The Dark Horse Andre Berto

By Kirk Jackson: Many boxing insiders and fans of the sport have three division champion, and future hall of famer Sugar Shane Mosley, defeating the young World Boxing Council Welterweight Champion and budding star Andre Berto, in their upcoming unification bout that takes place January 30th of this year.

It’s common knowledge Shane Mosley may have his eyes on a future potential match up against Pound for Pound royalty, in Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather, somewhere down the road in 2010. But before Shane can reach this dream marquee match up and perhaps his highest grossing payday, he has to keep his eyes on the road and focus in on Andre Berto.

As mentioned earlier, most of the boxing public believe Shane Mosley will be victorious over Andre Berto in their fight. But the boxing public, and especially Shane Mosley, cannot underestimate the skills of Andre Berto.

Berto has elite level flashy hand speed, can through a variety of different punches, and also has the ability to throw fluid combinations. Berto has also displayed the ability to be evasive at times, as he also possesses really good lateral movement. By no means a small welterweight, the 5’8” ½ Berto competed in the middleweight division earlier in his career and like his opponent Shane Mosley, possesses a body builder like physique.

Mosley may have the edge in reach 74 inches compared to Berto’s 72 inch reach, but Berto has the hand speed to get to him. Mosley has shown in past fights he cannot handle a strong jab. Check his two fights against Winky Wright, his two fights against the late Vernon Forrest, his fight against Miguel Cotto, and his second fight against his business partner Oscar De La Hoya. All of the fighters mentioned effectively used their jabs to suppress the Mosley attack. And all of the fighters mentioned with the exception of Oscar, beat Mosley. Although you can make an argument for Oscar really defeating Shane in their second fight, but that’s another article.

Andre Berto is going to have to fight a tactical fight, if he wants to score the upset against Shane Mosley. I believe the key to beating Shane is giving him plenty of lateral movement, move around a lot because you do not want to be a stationary target in front of a power puncher, and you also want to make the older fighter work a little bit. Also if you’re Andre, you want to have consistent effective use of the jab. It’s important to throw the jab all night. Use the jab to mount your offense, to score points, to disrupt Shane’s offense, and to set up your defense.

Another thing working in Andre’s favor is he has been the more active fighter among the two. Andre’s last fights taking place in January 2009, against former Welterweight Champion Luis Collazo, and in May of 2009, against Junior Welterweight Titlist Juan Urango, while Shane’s last bout took place January 2009, against Welterweight Champion Antonio Margarito.

Now many people may point out Andre’s fight against Luis Collazo was far from impressive, as Berto earned a split decision victory over the former champ. Some fail to realize Luis is a very tough, underrated fighter. He is a good inside fighter, very slick, and a southpaw, and would probably give any fighter a rough night. I am sure Berto learned plenty of lessons from the fight against Collazo, as that was his first step up against really solid opposition.

This is the first time Andre Berto will be on the grand stage. Also, in the wake of the recent tragedy in Haiti, you can believe the Haitian American Andre Berto will be inspired to put on a pleasing performance in honor for the people in Haiti. Andre Berto represented Haiti in the 2004 Olympics. A lot of prominent athletes usually respond in a positive way when faced with some sort of adversity and you can believe Andre will be fighting with plenty of motivation. Shane Mosley will be fighting with plenty motivation as well as he wants to prove he is the best fighter in the world. Also, he is not getting any younger and he probably wants to land a mega fight before he finally hangs the gloves up.

But this is Berto’s first time center stage, and Mosley has been here many times in his career. An impressive victory for Mosley almost guarantees a mega fight with either Floyd Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao. By beating Berto, Mosley adds another alphabet belt to his resume in bid to unify the welterweight division. A victory solidifies his number 1 spot in the welterweight rankings, and surely the boxing public would demand a fight between he and either Pacquiao or Mayweather. A victory for Berto can propel him in stardom and can set him up for potential negotiations with the other stars of the sport. Maybe a fight against Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, Paul Williams, or Miguel Cotto.

There are many intangibles in this fight, many possibilities on what can happen, and you have to wonder will the long lay off and old age finally catch up with Mosley? Or will he once again rewind back father time and prove experience beats youth? Will Andre Berto rise to the occasion, or will he succumb to the pressure, importance and magnitude of the fight, and the physical pressure of Shane Mosley? Only time will tell, but I won’t be surprised if Andre Berto rises as the dark horse and cements himself as a fighter to be reckoned with.

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