Mosley tells it like it is

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Shane Mosley certainly isn’t the first fighter to be deprived of a major prizefight because of a promoter’s financial interest, but since he’s the latest, he has the most relevant such complaint to air.

Mosley, the world welterweight champion from Pomona, wants to fight the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter Manny Pacquiao next. Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, has made it clear he’s negotiating to pit his fighter against another of his fighters, Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto Nov. 14 in Las Vegas.

The deal hasn’t been struck yet, but might be by this time next week, and Mosley wants to rail against what he assesses as the financial conflict of interest driving that bout. Mosley may have lost to Cotto in November 2007 by a close but unanimous decision, but he’s since knocked out Antonio Margarito, who knocked out Cotto last summer.

‘I’m frustrated by the situation, that Bob Arum’s just trying to put more money in his pocket,’ Mosley told The Times on Friday afternoon. ‘If he wants the fight that’s going to make the most money for Pacquiao, then that’s a fight against me.

‘Cotto doesn’t deserve that chance now, but Arum only has one more fight [in his promotional contract] with Cotto, and he needs to put him in a big fight to keep him. So he’s using Pacquiao for that -- to throw Cotto a bone.

‘Bob Arum makes out, he clears all the money and Cotto will get his $4 to $6 million. This is a fight for Bob Arum, not a fight for the fans or for Pacquiao.’

Later Friday, a close associate of Pacquiao who declined to be identified because he’s not authorized to speak publicly about internal conversations, said Pacquiao and his trainer Freddie Roach believe Cotto would be an easier foe than Mosley. Roach apparently has also expressed some interest in having Pacquiao wait to fight next against Mayweather. ‘The Mosley angle has not been discussed as much as the others,’ the Pacquiao associate said.

Arum inflamed Mosley on Thursday when he said at a news conference on Olvera Street that he’d be happy to arrange a fight between Joshua Clottey, who lost to Cotto in a split decision Saturday, against Mosley at Staples Center.

‘That’s not cool,’ Mosley said. ‘You can’t say I’m in a fight I’m not willing to fight. I’m not going to do that with Clottey, [World Boxing Council welterweight champ Andre] Berto ... or Paul Williams. I’ve done that stuff before [in losses] with Vernon Forrest and Winky Wright, taking the fights that weren’t mega-fights but people said would build up the sport of boxing. I’m done with that.’

Williams’ promoter, Dan Goossen, says he’s confident he can put together a handsome payday for Mosley if he’ll fight Williams. Mosley doesn’t want that fight, he said, because he’s already proved he’ll fight anybody and now wants to close his career in super fights against the likes of Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Mosley said he would consider a rematch against Margarito, but the Mexican fighter won’t be back in the ring likely until early next year, and Mosley said a Cotto-Margarito made more sense than a Mosley-Margarito fight since Cotto needs to head from a badly cut eyebrow.

‘My point is, let’s make the best fights,’ Mosley said. ‘What would make more money than Pacquiao and I? Cotto has a Puerto Rican audience in New York, that’s where it stops. I’m big everywhere. A fight with Pacquiao and I would be crazy.’

--Lance Pugmire