HBO’s Saturday night’s fight became a crossroads fight for two very young jewels of the sport of boxing.
Andre Berto, HBO’s choice to be the next big thing in boxing, was just not meant to be. HBO has been force feeding Andre Berto to the boxing world, into our hearts and minds, as the guy that would carry the torch once Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. decide to go into official retirement.
Coming out of the other corner we had Victor Ortiz, a young talent with a lot to prove after openly admitting to quitting against Marcos Maidana, by saying on national television, “I’m not trying to get killed in the ring.” As it turned out, each fighter took different routes during their careers… Berto would make impressive defenses against little known or weak opposition, making him appear able to fill the void left by Mayweather Jr. and Pacquiao once they depart the sport. Ortiz took on tough opponents trying to instill belief in the fans who had jumped off his bandwagon. Thus, going into the fight with Berto he was better prepared mentally, he knew he had something to prove.
These young men have tremendous talent and it was put on display for the world to see. It was ironic that while one guy was being groomed to become a star, his opponent may now become a star at his opponent’s expense.
I think that Berto is very talented and this was the kind of fight he needed to wake him up and maybe make him run that extra mile, do that extra sit up, whatever it is that was missing Saturday night. Knowing that the opposition coming out of the other corner was fighting for vindication, and not just happy to be getting their biggest payday or their shot at the world title, the extra steps should have been taken.
Ortiz had that monkey on his back; if it got too hot in the kitchen he would find a way to get out, strangely in the same exact round in which he checked out by saying “I had enough” against Maidana.
The same situation presented itself in the form of a brutal knockdown at the hands of Andre Berto. Ortiz was clearly hurt, but he chose not to go out the same way again. He got up and fought harder; he even dropped Berto at the end of the same round. In doing so, Ortiz sent a message to his opponent and the fans that still believed in him, (and those who didn’t), that he would never quit again.
This fight was about more than winning a title. It was much deeper and even more personal (gut-check). It was about Redemption…
