Andre Berto has withdrawn from his Jan 30 welterweight title defense against Shane Mosley. Berto, who has many family members in Haiti, cited the recent earthquake as his reason for pulling out.
“As a result of this disaster, I am mentally and physically exhausted and therefore I have no choice but to withdraw from my bout,” Berto said in a statement. “The rebuilding of Haiti is not something that will happen overnight, but I am fully dedicated to helping the Haitian people recover from this catastrophic event.”
Andre Berto represented Haiti in the 2004 Olympics. Both of his parents are of Haitian descent.
Rumors have already placed Shane Mosley in a potential matchup with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Both are looking for opponents and Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy promoter, is already working on putting that fight together.
“Mayweather is interested and so, of course, is Shane,” Schaefer said. “Now it’s a matter of negotiating the right deal structure that makes everyone happy.”
In the absence of Pacquiao-Mayweather, a Mosley-Mayweather bout is just about the best boxing fans could hope for.
