Wednesday, November 05, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Talks begin for Mosley-De La Hoya III

New York, several sites in running for possible June fight

By KEVIN IOLE
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Shane Mosley, left, lands a left to the body of Oscar De La Hoya en route to a victory by decision Sept. 13 at the MGM Grand. REVIEW-JOURNAL FILE PHOTO

The venue moved eastward for Shane Mosley's second victory over Oscar De La Hoya, and the trend may continue if the two agree to fight a third time.

Mosley's first decision over De La Hoya was in Los Angeles in 2000, the second was in Las Vegas on Sept. 13, and a third meeting is being shopped to New York, San Antonio and El Paso, Texas, as well as Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

De La Hoya promoter Bob Arum met with Mosley attorney Jud Burstein in New York last week to begin negotiations for a possible June bout. But Arum said both camps expressed concern about having the fight in Las Vegas after Mosley won a controversial decision in the fighters' recent meeting at the MGM Grand.

De La Hoya adviser Richard Schaefer said he can't ignore that two of De La Hoya's three career losses -- to Felix Trinidad Jr. and Mosley -- were controversial and in Las Vegas.

"Let's face it, if you look at (those) two close fights, both of which the majority of the public and the media believe Oscar won, you have to at least wonder," Schaefer said.

"Can Oscar win in Las Vegas without knocking out his opponent? I don't know. Everybody used to say you couldn't beat Oscar by decision in Vegas, but I think the pendulum may have swung too far the other way. ... You can't ignore Las Vegas, but we have to look at other sites as well."

Mosley promoter Gary Shaw and Burstein said Mosley would have no problem fighting in Las Vegas. Burstein said Shaw had expressed initial concern, but Shaw vehemently denied any misgivings about having fights here. Shaw said he is in negotiations for a March 6 rematch between Diego Corrales and Joel Casamayor in Las Vegas.

"(Arum) has expressed concerns. Gary Shaw, speaking as a promoter for other fighters, has expressed concerns," Burstein said. "(But) Shane Mosley ... has no problem whatsoever fighting again in Las Vegas."

Negotiations for a third De La Hoya-Mosley bout aren't expected to be easy. If the parties can't agree, Mosley could fight welterweight champion Ricardo Mayorga, as long as Mayorga beats Cory Spinks for the undisputed title Dec. 13.

Burstein said because of marketing and other reasons, a site such as Madison Square Garden in New York may make more sense than returning to Nevada.

"Shane beat him in Los Angeles and in Las Vegas," Burstein said. "If this trend of Shane beating him and the next fight moving East continues, Shane's going to wind up beating him in Tokyo at some point."

John Bailey, chairman of the Nevada Athletic Commission, said Las Vegas is the best site for any major bout. He said if either side has concerns about the way a bout was regulated or what might happen in a future bout, he requests they bring those concerns to the commission.