The champion expects fighting Felix Trinidad to bring a large paycheck.
By JOHN C. COTEY
Published March 15, 2004
LAS VEGAS - From Differdange, Luxembourg, to Tucuman, Argentina; from South Africa to Las Vegas; from Anthony Salerno, his first victim in 1990, to Shane Mosley, his most recognizable.
From the long, bumpy road to one now paved with gold.
Winky Wright won more than a fight Saturday night when he captured a decisive unanimous decision over Mosley at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. He won the hearts of boxing fans everywhere with a virtuoso performance that shot him into the heart of the sport and guarantees him his first million-dollar payday.
"It's been a long time coming," Wright said at the postfight news conference. "I've been everywhere in the world. I've been fighting in places a lot of you all can't even pronounce. But I had to do it to get here."
Now the St. Petersburg resident wants to be paid. Wright applauded Mosley's effort then told the crowd, "Now that I got that out of the way ... show me the money!"
Most of the conversation focused on the future. Wright cost Mosley a $10-million payday with Felix Trinidad and now is eyeing a fight with the former middleweight champ, who came out of a 21-month retirement in February.
The 32-year-old Wright (47-3) got his biggest payday against Mosley, about $800,000, but that will be chump change compared with what he can make fighting Trinidad.
Though trainer Jack Mosley said his son will exercise a rematch clause in the contract, Wright's trainer, Dan Birmingham, said he doesn't believe it has to be immediate.
"Bring on Trinidad," Birmingham said. "Bring on Trinidad."
Wright echoed those sentiments, saying he would move up in weight class to make it happen.
"All I ever wanted to do was fight the great fighters so when I end my career, I can say look, I fought the best. I beat the best. I lost to the best, but I fought the best. I earned that. That's all I ever asked. I didn't ask for people to give me anything. I earned everything I got."
Trinidad's promoter, Don King, said Wright performed "magnificently" and would get his shot. But he said Trinidad (41-1) would not wait for Wright if the Mosley camp got an immediate rematch.
"If Trinidad wants to fight me, then that's what it's going to be," Wright said. "I hope he wants to do it. Trinidad first, and then we do Shane."
By adding Mosley's WBC and WBA 154-pound titles to his IBF championship, Wright is the undisputed junior middleweight champion, boxing's hottest division. He joins a select group of fighters, middleweight Bernard Hopkins, welterweight Cory Spinks and super-lightweight Kostya Tszyu, holding all three major championship belts in their divisions.
He was brilliant, beating Mosley to the punch and using a straight left as his best weapon instead of his usual vicious right jab. He backed Mosley up all night, made him fight a style he was unaccustomed to and turned in a flawless performance. Two judges had him winning nine of the 12 rounds for a 117-111 score. Another had him winning eight, 116-112.
Wright landed almost twice as many power punches as jabs, a surprise considering his reputation for being a tactical fighter who prefers to stay on the outside and rely on his defense. He landed 160 of his 336 power punches (48 percent), and Mosley landed 136 of 377 (36 percent). As expected, he had the better jab, outlanding Mosley 90-30.
"I tried to get my jab off early, but it was kind of hard because Shane was quick," Wright said. "I had to place it instead of throwing it. But once I started connecting, it made everything easier.
"A lot of people underestimated my punching power, but I can hang in there with the best of them."
