After scoring back-to-back TKO victories at junior middleweight against the game but shot warrior Fernando Vargas, "Sugar" Shane Mosley returns to the division that saw him rocket to stardom and set him reeling into a mini slump. Mosley will face tricky southpaw Luis Collazo at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas Saturday night.

Mosley, 43-4 (37), became a household name to mainstream boxing fans when he decisioned Oscar De La Hoya and took his welterweight title in a highly skilled and entertaining bout in June 2000. Mosley retained his belt with TKO victories over less-than-stellar opposition, looking stellar against Antonio Diaz, Shannon Taylor, and Adrian Stone.

Then came Vernon Forrest.

Mosley was knocked down and badly hurt in his first professional loss, as Forrest defeated him in January 2002 and again in a July rematch. Mosley then moved up to junior middle, where he fought a no contest with Raul Marquez, beat De La Hoya again in what was deemed a contorversial decision, and was pasted twice by Winky Wright before moving back down. By that point Mosley was 1-4-1 in his last six fights, not exactly Ray Robinson numbers. After firing his father as trainer after the first Wright fight, Mosley improved under Joe Goosen's tutelage and then trained with John David Jackson for his return to welterweight against David Estrada and Jose Luis Cruz. Although Mosley won almost every round in both fights, he was criticized for not being bale to knock either fighter out. Mosley was seen as past-his-prime, until he moved back up to 154 to stop Vargas twice in 2006, the second time in dramatic fashion--with a perfectly timed left hook--and looking as fast and as sharp as ever.

So, is Shane Mosley back? It should be noted that as good as he looked in the Vargas rematch, Vargas looked just a bad, moving slowly and lethargically. I've seen honey pour out of a jar faster than what Vargas looked like that night. Mosley's decision to move back down to welterweight was partly based on the fact that he felt so strong in the second Vargas fight, and he was leaving the gym at 149 lbs. The rangy power-puncher Kermit Cintron was supposed to be Mosley's opponent, but management disputes meant Cintron's loss was Collazo's gain. Collazo last fought Ricky Hatton in Massachusetts in a fight many thought he should have won. So Collazo is a dangerous opponent for Mosley.

Collazo, 27-2 (13), though not a big puncher, is young, hungry, and the type of fighter that can give Mosley fits. He moves well, and can counterpunch effectively. At 35, Mosley is no spring chicken, but his speed is still there, and his body-punching is still a force to be reckoned with (just ask David Estrada). Although Collazo almost stopped Hatton in the final round of there fight, it is unlikely that he can put a dent in Mosley's armour. And he is not as fast as Mosley, either. Which means Collazo will have to give the fight of his life to win.

This will be an entertaining bout because both men will box as well as go to war. Collazo will do well in the early rounds, but Mosley will wear him down, and stop him with a body shot in the 6th.

Prediction: Mosley KO 6