Andre Berto came to be Champion tonight and he fought like one. Berto fought a very well controlled and disciplined fight against a very game Miki Rodriguez. Rodriguez took some very hard punches from Berto and continued to throw back, however Berto was always in control. Compubox numbers showed Berto landing 52% of his total punches which is great. Berto moved his had a lot more and blocked more punches than usual. So he is developing into a better fighter in each fight. Berto finally got his point across to Rodriguez in the seventh round when he connected with an overhand right and followed up with a right uppercut that knocked Rodriguez on his behind. I was extremely surprised Rodriguez got up from that uppercut because it was that hard. After Rodriguez got up, Berto patiently attacked him again. Landing a good combination that put Rodriguez down again. Berto jumped on Rodriguez again forcing the ref to stop the fight at 2:13 of the 7th round making Andre Berto the new WBC Welterweight Champion.
As I had said in my preview, Chazz Witherspoon just does not seem to be aggressive enough to be a great fighter. Witherspoon is not a brawler by any means and I always thought his chin was suspect. Well tonight he went in with Chris Arreola who is a hard aggressive brawler. As long as Witherspoon was jabbing and moving, he was doing okay. However it was those times he slowed down that Arreola was hurting Witherspoon. In round one, Witherspoon was moving and Arreola was not landing. But when Witherspoon slowed down a little, Arreola attacked and caught Witherspoon flush multiple times. Witherspoon appeared slightly dazed and on unsteady feet but did not go down. In round two, Witherspoon moved more and jabbed and probably won the round. In round 3, Witherspoon got into a brawl with a brawler and did not win. Arreola put Witherspoon down early in the round. Witherspoon got up and tried to box and keep moving, but got into another exchange and caught a right to put him down at the bell. As he rose to his feet, his legs were unsteady. Since the bell had rang, Witherspoon's corner got on the ring apron to help their fighter. However the ref did not hear the bell the first time and made them rind the bell again. The ref, who was confused, went and spoke to someone and then stopped the fight. He ruled it a DQ win for Arreola because Witherspoon's corner was on the apron before the end of the round. Witherspoon and his corner were in disbelief because it was a delay before the fight was stopped. With the loss, Witherspoon needs to go back and figure out if he wants to continue. He does not have the aggression in my view he needs. He is a great young man with high intelligence, but boxing may not be his ultimate niche. Arreola may get a fight with David Tua later this year in a fight that could be a barnburner. If not, he will be in demand because of his brawling style.
As I had said in my preview, Chazz Witherspoon just does not seem to be aggressive enough to be a great fighter. Witherspoon is not a brawler by any means and I always thought his chin was suspect. Well tonight he went in with Chris Arreola who is a hard aggressive brawler. As long as Witherspoon was jabbing and moving, he was doing okay. However it was those times he slowed down that Arreola was hurting Witherspoon. In round one, Witherspoon was moving and Arreola was not landing. But when Witherspoon slowed down a little, Arreola attacked and caught Witherspoon flush multiple times. Witherspoon appeared slightly dazed and on unsteady feet but did not go down. In round two, Witherspoon moved more and jabbed and probably won the round. In round 3, Witherspoon got into a brawl with a brawler and did not win. Arreola put Witherspoon down early in the round. Witherspoon got up and tried to box and keep moving, but got into another exchange and caught a right to put him down at the bell. As he rose to his feet, his legs were unsteady. Since the bell had rang, Witherspoon's corner got on the ring apron to help their fighter. However the ref did not hear the bell the first time and made them rind the bell again. The ref, who was confused, went and spoke to someone and then stopped the fight. He ruled it a DQ win for Arreola because Witherspoon's corner was on the apron before the end of the round. Witherspoon and his corner were in disbelief because it was a delay before the fight was stopped. With the loss, Witherspoon needs to go back and figure out if he wants to continue. He does not have the aggression in my view he needs. He is a great young man with high intelligence, but boxing may not be his ultimate niche. Arreola may get a fight with David Tua later this year in a fight that could be a barnburner. If not, he will be in demand because of his brawling style.
4 comments:
only person i had heard of that night was berto. the arreola fight seemed one sided. the other dude didn't have the sense of urgency he needed to get back in it. andre berto overpowered his opponent but i'd like to see him fight a bigger name.
Berto was not supposed to be fighting for the title originally. It was supposed to have been an eliminator for the WBC Welterweight Title. However when Floyd Mayweather Jr. retired the fight became for the title he vacated. Berto is still stepping up but he is a champion now. I would like to still see him step and maybe fight a Zab Judah if Zab wins his next fight for the IBF Welterweight Title. Berto should try fighting maybe Kermit Cintron who lost his last fight but is still a top contender. If you read what I said about Chazz Witherspoon, I do not think he has the aggression needed to be a top fighter. I think he is a very intelligent man who is very positive for the sport. The issue is that is all good but this is still a tough sport. I do not see him getting aggressive all at once. Arreola is a tough fighter. He loves to brawl and get KOs. More than likely he will have a nice brawl if a fight with David Tua comes off like has been discussed.
Man I missed the damn fight, I feel sick.
Congrats to Berto I knew he had it in him I hope he still improves on his D, I still think he needs a couple of more fights before he starts chasing the stars of the division. But the writing is on the wall.
Berto is a good fighter. He is tough and he is improving. His defense has come a long ways. Now that he has a belt, he is going to have to fight bigger fights. It ain't like he has the WBO belt, he has the WBC. As you probably already know, the WBC belt is the most prestige belt in the eyes of many. The Mexicans love their WBC belts. Now there are no top Mexican welterweights at the moment besides Margarito, but the prestige of the belt is still there. If Judah wins, I would like to see them fight in a unification or Kermit Cintron. Those would be good big steps for Berto. If he passes thru one if not both of them, then maybe Paul Williams. However not sure how Berto will do with the size disadvantage. These are just suggestions.
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