By Jason Kim: Former WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto (27-1, 21 KO’s) may not want to acknowledge it but he has to beat International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion Jan Zaveck (31-1, 18 KO’s) in their fight on September 3rd at the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Biloxi, Mississippi.

A loss for the 27-year-old Berto would be a crushing blow for his career, as he lost his last fight against Victor Ortiz by a 12 round decision, and another loss might be enough to slip Berto’s fights off of cable. He’s had the luxury of fighting for HBO since 2008, even though he’s taken it pretty much easy for the entire three years except for his fight against Ortiz, which he lost.

Berto never gained much of a fan following despite HBO showing his fights one after another against mismatched little know guys and fighters from a weight division below Berto’s. It’s one thing that Berto was beaten by a quality guy like Ortiz, but if he gets beaten by Zaveck, who is a decent but not great fighter, it’s hard to see Berto having his fights picked up by HBO.

I mean I don’t see why they would continue to show him when he’s not a champion and is getting beaten when he steps up against better fighters. I can see Berto having to toil away and try to rebuild, hopefully against recognizable fighters instead of the obscure ones he’s been mainly facing. This is why he must somehow beat Zaveck. Berto won’t want to have to fight his way back on the network and it’s so much better if he can just win this fight and continue to knock off the little known fodder that the IBF has ranked in their top 15.