Andre Berto to Become One of the World's Best Boxers, "Come Hell or High Water"

World Boxing Council welterweight champion Andre “The Beast” Berto will make his fifth title defense against fringe contender Freddy Hernandez on November 27 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Berto (26-0, 19 KOs), a two-time National Golden Gloves winner who captured 22 state titles in Florida, last fought in April, when he earned an eighth-round TKO over former titlist Carlos Quintana at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida.

"Freddy Hernandez is a strong fighter and this fight will be a good test for me to close the year," said Berto, 27, a Haitian-American from Miami who represented Haiti at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.

"I plan on putting on a good show and hope that my performance on Nov. 27 will set up a big 2011 for me and the mega-fights that I've been wanting and that everyone wants to see me in."

Berto was scheduled to fight "Sugar" Shane Mosley last January.

Unfortunately, Berto decided to cancel his prizefight with Mosley (46-6-1-1, 39 KOs) after a hellacious earthquake in Haiti killed eight members of his family.

"Berto wanted a bigger fight but he understood we couldn't do it," said promoter Lou DiBella. "But Andre is not going to look past Freddy Hernandez because he knows he doesn't get the big fight if he doesn't get past Freddy Hernandez."

Hernandez (28-1-0-1, 19 KOs), a 31-year-old who is the current WBC Latino welterweight champion, has not been defeated since he suffered a split decision loss to Golden Johnson in February 2005.

"I think Berto is a better fighter, but Hernandez is going to fight his ass off and he's coming off one of the most impressive wins of his career against [Mike] Anchondo [on Sept. 17]," DiBella said.

"He's good enough not to be a guy you look past. Obviously, it's the not the kind of big fight we were looking for. But after this, we'll look to make the biggest fight possible. If Shane Mosley wants a shot, let's sit down and have a legitimate, fair negotiation. But a big fight will happen for Berto next come hell or high water."

Andre Berto is a "Beast" in the squared circle, and he is destined, "come hell or high water," to imminently become considered one of the greatest boxers in the world.