The sport of boxing has always been a young man’s world. We have seen too often where boxers hang around too long in the ring. In the pursuit of another paycheck some fighters will do damage to their bodies as well as their reputations. Three more names can be added to that list as Cory Spinks, Bernard Hopkins, and “Sugar” Shane Mosley are all returning to the ring over the next few weeks. The prime of the careers of these men are well in the rear view mirror, but the love of the sport has brought them back to the ring, but at what cost? Each fighter is preparing to take on a younger, quicker fighter as the odds will be stacked against each man.
The last time that Spinks stepped into the boxing ring was June 30, 2012 when he squared off against Cornelius “K-9” Bundrage. Bundrage was five-years older than Spinks, but Spinks fought as if he was the older man. The fight ended in the seventh round when Bundrage put Spinks out of his misery with a technical knockout. If Bundrage really wanted to he could have polished off Spinks earlier in the bout as Spinks lacked his legs and endurance for the bout.
Now Spinks is preparing for his February 1 bout against Carlos Molina on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights. This time Spinks is giving up seven-years of age to Molina who himself is looking to get back on track after a loss to Amir Khan last month for the vacant WBC Silver Light Welterweight Title.
Hopkins has enjoyed a 52-6-2 record throughout his illustrious career. Hopkins goes by the name of “The Executioner” as he put away some of the greats in the world of boxing. The list of names include Oscar De La Hoya, Ronald “Winky” Wright, and Felix Trinidad. At 48-years of age Hopkins is now preparing for a March 9 bout against IBF Light Heavyweight Champion Tavoris Cloud at The Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Hopkins lost his last two bouts which were both against The WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Chad Dawson. In both fights Hopkins appeared out classed against the younger Dawson. Cloud is a 31-year old native of Tallahassee, Florida who is looking to make a name for himself in his fifth title defense and a victory over Hopkins would do that.
Mosley made a name for himself in 2000 when he defeated De La Hoya for The WBC and IBA Welterweight Titles. After defeating De La Hoya, Mosley lost twice to Vernon Forrest and “Winky” Wright respectively. The time for Mosley to have retired was in 2009 after he defeated Antonio Margarito. Since then “Sugar Shane” is 0-3-1 with losses to Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao, and Saul Alvarez. In each fight Mosley looked a bit older with his skills diminishing in each bout. After Mosley lost to Alvarez last May, he announced in the ring that he would retire. Mosley went the distance with Alvarez only because Alvarez didn’t knock Mosley out due to his respect for him.
Mosley is 41-years of age as he preparing for an April 27 bout against WBA Welterweight Champion Paulie Malignaggi. Mosley has a 22-year old son Shane Mosley Jr. who is an up and coming fighter so why not take the time to train your son?
Both Mosley and Hopkins work with De La Hoya for Golden Boy Promotions. At this point of life it would be better for them to get paid promoting fighters rather than to get back into the ring. In the mid-2000’s, De La Hoya started his promotional company. After losing to both Mayweather and Pacquiao, De La Hoya decided that it was better for him to make money as a promoter and Mosley and Hopkins need to start appearing at ringside with De La Hoya in custom made suits and loafers. Sometimes an athlete is the last one to realize that his career is over. Spinks, Mosley, and Hopkins gave us thrills during their respective primes, but the sport of boxing is a young man’s game and they are about to find that out the hard way.
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