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Bill Phanco: Andre Berto (28-1, 22 KO’s) and WBC interim welterweight champion Robert Guerrero (30-1-1, 18 KO’s) came in under the welterweight 147 lb limit today during their weigh-in.
Guerrero weighed 146.4 lbs and Berto came in at 146.8. The card also has highly hyped unbeaten junior middleweight Keith Thurman (18-0, 17 KO’s) fighting WBO NABO light middleweight champion Carlos Quintana (29-3, 23 KO’s) for his strap. Thurman weighed in at 151.25 lbs, and Quintana at 152.
The official weighs for the HBO televised card:
Robert Guerrero 146.4 vs. Andre Berto 146.8
Keith Thurman 151.25 vs. Carlos Quintana 152
Randy Caballero 119.2 vs. Rigoberto Casillas 118.8
Guerrero can become a star with a win over Berto in this fight. He could pick up a big money fight and then get the backing of the considerable Mexican population in the U.S. It would make for an interesting fight if Guerrero could get past Berto and then get Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Manny Pacquiao in the ring somehow. The pay per view numbers would likely be very good. For that to happen Guerrero is going to have to find a way to get past Berto.
Guerrero, 5’8″, won’t have the size advantage over the 5’8 1/2″ Berto tomorrow night, and that’s something that Guerrero has not used to. He’s been fighting at featherweight, super featherweight and lightweight where he’s always been the bigger guy against the small fighters in those weight classes. But now that he’s moved up all the way to welterweight, Guerrero is average height but without the power or the speed that some of the other top welterweights have going for them like Berto.
Guerrero can still win tomorrow night even without those assets, but it’s going to be a little tougher for him because he’ll have to use timing to catch the faster Berto with his shots. He’ll also need to throw a lot of punches to try and impress the judges enough to overlook Berto’s faster and harder shots.
