Battle of L.A.

Blow-by-blow account of the Oscar De La Hoya-Shane Mosley bout. Comments by Kevin Whaley and Lance Pugmire for The Times. Scoring by Steve Springer (116-112), Bill Dwyre (115-114) and Randy Harvey (114-114) of The Times, and judges Lou Filippo (116-112), Pat Russell (115-113), Marty Sammon (113-115). Mosley won De La Hoya’s WBC welterweight championship by split decision.

Round by Round

ROUND 1: Both fighters greet each other with immediate action. Mosley throws a three-punch combination. De La Hoya delivers three successive jabs. The pair tie up, and Mosley delivers two overhand rights. De La Hoya is jabbing consistently. Mosley throws a right late on the break. Mosley is jabbing, stuns De La Hoya with a right, leading to chants of “Mosley, Mosley.” The action settles for the final 30 seconds.

THE SCORING

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De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 9 10

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ROUND 2: De La Hoya hits Mosley with a stiff jab, causing Mosley to slip. Mosley’s jabs fail to land. De La Hoya lands two jabs to the head. De La Hoya lands a right. Mosley begins to go to the chest. De La Hoya answers with a stiff right and a clean jab, encouraging calls of “Oscar, Oscar.” De La Hoya’s combination of jab-right-jab at 33 seconds makes Mosley cover, and De La Hoya lands another effective jab. Mosley looks for an opening but can’t find one. The last punch of the round is a De La Hoya jab to Mosley’s head.

THE SCORING

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De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 10 9 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 10 9 Dwyre 10 9 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 3: De La Hoya’s jab is clearly the best weapon. The action calms early in the round but a De La Hoya jab on the exchange rattles Mosley. Mosley headlocks De La Hoya to the mat with 53 seconds remaining. The De La Hoya jab lands hard with 36 seconds left, rocking Mosley backward. Another hard jab follows 13 seconds later, followed by another with 19 seconds remaining.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 10 9 Judge Russell 10 9 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 10 9 Dwyre 10 9 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 4: Mosley comes out jabbing. He reels backward from De La Hoya’s first jabs of the round, staying away from him. Mosley throws two big rights, the second of which causes De La Hoya to complain of rabbit punching. The pair paw at each other for 30 seconds. De La Hoya is the aggressor. There’s a powerful exchange as De La Hoya lands a hard jab and Mosley counters at the one-minute mark. Near the end of the round, Mosley is attacking inside, but De La Hoya lands a jab before the bell.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 10 9 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 10 9 Harvey 9 10

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ROUND 5: De La Hoya, again counting on the jab, backs up Mosley with a left. Mosley is trying to throw his own jab, but it’s not doing near the damage of De La Hoya’s. A quick right and a jab stuns Mosley. He’s looking for openings, dipping down as if he wants to go to the body, but De La Hoya’s jab is keeping him away. De La Hoya throw a speedy right jab and right that knocks Mosley backward. Mosley throws a big right but misses, then nearly slips. The crowd reacts with a big cheer.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 10 9 Judge Russell 10 9 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 10 9 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 6: After a minute-long respite in the action, Mosley takes a hard right to the face at 1:45. The pair pause again, circling each other as if they’re in for the full 12 rounds. A two-punch combination by De La Hoya is the most effective series. De La Hoya lands a hard left to the stomach and a right to the face. De La Hoya’s body shots have more substance behind them.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 10 9 Judge Russell 10 9 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 10 9 Dwyre 10 9 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 7: This is the part of the fight where Mosley ran into problems in his last fight that extended this long. De La Hoya is continuing to land the jab and delivers a good right hand to Mosley’s ribs, adding in an effective body combination. A Mosley right lands but the two tie up. Mosley hits De La Hoya with his best right hand of the night at the 42-second mark, then moves into attack, but De La Hoya counters with a punch to the stomach. Just before the bell, Mosley lands a jab.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 9 10

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ROUND 8: The round opens with a flurry, with two big rights delivered by Mosley. De La Hoya looks to the referee for help. Seconds later, De La Hoya delivers a strong left cross. Mosley answers with a good left and right. At the 1:30 mark, Mosley shifts into left-handed mode. De La Hoya is confused. His jab is being knocked down by Mosley’s right jab. De La Hoya misses a big right at the end of the round, and Mosley raises his arms to the crowd.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 9 10

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ROUND 9: The best action so far. After starting slowly, with De La Hoya’s mouthpiece falling out at the two-minute mark, Mosley lands a quick right-handed flush that stuns De La Hoya. De La Hoya lands a right hand, but Mosley’s left is at its most effective in this round. The final minute has two impressive exchanges. Mosley’s big right was the best part of the first exchange, backing up De La Hoya. Both fighters hit each other in the back of the head. The last 10 seconds include another good De La Hoya jab and a Mosley right.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 9 10

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ROUND 10: De La Hoya is looking more fatigued. He drools from his mouthpiece during the first minute of the round. De La Hoya lands occasional good punches, including a right less than midway through the round, but Mosley may be stealing the momentum. He lands an effective uppercut, followed by another one that is coupled with a strong shot to the stomach. Mosley’s left hand continues to improve.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 11: Both boxers appear intent to prepare for 12 rounds. De La Hoya’s punches are less heavy and doing less damage than earlier. He can’t find a clear path to Mosley’s head or his body. Mosley switches to southpaw at the 1:30 mark, but then switches back with one minute left, landing a good right. There are no stunning punches in the round.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 10 9 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 10 9 Springer 10 9 Dwyre 10 10 Harvey 10 9

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ROUND 12: Punches are flying at the beginning. There’s a timeout at the two-minute mark because the middle of the ring is wet. De La Hoya is bleeding from the left nostril. Mosley’s big right wobbles De La Hoya. But in another vicious exchange, De La Hoya returns the favor. Fatigue is clearly a factor, because he didn’t follow up on the punch. There are too many punches to count in the final minute as the fighters produce a captivating exchange. Mosley is seen gasping in the final minute but still participates in a brilliant, classic final 10 seconds.

THE SCORING

*--*

De La Hoya Mosley Judge Filippo 9 10 Judge Russell 9 10 Judge Sammon 9 10 Springer 9 10 Dwyre 9 10 Harvey 9 10

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