Berto says he separated his right shoulder

By Boxing News - 07/28/2013 - Comments

berto200By Allan Fox: Former IBF/WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto (28-3, 22 KO’s) was quick with the excuses last night after getting stopped in the 12th round by Jesus Soto Karass (28-8-3, 18 KO’s) at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. Berto was dropped with a left hand by Soto Karass in the 12th and was too unsteady on his feet after he got back up for the fight to continue.

Berto said after the fight, “I think I tore it [his right shoulder] out of the socket early in the 4th round; my right shoulder. That’s why I kept using my left. I think I tore it out of the socket.I couldn’t use it at all, but I’m a warrior at the end of the day. I should have at least deserved an 8 count, but I’m going out on my shield regardless.”

I wonder how Berto knew his right shoulder was separated without an X-ray. As far as him saying he tore his left bicep, it’s unclear if he means he tore it in the fight or if he’s talking about having previously torn his bicep. Whatever the case, it doesn’t matter. Berto was getting pretty handled before he injured his right shoulder in the 4th round. Berto was hurt in the 1st round and didn’t look all that great in the 3rd either.

Soto Karass had Berto badly hurt in the 4th round after hitting him hard with a right hand. Berto took heavy shots from Soto Karass throughout the 4th round and it’s a surprise he made it out of the round without getting knocked out.

Where Berto goes from here is up in the air. His new trainer Virgil Hunter didn’t seem to help his game all that much other than keeping him off the ropes. While that definitely was a plus in Berto not getting pounded like he did in his loss to Robert Guerrero, he still didn’t look great in the center of the ring and wasn’t able to keep up with all the shots that Soto Karass was throwing at him.

Depending on how bad Berto’s right shoulder is, he may need to take some time off for it to heal. The time off might actually be a good thing because he needs to make some decisions about what he wants to do with his career because it doesn’t look like it’s working out well for him. This was his 3rd loss in his last 4 fights and it’s academic at this point that he doesn’t have the talent to compete among the best fighters at 147.

If possible, Berto should seriously think about moving down to 140 to see if he can compete as a light welterweight because he might have a better chance at that weight class. There’s no guarantee he’ll do well at that weight either, however, because many of the fighters in that division rehydrate to well over 147 and easily could be fighting at welterweight.



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