By Allan Fox: With ticket sales not going well, the media attacking him from all sides, and the pay-per-view outlook dim, Floyd Mayweather Jr. (48-0, 26 KOs) made one last ditch effort on Wednesday to try and build up his opponent Andre Berto (30-3, 23 KOs) as a worthy opponent for him to fight.
At the final press conference, Mayweather worked hard to try and justify his selection of Berto for his fight on Saturday, comparing him to Amir Khan and saying he’s not a pushover. Mayweather appeared to be trying to remake Berto’s image singlehandedly the way that a public relations professional would.
It’s an impossible task for Mayweather to try and sell his fight as a worthy one for boxing fans to see whether live or on pay-per-view, and the only thing Mayweather can do now is deal with the low numbers that’ll be getting.
“Berto is not a pushover, but no matter who I chose, the media was going to have something to say. The critics were going to have something to say. He’s no different from Amir Khan,” Mayweather said.
Mayweather has recently started comparing Berto to Khan in speaking with the media. Mayweather thinks that the two fighters are in the same boat career-wise, and that’s why he chose Berto. If Mayweather truly believes that Berto and Khan are the same then he’s likely the only one who does.
Fans see the two fighters as very different in terms of talent, and in terms of where their careers are going. Khan is still a top fighter at 28. Berto is only a top fighter based on the interim WBA title that he’s holding from his win over Josesito Lopez.
A more realistic view of Berto is he’s just a paper champion holding a temporary title. Berto didn’t have to beat anyone good to get the WBA interim title. If he’d faced WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman, he likely would have lost badly and been knocked out. The same goes for Berto if he’d fought IBF champion Kell Brook.
“Amir Khan has three losses and Berto has three losses,” Mayweather said. “He’s a two-time world champion just like Amir Khan. Virgil Hunter (Berto’s trainer) is a remarkable trainer and he’s done remarkable things with Andre Ward’s career.”
Mayweather can keep saying that Berto and Khan are the same fighter for as long as he likes, but I don’t think it’s going to change how the boxing fans perceive his fight against Berto. The fans aren’t going to suddenly start purchasing tickets to see the fight live, and they’re not going to order it via Showtime pay-per-view just because Mayweather is trying to say that Berto and Khan are essentially the same fighter. Mayweather can also say that Berto isn’t a pushover all he wants, but the fans will still likely not be interested enough in the fight to want to purchase it on PPV.
What Mayweather should have done before fighting Berto is to have waited until he actually beat someone good before announcing their fight. Mayweather should have waited until Berto beat a solid fighter like Thurman. If Berto could have done that, then boxing fans wouldn’t see the Mayweather-Berto fight as a mismatch. But Berto likely would be blown out of the water by someone as good as Thurman.
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