Boxing and college football share a striking similarity in that one loss can derail the course of a year.
Ask Andre Berto, who stepped into the ring in April with Victor Ortiz only to lose his undefeated record, his WBC welterweight championship belt, and above all, a multimillion dollar pay-per-view payday against Floyd Mayweather.
In September, while Ortiz defends the green and gold strap against Mayweather in glitzy and glamorous Las Vegas, Berto will travel to Biloxi, Miss. to fight for the IBF version of the title against less-heralded Jan Zaveck for considerably less money on HBO.
?I think it?s always difficult for a young fighter coming up going through your first loss,? Berto said. ?I felt like I wasn?t 100 percent going in there that night. Victor Ortiz, he definitely came to fight. Your mission in there needs to be to command and conquer. So for me, it?s up to me to get back on my feet and come for what?s mine, and I?m doing something different this time to get that done.?
The biggest change of all was the Haitian-American?s decision to leave his native Winter Haven, Fla., and set up training camp 2,905 miles away in San Carlos, where he now intensively works on his nutrition and fitness with SNAC president Victor Conte.
?I?ve been hearing about him through a few friends of mine who worked with him,? Berto said. ?We reached out and we spoke?we did some tests, and he?s definitely the right person to help me get back on balance and right on point.?
Conte, of course, first burst onto the sports scene in infamous fashion, having founded BALCO and becoming embroiled in the heart of the PED scandals. However, the willingness of athletes to give him a second chance has led to a career renaissance, and his recent work with Andre Ward, Nonito Donaire, and Karim Mayfield piqued Berto?s curiosity.
?At the end of the day, we might have a target on our back, but they can test us all day long,? Berto said. ?Victor?s right. Performance enhancing drugs is very rampant in boxing. We know that for sure, but we?re definitely probably like the cleanest athletes here.?
While Berto is a relative newcomer to the Bay Area, his older brother Cleveland knows it quite well, having wrestled at San Francisco State from 2002-06 before taking on his current role as Andre?s strength and conditioning coach.
?I miss my old place at Parkmerced a lot and it feels good to be back,? Cleveland said. ?I?m going to show Andre a couple of French Creole restaurants here to make him feel more at home, but we both need to watch what we eat because I do all the workouts with him.?
One trip to the College of San Mateo track in the wee hours of the morning confirms the Bertos’ focus. Conte?s associate, Russian sprint coach Remi Korchemny, oversees workouts so grueling that Donaire must don special shoes just to survive them.
?The sprint training is different,? Berto said. ?We use these resistance bands? Remi?s killing us out there but I?m definitely feeling faster and stronger because of it.?
The training isn?t limited to running, either. After the track, Berto will head over to the SNAC building to take part in hypoxic training, a high-altitude simulator that?s just a bit more sophisticated than the contraptions at the local oxygen bar.
?It?s just a lot of technology and science involved. We try to keep track of everything, like heart rates or what not,? Berto said. ?It?s opened my eyes to a lot of new things. I felt like I was way behind on a learning curve.?
?It?s a program that results from the scientific data we collect,? Conte said. ?Nonito Donaire knows there?s a lot of different aspects of SNAC training…Overall this scientific approach where they look at their test results, and they see their imbalances?can be corrected at an optimal level?I think it goes beyond the physiological benefit. It has a tremendous psychological benefit, I believe, as well.?
With the peripheral aspects of preparation in line, Berto still has to show he can perform in the ring and actually fight. True to form, his blistering handspeed has been on full display at the Undisputed Gym in San Carlos. The most noticeable weapon in Berto?s arsenal is his vaunted double left hook that he can throw from almost any angle in as much time it took you to blink.
In sparring with local pros like The City?s Jonathan Chicas and Mayfield, along with Walnut Creek?s Paul Mendez, Berto has wowed the onlookers with his world-class ability.
?Dude is definitely explosive,? said Mayfield, who has also sparred Manny Pacquiao. ?Berto comes forward and explodes really well. Manny?s more explosive coming from angles, but Berto?s got some of the fastest hands out there.?
