Shane Mosley, who fought the likes of Canelo Alvarez, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya, has named one man as the hardest-punching opponent he ever faced.
Like the vast majority of world-class fighters, Mosley – who, of course, was no feather-fisted operator himself – came up against several elite-level knockout artists throughout his 60-fight career.
Back in 2011, ‘Sugar’ collided with then-WBO world welterweight champion Pacquiao who, especially at that time, was considered one of the sport’s most ferocious punchers.
Their encounter ultimately saw Mosley suffer a unanimous decision defeat, though the American nonetheless showcased his remarkable durability and survival instinct.
Before that, in 2007, Mosley found himself on the wrong end of another unanimous decision, this time against Miguel Cotto, who, again, was regarded as a particularly heavy-handed customer at 147lbs.
But despite losing to a selection of proven punchers at the top level, Mosley was also successful at defusing the explosive attacks of several other opponents.
Against both De La Hoya and Fernando Vargas, for instance, the former three-division world champion was able to emerge victorious on two separate occasions.
A similar story also unfolded when Mosley faced Antonio Margarito, another potent puncher, and ultimately dismantled his opponent with a ninth-round stoppage win in 2009.
According to the Hall of Famer, though, it was Vernon Forrest, a fighter that twice defeated him in 2002, who ultimately delivered the most force behind his shots.
In an interview with Ring Magazine, Mosley reveals that Forrest’s natural power was what caused him the most problems during their two encounters.
“I’m not sure why; maybe it was just natural. [Forrest] just hit the hardest.”
Forrest was a two-weight world champion at welterweight and super-welterweight, and ended his career with 41 wins from 45 fights, 29 of those wins by knockout.
