Last Saturday night, fight fans around the globe watched as one of the sports most promising stars, Haitian Andre Berto, took on a man well known for playing the classic role of a spoiler, Puerto Rico's Carlos Quintana.
Prior to the bout, many critics found reason to punch holes in any theory that included the young Berto being amongst the sports elite, partly due to what was viewed as stamina related issues and a talent that somewhat appeared to lack evolution.
Initially scheduled to face Shane Mosley, a critical earthquake struck his homeland of Haiti, preventing the fight and putting Berto in the midst of one his longest career layoffs to date.When Mosley chose to move on and face the always dangerous and purely talented Floyd Mayweather jr., the Quintana bout fell into play and many questioned whether or not Berto would be able to handle a crafty southpaw veteran like Quintana after catching hell with two others who were not nearly as accomplished.
READY FOR THE 'BIG ONE'?
By the end of the night, that question would be answered, and a new one in particular would be raised.
That new question......who next? The relative answer.......well, it may surprise some.....but the first name mentioned by promoter Lou DiBella was none other than the man who co-owns the sports P4P mantle, Filipino Manny Pacquiao, whom DiBella said is "absolutely on the radar if he decides to take the fight".
When asked directly what he thought a showdown with Pacquiao would look like, Berto stated "it would be a great showdown because he (Pacquiao) has never had to deal with my type of speed and power combined. Some of his opponents had one or the other, but you could make an argument that I'd be the first with that kind of mix".
Right on cue, to support his claim was a fellow media scribe who chimed in - "yeah, Mayweather has defense and speed, but even he doesn't have that decapitating power behind his speed like you, champ", referring to Berto.
ANY GIVEN NIGHT.....
The thing that makes boxing so intriguing is that just like the evolution of Berto seemed to change ten-fold in one night's performance, so can any man be beaten in one night's performance.
The NFL adage speaks of "any given Sunday". In the world of boxing, "any given night" a legend can fall and the 'pen of life' can write an opening chapter for a new legend in waiting who manages to finally cross that pantheon of greatness.
Quintana once stood toe to toe and took the spirit of a man that Pacquiao has seemed to avoid - despite him calling Pacquiao out recently and actually deserving a shot (Paul Williams). To see Berto render this same Carlos Quintana helpless in only 8 rounds was the bold statement that Berto supporters have awaited for quite some time.
In the aftermath of that victory, now that those questions are answered, a new one awaits. And with testing controversies and promotional agendas in the way, maybe, just maybe.......we now have a vision of a fight that CAN BE MADE!
HIGH RISK, LOW REWARD, NO FIGHT
With Berto now awaiting challenges and putting one man who has none in the immediate future on task, it should be intriguing to see what happens next.
I could be wrong, but just like with Paul Williams, one could logically predict that Top Rank's Bob Arum will view the level of risk to be far too much danger in a fight that may not do much at this point to put a stamp on Pacquiao's legacy. The good ole "high risk/low reward" theory.
Logical business sense, but the reality is that if those fights can't be made and the testing accommodation's can't be reached with Mayweather, how is fighting a currently suspended Margarito, or a young and barely known Valero a better option? Or even Clottey, to begin with, for that matter.
Those critical of Arum say it's all a plan to milk his 'cash cow' before tossing him into deep waters with the sharks. I don't know if I totally buy that theory, but I am fully aware that 'cows' can't swim....so perhaps those critics are on to something!
Stay tuned!
(Vivek Wallace can be reached at www.vivekwallace.com, vivexemail@yahoo.com, Youtube (VIVEK1251), Twitter (VIVEK747), Facebook and Myspace).
Source: examiner.com
I thought Berto looked okay in this fight but ready to Pacquiao? No way. I'd rather see another fighter in DiBella's stable fight...Kermit Cintron. Berto is raw and has some talent but he's years away from being ready for a fight like this.
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