Andre Berto: If Conor McGregor wins, it will be a ‘tough pill to swallow for the boxing game’
Andre Berto feels boxing will take a major hit if Conor McGregor manages to pull an upset against Floyd Mayweather.
Not many people are counting on a Conor McGregor win against Floyd Mayweather Jr. on August 26th. But if it does happen, it will go down as the biggest upset in combat sports history, to say the least.
It can also be a major shaker for the entire world of boxing, according to former two-time welterweight world champion Andre Berto.
“If this were to be an upset, it would definitely be a big blow to the boxing game, for sure,” Berto said in a recent MMA Hour episode (via MMA Fighting). “Definitely, definitely. It’s gonna be a big blow to Floyd’s legacy, as well. Just being undefeated and able to let some guy upset you and he’s an MMA fighter and he probably talks a little more sh-t than you talk. It’s gonna be tough for him to swallow if that happens.”
“It’s gonna be a real tough pill to swallow for the boxing game,” he added. “Especially for one of our top, top guys — probably one of the best in the game. That would be a tremendous pill to swallow. Of course, like I said, we’ve been going back and forth with the whole MMA thing for a long time. Boxing and MMA.”
Berto is known to have a deep appreciation for both combat sports, and is one of the few former boxing champions who is giving McGregor a chance at defeating Floyd Jr. With that considered, he reiterated his certainty that the sport might be taking a huge hit if Mayweather’s record is suddenly blemished, if it does end up happening.
“I was able to grow up with both. I just love combat sports in general,” Berto said. “But if (Mayweather) takes the L, it would definitely be a huge blow to [boxing], for sure.”
Mayweather vs. McGregor happens on Saturday, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.