It was a sign of how confident "Sugar" Shane Mosley was feeling when he arrived at the MGM Grand wearing his trademark smile and a shirt depicting Sugar Ray Robinson. If ever there was a night where Mosley was going to shine, last night in Las Vegas was it - he had reunited with his father and trainer, had an inspirational training camp, and was eager to erase the controversy from his first fight with Fernando Vargas, which he won by 10 round TKO. In that fight, Vargas claimed that a headbutt caused his left eye to swell, and that Mosley was given a gift decision.

There was no sugarcoating this victory.

Mosley, 43-4 (37), looked like the "Sugar" of old, as he dominated "El Feroz" for the first five rounds before stopping him in the sixth. In fact, Mosley hadn't looked this good since he beat Oscar De la Hoya in June of 2000. He used his jab, threw lightning quick combinations, bounced on his toes, and frustrated Vargas with angles. The two fighters who met in February were not in the same class last night.

Vargas, 26-4 (22), who entered training camp at almost 190 pounds, looked much like he did in their first encounter - slow and lumbering, although he did land more quality punches this time around. No doubt he must have spent much of his training focused on shedding the weight. Mosley, on the other hand, unofficially weighed in at only five pounds over the 154 pound limit the night of the fight. He looked like a welterweight, and wore a new pair of boxing boots and a dazzling pair of red trunks that were shorter than trunks he'd been using in the past. As HBO analyst Emanul Steward put it, "he was dressed for speed".

In the first round, Mosley controlled the action, using a sharp jab to Vargas' body and head, while Vargas tried to set his feet. In the next two rounds, both fighters had to be warned by referee Kenny Bayless for holding, as Mosley would weave under Vargas' right hand attempts and pin his arm battering his body with right hands, while Vargas, as in the first fight, would attempt to smother his smaller opponent. In the third, Mosley continued using the jab and began pot-shotting Vargas, using his superior footwork to nail him from all angles. The fourth round saw Vargas land a good left hand, but the iron-jawed Mosley was undeterred. Just before the bell sounded, Mosley punctuated the round by landing a hellacious right hand. Mosley did it again in the fifth; Vargas landed another hard punch - a short right hand - but in the dying seconds Mosley put his speed on display, peppering Vargas with an onslaught of punches. In the sixth, with Vargas cut over his right eye, Mosley bounces on the balls of his feet, clearly aware that he is in control of the fight. Vargas looks as if he has awakened and stalks Mosley, but Mosley succeeds in keeping his opponent at a distance, something he failed to do in their first encounter. After fielding off a Vargas jab, Mosley sees Vargas' right hand low and fires off a textbook left hook which floors "El Feroz." Vargas has trouble getting up, and when he does, Mosley moves in for the kill, firing combinations until Bayless stops the fight.

Mosley credited his father for the win and said he thought of De La Hoya's left hook against Vargas when they fought in 2002, and the stoppage was indeed very similar. Mosley has been criticized for lacking power at 147 and 154, but he should be given credit for his virtually one-punch destruction of a much bigger fighter. Skeptics will point to Vargas' glass chin and the wars he waged against De La Hoya and Felix Trinidad, but Mosley arguably dominated Vargas more easily than those two fighters. Vargas now has the dubious distinction of being destroyed by the top three fighters he has faced, Winky Wright excepted.

While Vargas looks to head north to 160 (or possibly retire), Mosley said he will return to the welterweight division and seek new challenges. He will not fight until 2007, but his emphatic victory last night completely erased the spectre of Mosley-Vargas I, sent a message to all those at 147.

Finally, after six see-saw years, Mosley has put the "Sugar" back in Shane.