(Reuters) — Challenger Andre Berto will go into Saturday’s welterweight fight against Floyd Mayweather as a heavy underdog but the fighter senses that something is brewing and that boxing fans will be treated to a real “rumble”.
Berto, 32, will be aiming to end his fellow American’s perfect 48-0 record and his corner man, Virgil Hunter, has promised that his boxer is capable of fighting “over his head” in a bout scheduled for 12 rounds at the MGM Grand.
“It don’t matter. Coming from where I come from? We never had a chance to come out of that, but just the fact that I’m here, it tells you something. So, I ain’t interested in none of that,” said Berto, whose family escaped the slums of Haiti for Florida.
“I’ve already been through a lot and I’m here for a reason. And, I’m going to be here on Saturday night and going to go ahead and do what we do,” added Berto after the weigh in.
Berto (30-3, 23 knockouts) is known for his power punching and athleticism but faces a daunting task against Mayweather, a 20-1 favorite and five-division world champion who has said that he will retire from boxing after Saturday’s bout.
“I don’t overlook any opponent. You know, I’ve been here before. I know what it takes when it’s a fight of this magnitude: just stay focused, stay on a parallel path, and go out there and do what I do best — and that’s win,” said Mayweather, the WBC and WBA welterweight champ.
In stark contrast to his previous fight, the much hyped megabout with Manny Pacquiao four months ago, the build-up to Mayweather’s 49th appearance in the ring as a professional has lacked buzz and plenty of tickets are still available.
In May, Mayweather (48-0 with 26 knockouts) earned more than $200 million from his so-called “Fight of the Century” with Pacquiao that became boxing’s richest ever showdown. Against Berto on Saturday, Mayweather has settled for a reported $32 million.
The appeal of Saturday’s bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, which will be televised on pay-per-view for a suggested price of $74.95, has clearly not been helped by Mayweather’s choice of opponent, Berto having lost three of his last six fights.
“I’m in top condition. We had a great training camp, you know, training camp went tremendous. But, the main thing tomorrow is going out there, being at my best, and since Pacquiao didn’t give the fans a good fight, tomorrow’s going to be a great fight,” said undefeated five-division world champion Mayweather, in a verbal jab at Pacquiao.
Mayweather (48-0 with 26 knockouts) bristles whenever criticism is raised over his choice of Berto as his opponent for his ‘final’ fight.
However, should Mayweather win on Saturday, as is widely expected against the unheralded Andre Berto, he would match the 49-0 record of former heavyweight great Rocky Marciano and it would seem most unlikely that he would not be tempted to return to the ring for a 50th fight.