Victor Ortiz vs. Andre Berto 2: Winner, Recap and Knockout Reaction

In a rematch that was five years in the making, Andre Berto exorcised some demons and defeated Victor Ortiz via technical knockout in the fourth round Saturday night at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. 

After falling to Ortiz by unanimous decision in 2011, Berto put a shaky first two rounds behind him Saturday and quickly built momentum in the third before sending Ortiz tumbling to the canvas twice in the fourth.

The Los Angeles Times' Lance Pugmire provided an overview of the decisive sequence: 

Premier Boxing Champions captured the moment that saw Berto exact his revenge:

Although the first round was a jabfest that served as a three-minute feeling-out process for both sides, Ortiz took a nasty cut from an accidental head-butt after he charged in on Berto, as Premier Boxing Champions documented: 

However, it didn't take Ortiz long to bounce back. 

With a more composed and technical approach against the tighter Berto, Ortiz scored a knockdown in the second round and seized momentum despite the fact that blood was pouring down his face, via Premier Boxing Champions:

And as it turned out, the knockdown may have been the jolt Berto needed to come out swinging in the fourth and drop Ortiz to exact revenge once and for all. 

The knockout was particularly sweet for the 32-year-old since he had been hot and cold since losing to Ortiz five years ago.

Entering Saturday night, Berto had lost three of his last five fights, including a unanimous-decision defeat at the hands of Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the pound-for-pound king's final bout before retirement. 

Ortiz, meanwhile, is searching for answers. 

After boasting a strong showing over the fight's first two rounds, he ceded the role of aggressor to Berto and never recovered. Ortiz has now lost four of his last six fights dating back to September 2011, with his lone wins during that span coming over Manuel Perez and Gilberto Sanchez Leon. 

Berto noted he was refocused and re-energized, saying he was a "much more mature fighter" who "pushed himself" in camp, according to ESPN.com's Dan Rafael, and it turned out that he wasn't kidding.

Now, Berto will look to use Saturday's victory as a springboard to a successful second act of his career.

Post-Fight Reaction

"I was in dog mode," Berto said of his mentality after the first round, according to Pugmire. "I’m in shape and if I have to hurt him, I will."

"I told myself, 'I'm not going to let him recover from this one,'" Berto said, according to the Associated Press' Greg Beacham (via ABC News). "That was my mistake in the first fight, letting him get back up."

"It's one of those punches that you don't see coming, you know?" Ortiz said of the first knockdown, per Beacham. "He is not a guy that hits soft. Every punch he throws is 100 miles an hour so he is one heck of a champ for a reason."

"It was the most satisfying win of my career just because he was the guy who gave me my first loss and it’s been looming for years," Berto added, according to Pugmire. 

"I just need to go and take a vacation," Ortiz said, according to USA Today's Mark. E Ortega. "I haven’t had a vacation in two years, and then I will get back at it."