By Toby Prince
Floyd Mayweather earned a unanimous decision over Andre Berto on Saturday to claim his 49th, and he says final, victim in a glittering unbeaten ring career spanning two decades.
All three judges ruled in Mayweather’s favour and afterwards the American welterweight world champion confirmed that he was retiring.
“My career is over,” he said. “It’s official.”
He equals the perfect 49-0 record of heavyweight legend Rocky Marciano and retains his WBA and WBC titles, embellishing his reputation as the best boxer of his generation.
The 38-year-old self-styled “TBE” (“The Best Ever”), who has consistently said that the Berto showdown would be the last time he steps into the ring, had too much guile and nous for the rank outsider.
Berto, who has now lost four of his last seven fights, was set up as the fall guy for the pound-for-pound king’s coronation – and he played the role perfectly, showing plenty of heart but not quite enough quality.
Berto kept coming at Mayweather; Mayweather would land a quick-fire combination and then dart out of trouble again – to roars of approval for the man fans have taken to calling simply “Money.”
Even when he had Mayweather against the ropes Berto found it hard to connect with anything meaningful.
The first real taste of a fight breaking out came at the end of the second round, when the two tangled after the bell, Mayweather giving his foe a dirty look.
The champion – who was forced to deny claims on the eve of the fight that he broke anti-doping rules earlier this year – came out for round three clearly still riled.
Berto had his first real taste of success halfway through the fourth of the scheduled 12, forcing Mayweather to cower against the ropes as Berto chased one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
He resorted to roughhouse tactics in the fifth, catching Mayweather with one particularly low shot that drew oohs from the stands.
Referee Kenny Bayless had to stop the action in the 10th and warn the pair to stop mouthing off at one another, and there was another flashpoint when the bell sounded.
Mayweather sealed his night’s work by turning showman in the 11th, ducking brilliantly to avoid several Berto haymakers and then looking behind himself as if to say mockingly to his opponent: where am I?
