WBC welterweight titlist Andre Berto will be pulling out of his January 30 fight with WBA titlist Shane Mosley. Berto, who has a lot of extended family in Haiti, has been focused heavily on the terrible tragedy that the nation is now facing in the wake of the massive earthquake that has devastated its people. Word is that Berto simply isn't mentally prepared to fight.
411mania.com's Ramon Aranda tweeted about the withdrawal, which had been floating around the rumor mill much of the day. Aranda has a full story up now on 411mania.
This was something that had been in my mind ever since we started getting a clear picture of the toll that the disaster had on Haiti. Andre has done a lot of charity work for the nation in the past, and continues to do so. I wondered if this might affect the fight, and it understandably has.
This was to be the biggest fight of the young Berto's career, but these fights will be there later down the line, too. Berto's Twitter has spoken zero of the fight since the earthquake hit, and he's been entirely focused on trying to rally support for Haiti and its people.
In short, it's no surprise that Berto has decided to withdraw from a bout of this magnitude while being at less than 100% mentally.
Here's wishing Andre the best as he continues to support the cause in Haiti. We look forward to his return to the ring, hopefully soon.
This would also seem to fully open the door for Mosley to face Floyd Mayweather Jr., but that's a story for another time. For now, all best wishes to Andre Berto and his work. It's a hell of an admirable reason to pull out of a fight.