Andre Berto vs Jesus Soto Karass Preview July 27
San Antonio, Texas will be the site of an exciting welterweight showdown this Saturday July 27 between Andre Berto of Florida and Jesus Soto Karass of Mexico. The 29-year-old Berto is a former two-time champion whose career has been derailed somewhat recently. However, it’s not going to be easy to get it back on track against the tough 30-year-old Karass.
Berto has built up a decent record over the years at 28-2 with 22 Kos. However, he’s lost two of his past three outings and hasn’t won since 2011. He really needs a win here to be considered an elite boxer as another loss could relegate him to contender status instead of championship material.
Karass has lost a few fights along the way and will enter the ring with a mark of 27-8-3 along with 17 Kos. He’s also been on a bit of a slide recently and needs a win just as much as Berto does. The Mexican has had his hand held up in victory just three times in his last eight bouts, but those three wins came in his last four fights. He’s proved that he can rise to the occasion and be competitive against boxers such as Marcos Maidana and Selcuk Aydin.
Berto has slightly better boxing skills than Karass and also has the faster hands. Karass has arguably faced the better opposition over the years and could have a slight edge in experience. When it comes to their defence, both boxers aren’t too hard to find and hit, especially Karass. Berto doesn’t let his hands go nearly as much as he should, but he possesses more power in his fists and is more accurate with his punches.
Berto’s weak spot could be his conditioning and that could be why he’s been easy to hit lately and hasn’t thrown many punches. He threw 411 punches in his last bout against Robert Guerrero and it wasn’t a surprise that he lost a decision in it. He has been down a few times in his career and his chin is somewhat questionable. Karass, on the other hand, is used to throwing about 90 punches a round. In his last fight against Selcuk Aydin he threw a total of 427 more shots than Aydin got off to win a majority decision.
Prediction
Karass needs to keep up his volume punching style while Berto needs to utilize his faster hands by landing combinations and getting out of range. If it turns into a brawl then Karass may have the advantage because of his endless pressure. Whoever imposes their will here will be the winner and either guy could stop the other. However, when it comes to talent, Berto has a little bit more of it and that could be the difference. If he doesn’t throw punches though Karass will be all over him and we could see the referee stop the fight. In the end, look for Karass to eventually wear down and Berto take over the later rounds for a decision or late stoppage.
Andre Berto betting • Jesus Soto Karass betting