Could the Viper out-box Sugar Ray at WW or 154? I say no, and he could be stopped. The 154 version that fought Baldomir against the Kalule Leonard would get stopped.
Leonard via late stoppage. He wouldn't attack him like a wild man the way Mayorga did. He'd box early, then see that his speed could get to Forrest, and then he'd break down his body. And unlike Mosley, he's not going to be pushed back and outmuscled. He would give Forrest a beating.
Nope. Forrest had the style to give Shane fits, but not Ray. Leonard stops Forrest late, and he'd be fully in control at the time of the stoppage.
I don't mean to sound like you, as Shane Mosley DID have skills. But no, Mosley was not as skilled as Leonard, and the big difference is Leonard had a much higher ring IQ than Shane. I think Forrest is in the fight for a few rounds, then Leonard counters his jab with something that hurts him (probably the hook), and at that point Ray walks him down, punishes his body and eventually gets him serious trouble and follows up with a flurry that puts Forrest out.
Most of Shane's skills were an illusion. He did all of this fancy movement but to no purpose...he had ridiculously fast hands but slow counter-punching reflexes. I'm surprised that so many knowledgeable boxing experts fell for these illusions. But yes, back on topic, Ray Leonard is just too much for Forrest.
This is false. You really need to pay closer attention to a prime Mosley, and more specifically the lightweight version. He did a lot of things in there that require more than JUST athletic talent. He was a very skilled and talented offensive fighter. His weaknesses were that he was never a defensive genius (he wasn't Brandon Rios either though), and he never had a concrete plan B. But he wasn't lacking skill.
Mosley in his prime was an excellent combination puncher to the head and body. He had rhythm, accuracy, timing, excellent footwork, and a good sense of distance with his punching. Those are boxing skills. Mosley's problem IMO was he didn't have much of a useful jab. It was always this little flicking jab that didn't do anything other than set up his power shots. Another thing about Mosley was he didn't have much 'set up' in his attack. You knew what he was going to do, and he would become increasingly predictable as the fight went on. He definitely had his problems with tall, rangey guys and after that first fight with Forrest, he became very gunshy. To say he didn't have skills, isn't correct. Was his skill level on the level of Mayweather or Leonard?? Definitely NOT... There is no disputing that. But he did have a method to his madness. When I think of having 'no skills,' I think of guys like Mayorga, Juanma, Kirkland, etc.
Yeah, Mosley flicked the jab out too much, which allowed Forrest to time him pretty easily. Leonard is just a different beast than Shane. Their raw handspeed might have been comparable, but because Leonard thought so much faster than Shane, he reacted faster. Not saying Shane was DUMB per say, but he often looked confused when searching for openings. Guys like Leonard and Jones in their primes just saw everything, and reacted immediately. Mosley didn't have that capability, despite being extremely fast and athletic. He wasn't blessed with the VISION to see everything in the ring.
