Mayweather is set to fight Andre Berto on September 12th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The Money Team insists this is Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s last fight, but many believe the undefeated (48-0, 26 KOs) WBC and WBA Welterweight World Champion will not end his career fighting a boxer who is far from being an equal match against him. Berto (30-3, 23 KOs) has lost three of his last six fights, and MGM Grand Sports Book has Mayweather as the favorite (50-1), proving this fight to be a mismatch rather than a suitable mega-fight to farewell Mayweather’s illustrious career.
Of course it would have been hard for Mayweather Promotions to top the previous fight, against Manny Pacquiao (which many believe fell short of expectations), in terms of revenue and pre-fight excitement, but there were several big-name boxers willing to face Mayweather. The biggest threat to Mayweather’s 48-0 record could have been former two-time world champion Amir Khan, who commented Mayweather is scared to fight him. Other viable options could have been Keith Thurman, Timothy Bradley, Gennady Golovkin or even rematches against Miguel Cotto and “Canelo” Alvarez. Critics believe any of them could have made Mayweather’s farewell more memorable than Berto.
Regardless of what the media says, outspoken Mayweather has, as always, dismissed the critics and backs up his choice of Andre Berto. Whether Berto was a good choice or not, the fight will go on in Las Vegas, live on Showtime Pay Per View which will also include the undercards of the rematch between Rocky Martinez (29-2-2, 17 KOs) and Orlando Salido (42-13-2, 29 KOs), and Badou Jack (19-1-1, 12 KOs) defending his WBC Super Middleweight World title against George Groves (21-2, 16 KOs).
Will this truly be Mayweather’s last fight before he retires or will he try to beat Rocky Marciano’s legendary record of 49-0 with a 50th fight? Many believe Mayweather will not resist the urge to make more money and go out with a bang by topping Marciano’s record. Only time will tell.
