By Ryan Maquiñana
Sources revealed to me that Andre Berto and his team have been sighted in the Bay Area city of San Carlos, Calif., where the former WBC welterweight champion is reportedly working with Victor Conte in preparation for his next fight.
“I guess the cat is out of the bag,” Conte replied when asked to verify the rumors. “Yes, Andre and his team have been here in the Bay Area training with me and others at the Undisputed Boxing Gym for a couple of weeks now.”
Berto is the latest fighter to arrive at Conte’s SNAC offices for consultation on his nutrition and conditioning. Others include WBC/WBO bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire and welterweight Karim Mayfield, who have gone undefeated under Conte’s watch.
Zab Judah worked with Conte for his ill-fated clash with Amir Khan last Saturday, but unlike the aforementioned fighters, did not come to San Carlos to work with Conte and sprint coach Remi Korchemny directly.
Berto has reportedly already begun sparring with junior welterweight prospect Jonathan Chicas.
BoxingScene broke the news on Wednesday that Berto’s IBF title fight with Jan Zaveck had been finalized for Sept. 3 in Biloxi, Miss.
“It's been fun working together, and things have been going well,” Conte added.
Ryan Maquiñana is the boxing correspondent at Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, contact him on Facebook at or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.