By Edward Chaykovsky
Former IBF/WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto (30-3, 23 KOs) sees his speed as an advantage in the upcoming fight with WBC/WBA welterweight champ Floyd Mayweather Jr. (48-0, 26KOs) on September 12th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Berto has been in line twice to fight Mayweather in the past. He was upset by Victor Ortiz in a Fight of The Year battle in 2011 and then he was upset by Robert Guerrero in 2012. Both winners went on to fight Mayweather in big pay-per-view fights. Mayweather knocked out Ortiz in four rounds and dominated Guerrero over twelve rounds.
Berto is a very big underdog, going 3-3 in his last six fights. Some betting circles have him as high as an 80-1 underdog.
He believes Mayweather has not faced this type of speed since the bout with Zab Judah in 2006. Mayweather struggled in the first four rounds, but eventually Floyd adjusted and easily swept the rest of the fight.
"Everybody knows what I bring to the table. They know I have speed and power, and they know I’ll fight until my last [arm] isn’t attached," Berto said to the Los Angeles Times. "They've seen me get knocked down to get up and fight harder."
"I've fought with a torn shoulder for 12 rounds (in a 2013 loss to Jesus Soto Karass). Would Floyd endure that kind of pain? You already know how I’ll respond -- that I'll push the pace and make the fight as exciting as possible. Floyd hasn’t fought this kind of speed since Zab Judah. It’s an exciting fight, for sure."
"The guys who have failed ... they couldn’t keep up with [Mayweather]," Berto said. "I've got certain tools -- speed, explosiveness -- that other guys haven’t had. I'm very confident and will bring something to the table we haven't seen. They can doubt it if they want, but I can tell you, you don’t want to miss it."