was make what should have been an easy one sided affair into a close pitched battle. 

HBO analyst and trainer Emanuel Steward believes that Harris needs to be a welterweight. Harris has trouble making weight as a junior welterweight and with a 5’11” frame, he could certainly work with the extra seven pounds pluse he has the skill and power to be competitive. 

Harris figures that with fighters like Ricky Hatton in the 140-pound division, there is money to be made and he might just match up better against smaller fighters like Jose Luis Castillo, Hatton and even Diego Corrales, as opposed to Mosley, Antonio Margarito, and others.  The problem is that Harris does not belong in the upper echelon of either division and his past fights have not given fight fans a reason to pluck down big bucks to see him. And, other major contenders don’t have a single reason, including a financial one, to fight him.

The difference between Harris and Mosley is stark.  Mosley is a brand name still winning big fights and that makes him marketability.  Harris is stuck between two divisions and not a big enough star to get contenders to consider fighting him in either one.