The Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut will be rocking on April 16th, as undefeated WBC welterweight champ Andre “The Beast” Berto and “Vicious” Victor Ortiz should put on a display of nonstop action. Both of these fighters will have a lot of great opportunities to come their way in the near future with a win, and both are entering the bout with a lot to prove.
Berto is looking to silence his critics when he meets “Vicious” Victor, who believes that he has what it takes to pull off the shocker against the Haitian born Berto. Many people believe that Berto desperately needs to step up his competition, but others believe that Ortiz is a more than respectable challenger, as a young, hungry and powerful fighter.
Ortiz is also looking to silence his critics, as he looks to leave it all in the ring by displaying a warrior’s mentally that many say he lacks following his loss to Marcos Maidana. By moving up in weight and outgunning the favored champion in the ring, he would prove to the world once and for all that he can stand in and compete with the best, and will prove that he has more than enough fighting spirit.
This is definitely a fight in which boxing styles will clash, given what the two fighters will bring to the table, but with all of that said, is Ortiz tailor made for Berto? Let’s review:
Andre “The Beast” Berto at a glance
Berto is well-known for his great handspeed and power, and he can counterpunch with the best fighters in the world. Berto can move and use the whole ring to box, though I am not sure if he can fight going backwards. He is elusive and most known for throwing an absolutely devastating uppercut. One weakness that Berto has is that he sometimes loses his stamina down the stretch in fights, he has also shown defensive lapses and a tendency to fight the fight that his opponent wants, all of which could potentially be concerning against Ortiz.
“Vicious” Victor Ortiz at a glance
Ortiz has changed up his boxing style to become more of boxer-puncher in hopes of not getting hit as much, following that devastating encounter with Maidana. Victor is known for finishing his opponents in impressive fashion once hurt, but he is now more willing to just box and get out of each round safe. Being a southpaw could also provide him with an advantage against Berto. The main weakness that Ortiz has is focus and durability. Let’s see how Ortiz reacts if and when adversity knocks at his door in this fight. Will Ortiz stand up and face the challenge head on, or will he fold up like a two dollar suitcase? This remains to be seen.
So the question still remains, is Ortiz tailor made for Berto? The answer is that, yes, he is, because either of his two approaches to the fight seem to give the edge to Berto.
If Ortiz comes out and try to blow away Berto with nothing but come forward aggression, then he will only leave himself susceptible to more return fire from the speedy Berto. This approach might offer advantages when facing Berto, especially if he gasses out, but I feel that it will just give Berto more of an opportunity to land that signature uppercut and other power shots, allowing him to end the night early.
If Ortiz comes out in the more relaxed boxer-puncher style that he has recently adopted, unfortunately for him I still believe that Berto will have the advantage, given that Berto likes to box and move around the ring and wait for his opponent to make a mistake and pounce on it. I feel that Berto will be too quick, too elusive, and his power will overwhelm Ortiz in the end. I do feel, however, that Ortiz has a puncher’s chance in the fight, but he will have to wait until the fight goes into deep waters to get his opportunity.
With both of these fighters having something to prove to themselves and to the entire boxing world, I expect a memorable fight that can either be a candidate for Fight of the Year, or like the Sergio Martinez vs. Paul Williams rematch, Knockout of the Year.
