For Andre Berto, The Fight Vs. Forbes Brings Big Risk, But Bigger Reward

The Welterweight division in boxing stands at the top alone.

No other sector in boxing quite matches it's depth, talent, and overall room for potential match-ups are great.

WBC Welterweight Champion, Andre Berto (22-0, 19 KOs) looks to counter on that room for great matchups, and his Saturday night fight with a very capable Steve "2 Pound" Forbes (33-6, 9 KOs) is a move in the right direction for the champ.

Steady progression is a phrase that can be adequately defined as Berto's career, thus far. For the most part, each of his fights represent a step up in competition for him, and Saturday night will fit right into the mix.

Steve Forbes is a qualified fighter to the likes of whom Berto has never faced in three-and-a-half year career. Forbes' level of defensive savvy and technique will provide a worthy test for Berto and a successful defense of the WBC championship can mean big things for the 25-year-old rising star.

But a victory is not at all guaranteed.

With a career stretching over almost 12 years and at 31 years old, Forbes will seemingly have an advantage when regarding experience, but so did most of Berto's other opponents. So just how much of an impact will Forbes' experience be? And how big of an effect will Forbes' age have on his own performance?

Considering that with the exception of Oscar De La Hoya, Forbes hasn't fought anyone that Berto wouldn't dismantle, the experience factor might be overrated. Experience is as important as anything, but it's all about that one night...the night that Berto, who is always in top-notch shape, has been relentlessly training for.

“I feel good, I’m confident. I’m in tremendous shape and ready to turn in a good performance on Sept. 27...I’ve been bringing in smaller guys and slick boxers. We are working on speed and boxing for this fight,” Andre Berto said, according to his blog, http://andreberto.com/blog/

Forbes began his career in 1996 as a junior welterweight and has steadily put on pounds as he progressed, participating as high as 150 pounds on the hit show "The Contender" in 2006, "2 Pound" also weighed in at 150 pounds for his last fight against De La Hoya.

Berto started his career, fighting at 162 pounds, but has campaigned mostly at the 147 and 154 division limits. Although Berto is clearly the more physically built of the two, there isn't too much height height difference between the two competitors, Forbes is listed at 5' 7 1/2", and Berto at 5' 8 1/2". Nonetheless, taking into account fighting style and knockout ratio, it wouldn't be a crime to imply that Berto has the clear edge in size and power.

Regarding the fight, reports indicate that Forbes has been saying that he's going to teach Berto a lesson and he's going to be his professor. In an interview with a popular boxing website, Berto responded, saying that he's going to see how hard the exam is, and if it looks like something he can breeze through, he's going to walk out of the class early. 

Both boxers rely on their speed when they fight, for Berto, his speed is power—the same can't necessarily be said about Forbes, who likes to stand in the pocket, trade a little, and counter his opponents. Nonetheless, both have quick hands, but Forbes might use his speed more strategically whereas Berto has one mission: to break his opponent down and stop him.

In order for Berto use his speed successfully, and ultimately win the fight, he needs to fight his style and not try to switch too because of his opponent. Depending who has the advantage in the speed department will depend on how they each use their talent.

It's common knowledge that Steve Forbes is a defensive technician (I mean, he has been trained by Mayweathers for practically his entire career), but if there is one element of style that Berto needs the most touching up on, it's his defense.

Berto would be the first one to admit that he needs to work on it, especially after his July fight against former Welterweight titlist, Cosme Rivera, in which he was knocked down in the sixth round. Berto vows that he and his team have focused and improved on it, and are more prepared than ever before.

"The Rivera fight taught me never to take anyone for granted...And after Estrada I went to work on my defense," Berto said in an interview with Sports Illustrated.

The fight will be a tale of two styles, much to the likes of the main event on the card, "Sugar" Shane Mosley vs. Ricardo Mayorga, but what the three of the four fighters also have in common is that their aren't too different, either.

In televised fights, audiences have been witness to the versatility of Steve Forbes, he can box and counter punch or stand and trade, his heart is unmatched and he has an iron chin. Additionally, fans have seen Berto take his time and box, and they've seen him be aggressive and go in for the kill.

The same can be said for the other fight. Throughout Mosley's career, we've seen him box, trade, brawl and knock people out...but unfortunately Mayorga is singled out—he's painfully one dimensional and is used as a stepping stone to Weltweights who want to resurge their careers.

Both Berto and Mosley are 8-1 favorites going into Saturday night's fights but one doesn't quite possess the future implications like the other. We should all know what to expect in the Mosley-Mayorga fight, but the winner of the Berto-Forbes fight lines himself up for future big fights in a wealthy division, both talent wise and economically.

The mandatory defense for the WBC Champion will be Luis Collazo, who also fights on the undercard, and luckily for Berto and his promoter Lou Dibella, that is exactly who they had in mind.

Dibella told ESPN, "We have to fight Luis Collazo, our mandatory, and that is who we want to fight next, I think this is a perfect fight heading into that fight. I view Forbes as a risky opponent."

Aside from Collazo, Berto didn't dismiss fighting the big dogs of the division sooner than later, "I want to prove I am supposed to be here and I am definitely looking forward to fighting the big guys. I want to get in the ring with the Margaritos, Cottos, Mosleys just to test myself and, at the same time, test those top welterweights to see if they are supposed to be there," Berto told ESPN.com

Dibella, who dismissed a fight with Margarito, citing that he was too big, said that after Collazo, bring on the Mosleys and Cottos. He also took note of Joshua Clottey who called out Berto after his early Aug. victory over Zab Judah, but Dibella said with all respect Clottey, he doesn't quite bring in the financial opportunities that Berto hopes to gain.