At the MGM Grand Arena, Las Vegas, Floyd Mayweather fought to a 12 round Unanimous Decision against Andre Berto. And we say ‘fought’, because Mayweather actually had to work in this fight. Andre Berto won a few rounds (on our own 117-111 card also), and piled on some decent pressure throughout the fight. No one can accuse him of not leaving it all in the ring tonight.
But Mayweather got the job done as expected, of course, and will now leave the sport 49-0, 26 knockouts. Berto, despite his spirited performance, will of course leave without the WBC, WBA and RING Welterweight titles, and now fall to 30-4, 23 knockouts. Ringside judges saw it 117-111, 118-110, and 120-108.
Mayweather, as many predicted, was the sharper, cleaner puncher in the fight, but Berto didn’t suffer a serious beating. Mayweather did enough to win the majority of rounds, but was without doubt the clear winner. Lightning left-hooks, piston-jabs, counter right-hands, slippery defense – the familiar toolset was all there.
Mayweather won, but in many ways Berto kinda seems like a winner, too. He wasn’t embarrassed, put in some eye-catching work, pushed Mayweather, and made this a fight for the crowd. During the later rounds, both men began trading trash talk as well as punches, which prompted the referee to silence them both. It certainly added some excitement to the affair.
This has become an emotional night for many boxing fans, even us at BoxingBase.com. Love or hate him, this is very likely the last time you’ll Mayweather in the ring. The end of an era, indeed, no matter you’re opinion of the man who just won his 26th world title fight.
Mayweather, thanks for the memories.
Don’t forget to check out our full report on the scintillating Mayweather vs Berto Undercard featuring Groves vs Jack, Martinez vs Salido, and Gonzalez vs Oquendo.
Mayweather vs Berto Round by Round
Round 1: Mayweather landing with the jab, creating a mile between them in distance. Berto coming forward, thinking about the task in front of him. Left-hook from Mayweather. Mayweather, 10-9
Round 2: Berto looking pretty ineffective so far. Mayweather lightning quick in avoiding Berto’s shots. Slippery as an eel. Berto looks to have a long night ahead of him. Chasing shadows. Mayweather, 10-9 (20-18)
Round 3: Mayweather throws big right-hand to start round. Berto getting frustrated already. Mayweather finds another right-hand center ring. This is going to get one-sided, and fast. Mayweather on the jab. Mayweather goes down – from a slip, of course. Berto missing with double-jab. Mayweather, 10-9 (30-27)
Round 4: Berto falling short with the jab. Berto gets through a glancing blow. Unloads on Mayweather, but nothing gets through. Swelling under left eye of Berto now. A few left-hooks have tagged him. Right-hand from Mayweather rattles Berto. Knee-buckler. Berto recovers, comes back. Mayweather, 10-9 (40-36)
Round 5: Mayweather countering beautifully. Berto of course becoming frustrated, as most Mayweather opponents do. Berto delivers low blow. Always a bad sign. Mayweather slides along ropes, gets off a jab. Left-hook. Mayweather, 10-9 (50-45)
Round 6: Berto giving it his all in this round, very busy. Mayweather responds. Mayweather uppercut flies in out of nowhere. Right-hand. Mayweather counters with the right off the ropes. Berto clips Mayweather with an uppercut on ropes. Berto’s best round. Mayweather jab. To the body. Berto clips Mayweather with right-hand. Mayweather still edges this one, 50-45
Round 7: Mayweather to the body. Berto jab upstairs. Berto to the body, head on ropes. Solid body shots. Berto missing with several shots, then unloads on Mayweather on ropes. No damage, but sustained pressure. Mayweather jab. Berto left-hook gets in, gets Mayweather’s attention. Berto by a whisker, 10-9 (69-64)
Round 8: Berto chasing, coming forward. Mayweather winning action center ring. Berto jab lands. Mayweather puts on a show, two hooks fly in, spins his man. Mayweather showboats. Berto closes distance, drills away to the body. Mayweather dancing, Berto still coming forward, throwing. Mayweather, 10-9 (79-73)
Round 9: Berto going straight to Floyd, piling on pressure. Mayweather has seen it all before, however. Ducks, ties up, knows this drill all too well. Mayweather back on the jab. Berto opens up, gets in body shots. Berto smothers his man on ropes. Words exchanged, punches fly. Turning into a fight. Berto, 10-9 (88-83)
Round 10: Berto throwing a lot of leather, perhaps getting a little dirty – especially with language – inside. Loads of trash talk from both men. Referee stops fight, tells them to stop exchanging foul language. Berto lands a left-hand on Mayweather along ropes. Berto chasing, Mayweather timing. Berto fast but not landing. Berto, 10-9 (97-93)
Round 11: Berto still pushing Mayweather back, putting in a good performance. Mayweather being made to work. Mayweather slides along the ropes, keeping out of range. Berto works inside. Mayweather gets off three-punch combination. Mayweather puts in some crowd-friendly showboating to end round. Mayweather, 10-9 (107-102)
Round 12: Berto still fancies the fight, but Mayweather still getting in with crisper shots. Berto traps Mayweather on ropes, punches his way off. Mayweather tags Berto with uppercut off ropes. And finally…showboats for last ten seconds. Mayweather, 10-9 (117-111)
Result: Mayweather via Unanimous Decision (117-111, 118-110, 120-108)
Boxing Base Scorecard: 117-111
Give us your take on Mayweather vs Berto in the comments, plus Groves vs Jack and the rest of the Vegas bill.
Mark Phillips is the Head Staff Writer/Assistant Editor at BoxingBase.com, and provides worldwide news, coverage and analysis – he can be reached via our Contact Page.
