Mayweather & Berto: The Unlikable
Pairing
It has been officially
announced; Mayweather v Berto is slated for September 12 and the boxing world
is in less of an uproar but more of a universal groan of disapproval. Anyone
who has read my blog knows I have a pro Mayweather and Berto sentiment, but
even I must admit I am not entirely thrilled with the match up. However I am
not writing to reiterate points about how this is a mismatch and the fans are
being hoodwinked since I think there are enough people doing a pretty good job
of that. I’m going to attempt to argue the benefits and some of the facts of
this match and possibly give some perspective.
Since May 3, 2015 Floyd
Mayweather has made no secret of his intentions to face an opponent of the
caliber of Berto. In his post-fight interviews he stated he would pick someone
he wanted to fight that will be a competitive opponent but not someone the
public may see as one (and yet we all found ourselves shocked when Berto got
the nod). In addition to that Andre Berto is the interim welterweight champ
which to some, Mayweather included, seems to mean something. However outside of
this there is a chance that this match can actually be good for the future of
boxing.
I anticipate that this fight
will surprise the boxing world for the very same reason the Pacquiao Mayweather
fight seemed so underwhelming; perception. Mayweather v Pacquiao was never going
to live up to the hype because the build-up produced an unrealistic expectation
for two very smart, cautious and older fighters who hadn’t produced a knockout
victory in over four years. In the case of the September 12th bout
the opposite perception is molding the outcome. The expectation of
Berto/Mayweather is that the fight will be a wash since Berto is a ‘bum’.
However as long as people expect this they overlook Berto’s performances inside
the ring since 2011.
Berto’s
no Chump!
On paper Andre Berto is 3-3 in
his last six fights and if you let the naysayers tell it he was thoroughly
dominated in all three losses. However Berto has never been knocked out; in his
most recent loss to Sotto-Karass, the ref waved off the fight in the 12th
with Berto on his feet at the count of 4. This is same fight in which Karass
was dropped in the eleventh. And with or without a blatant shoulder injury the
fight was competitive with both fighters doing damage until the end.
Next, going backwards in time,
there was Berto/Guerrero which was a fight mired in poor refereeing, fouls and
dirty work unbecoming of Robert Guerrero who is typically a pretty complete,
skilled and clean pugilist (I won’t go into as much detail on this fight as I
already have in a previous post back in 2012, please feel free to peruse!). The
image of the swollen eyed, almost extraterrestrial looking Berto allows the
public to forget that damage was done in the first two rounds of a fight that
went the distance. This was also a fight where Berto landed flurries off the
ropes in the late rounds in what was being considered initially as the fight of
the year. Much of the same could be said about Ortiz/Berto a fight where both
fighters tasted the canvas twice and was also a fight of the year candidate.
The point of these examples is
to show that Berto is more of a fighter than he has been given credit for; his
speedy double uppercut does damage when executed, he has the heart of a warrior
who fights as long as his body lets him and he does much better against
fighters who are more boxers than aggressors and don’t lead with their head. As
blasphemous as it may sound I have always seen Berto as similar to the late
Arturo Gatti (one of my favorite fighters). Both men were at times outgunned by
what many considered journeymen or gatekeepers (Manfredy and Sotto Karass come
to mind), but they also fought hard, fought aggressive and never produced dull
fights. This by no means equates to a Berto victory but the fact that
Mayweather probably won’t smother Berto could produce some openings for Andre
to look better than the general public anticipates.
Is
There No One Else?
Finally there’s the issue of
competition and the business of boxing. As disappointed as the fans and writers
may be in the Berto scenario few have dared to point to someone who could do
better: Broner would be considered a money grab, Thurman, Porter and Brook are
allegedly to green and even Garcia is too fresh from the Malignaggi fight. More importantly is the fact that no one
gives any of these up and coming stars of the welterweight division a chance
against Floyd which means if any of them fought him it would be a tremendous
payday but also essentially the end of their burgeoning career. After all what
does it say about your boxing era even if you become the champion but lost to
the old guard on his way out?
The only other option would be
GGG, the undefeated middleweight world beater with massive power and an all
action style. Other than the problem of GGG being with HBO and Floyd being with
Haymon, I’d argue that if this fight were to take place it would look a lot
better on paper. Most are in agreement
that Mayweather lacks the power to put down GGG but he does have superior
footwork, faster hands, and a good chin and is the best counter puncher in the
world. Anything can happen in boxing but more than likely this would be a fight
where Floyd moves, potshots and doesn’t engage. The fans are disappointed (as
they always seem to be these days) and GGG gets branded as flatfooted and
untested.
Berto is quite possibly the
best case scenario for Floyd and Boxing. Floyd may open up, show some of the
old Pretty Boy aggression and maybe even score a knockout. Berto will get an
obscene payday, marginal recognition and an untarnished image because, let’s
face it, most fans and pundits don’t like him anyway. Entertainment is fickle
and most would be disappointed no matter the opponent Mayweather picked. I’m
not trying to sell this fight, but there’s more to a matchup than what is on
paper and before we all collectively damn this match to hell I’m going to at
least give Berto the puncher’s chance he deserves.
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