Andre Berto

Infobox_Boxer


name = Andre Berto
nationality =flagicon|USA American
realname = Andre Mike Berto
nickname =
weight = Welterweight
birth_date = Birth date and age|1983|9|7|mf=y
birth_place = Miami, Florida
home = Miami, Florida
style = Orthodox
total = 23
wins = 23
KO = 19
losses = 0
draws = 0
no contests = 0|

Andre Mike Berto (born September 7, 1983) is a Haitian American welterweight professional boxer, who represented Haïti in the 2004 Summer Olympics. On June 21, 2008, Berto became the WBC welterweight champion by defeating Miguel Rodriguez by seventh round technical knockout.

Personal life

Raised one of seven children in Winter Haven, Florida , Berto was indoctrinated into boxing by his father, who competed professionally in mixed martial arts and taught the sport at a school in Winter Haven. For Berto, the sport of boxing became a solace to stay out of trouble. His brother, Edson Berto, is a professional mixed martial artist. Berto is often called "Mike", his middle name.cite web
last =Schulberg
first =Benn
coauthors =
title =Andre Berto: New Star in Town
work =
pages =
language =
publisher =The Sweet Science
date =2006-02-06
url =http://www.thesweetscience.com/boxing-article/3384/andre-berto-new-star-town/
accessdate =2008-04-19 ]

Amateur career

As an amateur, Berto won a bronze medal in the 2003 World Amateur Championships. He was also a two-time National Golden Gloves champion, a two-time National PAL champion, a three-time U.S. amateur championship medalist, and also won 22 state titles in Florida.

2004 Olympics

Berto was an odds-on favorite to breeze through the 2004 Olympic Trials and qualify as a member of the US Olympic boxing squad. Those dreams were dashed in the opening round of the trials, when he was disqualified for throwing Juan McPherson to the canvas. Berto was winning the fight, before McPherson bumped into him before being pushed to the canvas, and was deemed in no condition to continue. The act was ruled a flagrant foul, and Berto was disqualified. A protest was ruled in his favor, as he was declared the winner and advanced to the next round. Berto won that bout as well and prepared for the finals before a follow-up meeting the night before reverted back to the initial ruling, eliminating Berto from the tournament. Because his parents are of Haitian descent, Berto was able to keep his Olympic hopes alive, qualifying for Team Haiti. [cite web
last =Donovan
first =Jake
title =Andre Berto Prepares For Phase Two of His Career
work =
pages =
language =
publisher =BoxingScene.com
date =2006-02-06
url =http://www.thesweetscience.com/boxing-article/3384/andre-berto-new-star-town/
accessdate =2008-04-19 ] Berto lost in the first-round to Xavier Noel of France.

Professional career

from December 2004 to October 2006, Berto won 15 fights, with 13 coming by way of knockout. On December 12, 2006, at the Alltel Arena in North Little Rock, Arkansas, Berto stepped up in competition and fought Miguel Figueroa. Berto put together a one-sided destruction of Figueroa, eventually forcing the referee to stop the fight in round six. He was named ESPN.com’s 2006 Prospect of the Year. His next fight took place on February 17, 2007, at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, New York, against Norberto Bravo of "The Contender". Berto defeated Bravo by first round technical knockout after Bravo was knocked down three times, triggering the three knockdown rule. On May 19, 2007, Berto defeated Martinus Clay by seventh round technical knockout.cite web
title =Andre Berto Bio
publisher =HBO
date =2008-06-22
url =http://www.hbo.com/boxing/fighters/berto_andre/bio.html
accessdate =2008-06-23 ]

On July 27, 2007, at the City Center in Saratoga Springs, New York. Berto fought Cosme Rivera. Berto was in full control until he was down for the first time in his career in round six. He was able to recover and open up a bad cut over Rivera's right eye in the seventh round. Rivera stood his ground in the remaining rounds to test Berto, but Berto won by unanimous decision. [cite web
last =Vester
first =Mark
coauthors =
title =Andre Berto Gets Off The Deck To Beat Rivera
work =
pages =
language =
publisher =BoxingScene.com
date =2007-07-28
url =http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=9692
accessdate =2008-04-19 ] On September 29, 2007, at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Berto defeated David Estrada by eleventh round technical knockout to win the NABF welterweight title. Rounds three and eight were described by BoxingScene.com as "round of the year" candidates as both men went toe-to-toe with flush power shots. The end came when Berto dropped Estrada with an uppercut that was followed up by a huge right hand. Estrada made it to his feet, but could not defend himself as Berto attacked with more damaging shots that prompted the referee to jump in and stop the fight. [cite web
last =Vester
first =Mark
coauthors =
title =Andre Berto Stop David Estrada in a Thriller
work =
pages =
language =
publisher =BoxingScene.com
date =2007-09-29
url =http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=10535
accessdate =2008-04-19 ]

On February 9, 2008, at the Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California, Berto fought Michael Trabant in his first defense of the NABF welterweight title. Trabant stayed on the defensive for the entire fight with Berto landing a variety of punches from all angles. In the fifth and sixth rounds, Trabant was barely able to land a single punch, as he was frequently taking punches to the head. Trabant told the referee after round six that he was no longer willing to continue with the fight. It was the first time that Trabant had ever been stopped. [cite web
last =Vester
first =Mark
coauthors =
title =Andre Berto Batters Michel Trabant in Six
work =
pages =
language =
publisher =BoxingScene.com
date =2008-02-09
url =http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=12530
accessdate =2008-04-19 ]

WBC welterweight title

On June 21, 2008, Berto captured the vacant WBC welterweight title by defeating Miguel Rodriguez in the seventh round by technical knockout at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tennessee. Berto knocked Rodriguez down twice in the seventh round, before the referee stopped the bout with 47 second left as Berto continually hurt Rodriguez with right hands. [cite web
title =Berto blasts through Rodriguez to claim WBC welterweight belt
publisher ="USA Today"
date =2008-06-22
url =http://rss.usatoday.mlogic3g.com/news.jsp?key=860824
accessdate =2008-06-23 ] Berto's second title defense occurred on September 28, 2008, at The Home Depot Center in Carson, California against Steve Forbes. Berto consistently outpunched Forbes, winning the fight by unanimous decision with scores of 118–109 on two of the scorecards and 116–111 on the third scorecard. [cite web
title =Berto retains WBC welterweight crown over Forbes
publisher =Reuters
date =2008-09-28
url =http://www.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUSTRE48R09J20080928
accessdate =2008-09-28 ]

References

External links

*boxrec|id=283680
*MySpace|cantbefaided|Andre Berto

Persondata
NAME=Berto, Andre
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Berto, Andre Mike
SHORT DESCRIPTION=US-American-born Haïtian boxer
DATE OF BIRTH=7 September 1983
PLACE OF BIRTH=Miami, Florida
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=