By Jake Donovan
Andre Berto will have just celebrated his 32nd birthday by the time he steps into the ring for his September 12 clash with Floyd Mayweather.
Given his age, time in service and career setbacks, there comes the suggestion that he’s accomplished all that he can in the sport. But it’s not at all the way he sees it, instead viewing his current run with one of the game’s top trainers in Virgil Hunter— more than two years and counting—as the continuation of a fresh start with the best still yet to come.
“He's Mr. Professor,” Berto affectionately refers to his chief second, who also guides the respective careers of World super middleweight king Andre Ward and former super lightweight champ Amir Khan, among several others. “It doesn't matter what you do, he wants to push you to another level. He has everything it takes to get you ready.”
That theory will be put to the test when Berto steps to Mayweather at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for their Showtime Pay-Per-View headliner. The bout comes as a surprise to many in the industry, as Berto (30-3, 23KOs) is a long way from his days as a leading player in the welterweight division.
All three of his career losses have come in the span of his past six fights. Two of his conquerors—Victor Ortiz and Roberto Guerrero—parlayed such wins into their own lucrative in-ring dates with Mayweather, though both coming up miserably short.
The loss to Guerrero, which came in a Nov. ’12 thriller, convinced Berto that a change was needed in order to bring his talents back to championship-caliber. That very thought process resulted in his parting ways with longtime trainer Tony Morgan, hooking up with Hunter and training out of the Bay Area—clear across the country from his home in Winter Haven, Florida.
In his time spent with Hunter, Berto insists he is a born-again fighter. The rebuilding process jumped out to a rough start, tearing his shoulder early into his July ’13 slugfest with Jesus Soto-Karass. The two traded knockdowns late before Berto was stopped in the 12th and final round.
At the time, it was uncertain where his career would go from that point, and if he could physically recover to the point of making one more run.
“I'm actually surprised he's never been seriously injured after what he's been through,” Hunter commented on the manner in which Berto was able to rehabilitate and return. “I'm quite shocked he's made it through. You tear your arm in the 2nd round, you have a serious situation going on in a prize fight. It's like going up against an AK-47 with a .38.
“He fought in pain, yet the fight was even going into the last round. I don't have a problem going on record saying, if he didn't hurt his arm he was going to put away Soto-Karass.”
A rematch would have either supported or dismissed such a claim, but neither fighter could make it happen. By the time Berto fully recovered from shoulder surgery and returned to the ring, Soto Karass already lost twice—a 9th round knockout at the hands of Keith Thurman in Dec. ’13, followed by a 10-round decision to former two-division titlist Devon Alexander last June.
Berto has since won two straight, including a come-from-behind knockout win over Josesito Lopez in March. The win came with an interim title, which meant an eventual shot at either Thurman—WBA “regular” champ—or its “super” champ in Mayweather, widely regarded as the best fighter in the world and the best of at least this generation.
Whether or not he expected to be at this stage isn’t as important to Berto as what he continues to get out of his ongoing teacher-pupil relationship with Hunter.
“We didn't really have a timeframe,” Berto said of how long he expected to return to the top level. “I was just excited to be part of a new team, to get with a new coach and learn new things; then, to be able to use these new things in the ring. I’m looking forward to putting all of those tools to use.”
Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com.
Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
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