COMPUBOX PRE FIGHT ANALYSIS

It's a match up of former welterweight champions as onetime WBC king "Sugar" Shane Mosley (43-4, 37 KO) will fight previous WBA champ Luis Collazo (27-2, 13 KO) Feb. 10 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas for something called the "interim" WBA welterweight title.

Collazo won the WBA belt on April 2, 2005 when he captured a split decision from Jose Antonio Rivera in Rivera's back yard of Worchester, Mass. Though Collazo-Rivera wasn't seen live in the United States, it still ranks as one of the best 147-pound title fights in the last quarter-century in terms of two-way action. The big difference in this fight was the southpaw Collazo's hand and foot speed. He triggered his punches more quickly and Rivera seemed to be a step behind throughout. The numbers back up this assertion as Collazo outlanded Rivera in 10 of the 12 rounds, but the connect advantage was three or fewer in five of those rounds. Rivera did a good job inducing Collazo to move into his power hand as well as forcing a war in the trenches. But every time Rivera put on a surge, Collazo would immediately answer with an even better one to maintain the edge. The relatively light-hitting Collazo managed to stun Rivera in the sixth and eighth rounds to make his mathematical mountain even more difficult to surmount.

Because much of the action took place at close range, neither man's jab was a factor. Collazo landed 48 of his 318 jabs for a dismal (for him) 15 percent accuracy while Rivera's was even more irrelevant as he connected on just 24 of his 325 attempts (7 percent). Collazo's ability to thrive in a power-punching environment proved to be the difference against Collazo. He outlanded Rivera 200-160 and even attempted 13 more (586-573). In this department, Collazo out-connected Rivera in seven rounds and held the champ even in three others. But Collazo's power punching shone the brightest when it mattered the most as he outlanded the soon-to-be former champion 50-20 in the final two rounds (15-3 in the 11th and 35-17 in the 12th). His dominance in those frames are also reflected in the overall numbers as he earned a definitive 57-24 edge, including doubling Rivera up in the 12th 38-19.

Overall, Collazo was 248 of 904 (27 percent) and Rivera was 184 of 898 (20 percent), which helped him greatly in earning a 115-113 scorecard from judges Levi Martinez and Nelson Vazquez. The other judge, Paul Barry, saw it 115-113 for Rivera.

After stopping the 34-yr.-old, former lightweight champ Miguel Angel Gonzalez in the eighth round of his first defense, Collazo lost the title in his second defense on May 13, 2006 when he met Ricky Hatton in Boston.

Hatton was seeking his second divisional title after capturing the IBF and WBA belts at 140 while also wanting to make a splash in America. Hatton lifted the belt with a unanimous decision, but perhaps the unconvincing nature of the victory prompted Hatton to return to junior welterweight.

The numbers showed that "The Hit Man" won many of the close rounds because of his superior work rate. Overall, Hatton threw 62 punches per round while Collazo got off 59, both slightly above the divisional average of 58. Hatton outconnected Collazo in nine of the 12 rounds, though Collazo hit his high water mark in round five when he tripled Hatton's connects 21-7. Collazo also produced a stronger finish when he produced 19-17 and 30-25 connect advantages overall in the 10th and 12th rounds.

Hatton especially outperformed Collazo in the power punching department as he earned an edge in 10 rounds, and in six of them (rounds three, four, seven, eight, nine and 11), Hatton's power-punch connect edge exceeded 10 blows. Hatton's peak rounds were the third (25-10), eighth (27-12) and the 11th (31-13). Still, after absorbing all of Hatton's thunder, Collazo swept the challenger in all categories in the 12th, including a 27-24 connect edge in power punches, a 62-48 advantage in power punches thrown and a 76-52 margin in punches thrown. This proved Collazo's durability against one of the most physically strong fighters in the sport.

For the fight, Hatton landed 259 of 741 overall (30 percent) while Collazo (213 of 712, 30 percent) wasn't far behind. The jab and power punch figures followed stylistic form as boxer Collazo out-jabbed Hatton 46-5 while the slugger Hatton outdid Collazo 254-167.

Following Mosley's second victory over Oscar de la Hoya, "Sugar Shane" opted to fight IBF junior middleweight king Winky Wright (a southpaw like Collazo) instead of accepting what he thought was an insulting offer for a third fight with his future business partner. While fight fans respected Mosley's willingness to take on dangerous competition, Wright showed in their March 13, 2004 fight in Las Vegas why so many experts deemed Wright a high-risk opponent as he won a 117-111 and 116-112 (twice) decision -- and with it recognition as the undisputed champion at 154.

Wright outlanded Mosley in 10 of the 12 rounds, and two particular stretches turned the tide toward Wright. In rounds two through five, Wright outlanded Mosley overall 97-49 and the disparity in jab department was even wider at 36-5.

The second sequence took place during rounds eight through 11 when Wright out-connected "Sugar Shane" 80-40 and outjabbed him 41-10. Considering the two-inch height deficit, one would think Mosley would prevail in the power punch categories because that would be the best way for him to overcome it. But the night belonged to Wright in almost every sense as he dominated in terms of percentage. Winky exceeded 45 percent seven times while Mosley reached that threshold on just three occasions.

Wright was 250 of his 761 punches overall (33 percent) while Mosley was 166 of 618 (27 percent). Wright went 90 of 425 in jabs (21 percent) and 160 of 336 in power punches (48 percent), far outstripping Mosley in those categories (30 of 241, 12 percent, and 136 of 377, 36 percent respectively).

The rematch more than eight months later was closer on the scorecards as Wright won a majority decision (115-113, twice and 114-114), and some observers even believed Mosley was unlucky to lose the nod. The statistics, however, tell a much different story as they were even more lopsided in Wright's favor. Overall, Mosley was outlanded in every round except for the eighth, when he managed a tie at 24 connects. Even then, Wright was more accurate as he took 53 punches to get his total while Mosley needed 65.

Mosley found himself at a deficit immediately as Wright raced from the corner and went to work early. Wright outconnected Mosley overall 22-5 and racked up a 17-0 shutout on jabs. Mosley was outjabbed by the taller man in every round and Mosley fielded double-digit jabs in seven of the 12 rounds. Mosley was unable to mount a consistent jabbing attack against the taller Wright, and his high-water mark came in round seven when he connected on 9 of 30.

Speaking of jabs, Wright surpassed Mosley in every round, reaching double-digits in connects in seven of the 12 rounds. Mosley's best jabbing round was the seventh when he landed 9 of 30, but he was also shut out in two rounds, the first (0 for 23) and the 11th (0 for 15). Mosley was able to make the fight close because of his success in power punches, where prevailed in three rounds (the second, fifth and eighth rounds) and held Wright even in two other rounds (the first and ninth). Wright pulled away in the final three rounds by outlanding Mosley 73-34 overall, outjabbing him 30-9 and out-power punching him 43-25.

Wright landed more punches in the rematch than he did in the first fight (273 to 250) while Mosley landed fewer (166 to 154). Wright landed 48 more jabs (138-90) between fights, but connected on 25 fewer power shots (135 to 160). Mosley landed more jabs in the rematch (46 to 30) but less power shots (108 to 136).

Returning to the welterweight division, Mosley decisioned the wild-swinging Jose Luis Cruz in September of '05. Mosley intended to stay at 147 to secure a title shot but boxing is all about making money, and when the charismatic Fernando Vargas came calling Mosley put his welterweight aspirations on hold to fight "The Ferocious One" at 154 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas February 25, 2006.

The stylistic brew promised a see saw, entertaining scrap and that's exactly what Mosley and Vargas delivered as they traded rounds -- and bombs -- throughout.

Vargas began well, equaling Mosley's seven connects overall while throwing 12 fewer punches (44-32) but Mosley took the next two rounds by outlanding Vargas 20-11 and 18-9. Many of Mosley's connects in those rounds came via the right, and they caused the area over Vargas' left eye to swell. The injury continued to worsen throughout the fight, and by the eighth the eye was completely closed. Still, the progressive loss of vision didn't seem to affect Vargas' performance. Vargas landed more than Mosley in each of the rounds between four and seven, enjoying a 83-63 overall connect edge. Strangely enough, much of Vargas' advantage came from jabs; "El Feroz" went 16 of 35 (46 percent) while Mosley was a mere 4 of 76 (5 percent), including 0 for 20 in the fifth and 0 of 11 in the seventh. Mosley was also tiring visibly.

After Vargas outlanded Mosley 24-18 overall in round seven, the fortunes turned dramatically as Mosley gained his second wind in the eighth. Mosley went 21 of 48 (44 percent) while Vargas dropped to 13 of 38 (34 percent) and as Vargas' eye worsened "Sugar Shane" picked at it with the jab, landing 10 of 36. Referee Joe Cortez kept a close eye on Vargas in the 10th and at the 1:22 mark he stepped in after Vargas absorbed several jolting shots to the head.

The scorecards and statistics both reflected a close fight. Judges Giampa and Paul Smith viewed the bout 86-85 for Mosley while Patricia Morse Jarman favored Vargas 86-85. Mosley outlanded Vargas 153-147, but he had to throw 84 more punches to do so. Vargas' jab was far more effective as he landed 27 of 91 (30 percent) as opposed to Mosley's 21 of 203 (10 percent). Mosley, more of a boxer-puncher than the aggressive Vargas, edged Vargas in power punches as he connected on 132 of 317 (42 percent) to Vargas' 120 of 355 (34 percent).

Because of Vargas' strong rally in the middle rounds and the suddenness of the stoppage, the two were paired again nearly five months later in Las Vegas, this time at the MGM Grand. Needless to say, it was a far different fight. Mosley set the tone early as he landed 19 of his 64 punches in round one (30 percent) while Vargas connected on just three of his 29 blows (10 percent). Mosley unleashed 50 jabs, landing nine, and his 71 percent accuracy on his power punches (10 of 14) was dazzling.

Mosley was in his finest form in years and he dominated every facet. The biggest change between fights was the effectiveness of each man's jab. Mosley hit double digit connects in three of the six rounds with his peak coming in the sixth when he landed 13 of 25 (52 percent). Overall, Mosley hit Vargas with 62 of his 204 jabs (30 percent), tripling the success of Vargas (21 of 103, 20 percent). Mosley's effective jab helped set up the rest of his offense to devastating effect. Mosley's power punch numbers went below 50 percent just one time -- and anything above 40 percent is considered excellent. Mosley landed 10 of his 14 power shots in the first round (71 percent) and after it dipped to a "mere" 48 percent (12 of 25) in the second Mosley cemented his control. He was brutally efficient as he connected on 98 of 217 (45 percent) overall and 52 of 87 power shots (60 percent). The final blow, a scorching hook to the jaw, ended matters in most emphatic fashion at 2:38 of round six.

In all, Mosley landed 136 of 330 (41 percent) while the brave but listless Vargas was 68 of 270 (25 percent).

Mosley-Collazo provides a pleasing contrast in styles. Mosley is a boxer-puncher in the purest sense as he uses his speed to put himself in prime position to unleash his powerful combinations. Collazo, on the other hand, is a quick-handed boxer who is more than capable of successfully rumbling on the inside for an extended period of time. Both are thinking man's fighters, with the emphasis on fighters, so this bout promises to have its share of lively exchanges.

At 35, Mosley is at the point when one has to be on the lookout for signs of overnight aging in the ring. At 25, Collazo is at or near his physical peak, so the circumstances are there for Collazo to spring the upset. Both men are 5-9 and at 74 inches, Mosley has a two-inch reach advantage. Thus he has the option to either box or slug, which he can do with equal effectiveness. An important rule of thumb to consider is that the man who has options is usually the one who will emerge triumphant. Mosley, the future Hall of Famer, will have moments when Collazo's speed and quickness will make him look bad, but in the end he will leave the ring with a competitive but unanimous decision.