Floyd Mayweather vs. Andre Berto: Everything You Need to Know for Upcoming Fight
Well, it’s almost here. The fight no one wanted to see actually come to fruition will take place this Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Floyd Mayweather, the pound-for-pound best fighter of a generation, will go for win No. 49 against former titleholder Andre Berto, a fighter who has lost three of his last six fights, two of which came against fighters Mayweather already soundly defeated.
Oh, and it will cost you nearly $80 to see it.
Here’s everything you need to know for Mayweather-Berto, a Showtime pay-per-view fight pitting the best of an era against a fighter not even among the 10 best boxers in his division.
Floyd "Money" Mayweather
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Age: 38
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 147
Reach: 72 inches
Stance: Orthodox
Record: 48-0 (26 KOs)
Rounds Fought: 375
Trainer: Floyd Mayweather Sr.
Floyd Mayweather is one of the most talented and accomplished fighters in the history of boxing. He’s undefeated in 48 professional fights, and he’s faced a slew of elite-level superstars. He’s currently the lineal champion in both the welterweight division, where his fight with Berto will take place, and the junior middleweight division.
Mayweather’s defense is exceptional. His ability to adjust to what is in front of him on fight night is without equal, at least among peers of this era, and he is one of the best counterpunchers in boxing history.
That being said, there is a large portion of the boxing world who feel at least somewhat cheated by not getting to see how great Mayweather really could have been. Yes, Mayweather finally faced and defeated Manny Pacquiao, but some would argue he did so five years too late.
Moreover, for every opponent like Pacquiao or Oscar De La Hoya Mayweather has faced, he has also taken on fighters with limited credentials like Robert Guerrero or Marcos Maidana.
Case in point: Berto fits in with the latter two men. He’s decent, but not elite, and has done nothing to warrant the gig.
Andre Berto
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Age: 32
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 147
Reach: 68 ½ inches
Stance: Orthodox
Record: 30-3 (23 KOs)
Rounds Fought: 189
Trainer: Virgil Hunter
Berto is a likable guy. It’s not his fault he hit what amounts to boxing’s version of the lottery with the Mayweather fight, and he’s absolutely correct in being excited about the opportunity.
But the only people in the world who are interested in seeing Berto face Mayweather are his friends and family.
As already noted, Berto has only won three of his last six fights. Here’s the bad part: His wins were over Josesito Lopez, Steve Chambers and Jan Zaveck. And that’s not even the worst part, because two of Berto’s losses were against people Mayweather has already handily defeated: Victor Ortiz and Robert Guerrero.
It gets even worse. Two years ago, Berto was knocked out by journeyman Jesus Soto Karass, the guy you may have recently seen getting wrecked on DirecTV’s fledgling BKB series.
But Berto is a decent fighter. Judging by recent pictures, he's in tremendous shape. He has fast hands. He’s tough as nails. He comes from a family of fighters. And boxing is a sport where one punch can change the course of a fight no matter how large the odds are stacked against it.
The Stakes
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Against Berto, Mayweather is defending his lineal welterweight title, as defined by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board or Ring Magazine (depending on your personal preference), as well as his WBC and WBA title belts.
But he’s also staking his legacy on the Berto fight.
Much has been made of Mayweather’s attempt to match Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record. That’s fine. It makes for a good story. But Marciano faced eventual Hall of Famer Archie Moore in his final fight, a fighter who had a legitimate chance of defeating the champion.
And Larry Holmes was once in a similar position to Mayweather. The longtime heavyweight champion saw his chance for 49-0 fall by the wayside versus Michael Spinks, one of the greatest light heavyweights ever.
But Marciano doesn’t own boxing’s longest undefeated streak anyway. Julio Cesar Chavez was 87-0 when he suffered a draw to Pernell Whitaker in 1993 and 89-0-1 when he finally lost to Frankie Randall one year later.
So the promotional tagline for the event, “High Stakes,” is really mostly about this: Mayweather's lasting impression on the sport that made him rich.
Because if he is true to his word about retiring after the bout, the undefeated Mayweather risks forever leaving boxing fans with the notion that he didn’t really feel like challenging himself in his final fight.
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Undercard
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Mayweather-Berto features a solid televised undercard in comparison to most PPVs. In addition to the main event, which minimally features the best fighter in the world doing his thing, fans will also be able to watch three meaningful and interesting fights, two of which are for world titles.
Badou Jack (19-1-1, 12 KOs) vs. George Groves (21-2, 16 KOs)
Jack is defending his WBC super middleweight title against Groves in a contest between two hard punchers who come ready to fight. The bout should be a fairly tactical one early on, but don’t expect it to go the distance. Both fighters will look for the knockout in order to make an impression on such a large stage.
Roman Martinez (29-2-2, 17 KOs) vs. Orlando Salido (42-13-2, 29 KOs)
Martinez and Salido are facing each other in an immediate rematch of an April barnburner. Once again, Martinez will defend his WBO junior lightweight title against the aggressive Salido. The first bout was an entertaining unanimous-decision win for Martinez. Expect something similar in the second meeting.
Jhonny Gonzalez (58-9, 49 KOs) vs. Jonathan Oquendo (25-4, 16 KOs)
Former titleholder Jhonny Gonzalez is on the rebound after suffering a Round 4 knockout loss to Gary Russell Jr. earlier this year at featherweight. Gonzalez is now fighting at 130 pounds, and a win over Oquendo would put him right back in line for another big-name opponent, perhaps even the winner of Martinez-Salido.
Odds and Where to Watch
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Odds (per Odds Shark on Sept. 7, 2015)
Mayweather (1-35)
Berto (12-1)
Where to Watch
Date: Saturday, Sept. 12
Venue: MGM Grand in Las Vegas
Tickets: $150-$1,500 from various ticket sites
Television: Showtime PPV for $65 (standard definition) or $75 (high definition) beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET
Movie Theaters: Check your local cinema listings
Prediction
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There have been many upsets in boxing history, but there’s absolutely nothing to suggest that Berto can do anything to win this fight. He possesses no single skill or attribute that Mayweather hasn’t already faced and defeated a better version of before, and Berto has accomplished nothing in his time as a prizefighter to warrant entertaining the thought of him being competitive for longer than a few seconds.
The only real question is how Mayweather will win. But even that seems like a foregone conclusion.
Mayweather will most likely defeat Berto by unanimous decision. He will box brilliantly and completely outclass Berto in every way. Berto might be able to land a punch here or there, but even a reportedly one-armed Manny Pacquiao did that. However, Mayweather’s chin and ability to recover is probably the most underrated attribute the fighter possesses, and he's coasted to 49-0 with great ease.
Mayweather wins a wide decision by scores of 117-111, 118-110 and 119-109.
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