If Floyd Mayweather fought his last fight against Andre Berto in Las Vegas last Saturday, he surely didn’t go out with a bang. And that’s no way for someone who calls himself The Best Ever to do a swan song.
Mayweather, 38, has once again done a disservice to boxing. The world’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter doesn’t really care about protecting or preserving the integrity of the fight game. All he cares about is how much is deposited in his bank account after every bout. Legacy? That’s an empty word for Mayweather. He has no respect for the sport nor for the fans who pay good money to be entertained in a fight.
Berto, 31, was a joke of an opponent. He did only what Mayweather allowed him to do in the ring. Mayweather is such a crafty and skilled fighter that he can make anyone – well, almost anyone – look like a fool with boxing gloves. The problem is in so doing, Mayweather makes an ass of himself. He’s not an exciting fighter, certainly not in the class of a Muhammad Ali or a Sugar Ray Robinson or any of the legends whom he downgrades as being inferior to him. If fans pay to watch him fight, I suspect it’s because they want to see him lose. Mayweather won’t lose sleep thinking the fans don’t like him. If portraying a villain is what will sell tickets, Mayweather will gladly be a bad guy.
Choosing Berto to be his last opponent was a slap in the face of boxing. Before last Saturday’s fiasco, Berto had lost three of his six previous outings to Jesus Soto Karass, Roberto Guerrero and Victor Ortiz. Mayweather has beaten Guerrero and Ortiz. Berto and Mayweather share the same adviser Al Haymon so the matchup wasn’t hard to arrange. Mayweather looked for an easy fight to finish off his Showtime contract and Berto was the sacrificial lamb.
In six fights with Showtime, Mayweather earned over $400 million. He got $32 million each for fighting Guerrero, Marcos Maidana twice and Berto. Mayweather picked up $41.5 million for facing Canelo Alvarez and $250 million for battling Manny Pacquiao.
Attendance for the Mayweather-Pacquiao duel went up to 16,507 while it was only 13,395 for last Saturday. The average ticket sold for Mayweather-Pacquiao was $5,000 compared to $800 for Mayweather-Berto where the price range was $125 to $1,500. There was a rumor that MGM Grand Garden offered a package of $1,000 for two fight tickets and a two-night stay at the hotel. That’s almost like begging for an audience.
The odds were initially 35-to-1 for Mayweather. The betting line went down to 30-to-1 and on fight day, settled at 18-to-1. Berto had no chance to win and it showed in how the bets were placed.
The fight itself was a yawner. As usual, Mayweather’s opponent threw more punches, 495 to 410. But Mayweather was more accurate, connecting on 282 shots to Berto’s 83. Mayweather isn’t a hard hitter but he’s hard to hit. His last seven bouts dating back to 2002 have ended on points. It’s obvious that Mayweather is not a volume puncher. He’s a quality boxer with a high rate of connectivity.
With the lackluster showing at the gates, the fight may not even hit a million pay-per-view hits. So far, Mayweather has recorded seven million-dollar sellers starting with Pacquiao at 4.4 million then Oscar de la Hoya 2.4 million, Alvarez 2.2 million, Miguel Cotto 1.5 million, Sugar Shane Mosley 1.4 million, Ortiz 1.25 million, Juan Manuel Marquez 1.06 million and Guerrero 1 million. The dollar value is also expected to drop. The standard definition cost for a Pacquiao-Mayweather pay-per-view subscription was $90. It was $75 for Mayweather-Berto.
Martin Domin of the Daily Maill called it an “uninspiring finale” for Mayweather and said he is “no longer box office material.” Like in the Pacquiao fight, Mayweather refused to engage except for some choice moments. He did as he pleased with Berto, toying with him and spinning him around like a top. One judge Adalaide Byrd saw it a shutout 120-108, showing no mercy for Berto. Dave Moretti had it 117-111 and Steve Weisfeld 118-110.
The win raised Mayweather’s record to 49-0, with 26 KOs. He has now duplicated Rocky Marciano’s unblemished record. Marciano would’ve fought Floyd Patterson in his last fight but declined to fight again, leaving his record at 49-0. The record for a reigning world champion to retire with a perfect record is held by Mexico’s Ricardo Lopez who ended up at 51-0-1, with 38 KO, in 2001.
Mayweather said the Berto fight was his last. But nobody believes him. Mayweather retired after stopping Ricky Hatton in 2007 then came back from a 22 month vacation to decision Marquez. “My career is over, it’s official,” said Mayweather. “‘You’ve got to know when to hang it up. I’m close to 40 now. There’s nothing left to prove in the sport of boxing. Now I just want to spend time with my family.”
Now that Mayweather is a free agent with his Showtime contract signed out, he’s not tied down to any cable network. That means he can do a deal with HBO for a Pacquiao rematch and earn more than what he pocketed for beating up Berto but less than the purse for the first encounter. Pacquiao would only be too willing to fight Mayweather again, this time with his right shoulder in full rotation.