The fight went the full distance Saturday, with the judges scoring the bout 117-111, 118-110 and 120-108 unanimously in favor of Mayweather. For all intents and purposes, it sounds as though this is the last boxing fans have seen of Mayweather.
On tying Rocky Marciano's all-time mark of 49 wins, Mayweather added "Records are made to be broken. Hopefully we can find the next Floyd Mayweather."
While the fight as a whole left a lot to be desired, nobody can claim to have been surprised with the way things played out.
To say that Mayweather entered the bout as the favorite would be a massive understatement. He was a perfect 48-0 in his 48 professional fights and considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
The odds in favor of a Mayweather victory were almost comically high, per ESPN.com's Dan Rafael:
In truth, those odds may not have gone far enough to favor Mayweather.
Nobody expected Berto to stand much of a chance, which in turn hurt much of the pre-fight hype. How can you get excited about a fight in which the outcome is all but decided before the opening bell?
Boxing fans voted with their feet, letting Mayweather know how they felt about his decision to take on Berto. ESPN's Darren Rovell provided the attendance inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena:
The most damning indictment you can make about the gulf in class between the two fighters is that Berto didn't perform all that badly. He wasn't afraid to go on the offensive, and he even had Mayweather looking somewhat uneasy in the third round, per USA Today's Martin Rogers:
Berto also attacked Mayweather in the sixth and seventh rounds.
Despite that, the balance of the fight was clearly swinging in Mayweather's direction, and it wasn't particularly close. Mayweather was never in any sort of serious danger, and he began toying with Berto right around Round 8, per boxing writer Eric Raskin:
Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix called the fight a "sparring session," while Yahoo Sports' Dan Wetzel offered this harsh critique:
Dismay best described the sentiment of ESPN's Brian Campbell:
It was as if Berto was fighting one or two weight classes below Mayweather. He connected with a few significant blows, but they did little damage. Berto's best wasn't even enough to make the fight competitive.
The unbeaten champion set the tone from start to finish and imposed his will on his outmatched opponent. And not only was the victory another example of his fantastic defensive capabilities, but Mayweather also came out of his shell a bit offensively. According to SHO Stats, he landed 149 more punches than Berto.
In terms of performance, he couldn't have walked away from the ring in more dominating fashion.
Mayweather has long maintained he'd hang up his gloves following the end of his contract with Showtime, which concluded Saturday, per Rafael:
I'm ready to hang it up and spend time with my children. I know that the end is coming. It's something I can accept. I've had a tremendous career. I just want to spend time with my children every day.
And yet there's still that little part of your brain that refuses to accept this is the end for Mayweather. Surely he's going to cash in for one more big fight and finish 50-0, right?
In the event Mayweather does opt to come out of retirement, he'll have no shortage of potential opponents, and a rematch with Manny Pacquiao would be enticing. Pacquiao would likely guarantee the biggest purse possible while simultaneously offering little threat of blemishing his perfect resume.
Should this be the end, Mayweather will be remembered as the best fighter of his era and one of the greatest in the sport's history.
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