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Square Up

Square Up

Written by: Andre Berto | Cumulus Podcast Network
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SQUARE UP follows Andre Berto as he travels to the homes of the biggest names in boxing and pop culture. The shows aim to highlight the true personality of each guest and their love for not only boxing but outside of the ring as well. Berto will sit down and engage in a barber shop - face to face interview with the guests regarding boxing, predications, careers and life outside of the ring. Berto will also get his hands dirty as he actively participates with each guest in their favorite pastime outside of the ring. From milking cows to rapping in the studio - This will take the audience on an immersive experience that feels as if they themselves are taking this journey with Berto. Follow and Listen on your favorite platform: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/square-up/id1877679686 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cURukLWSJu203lk0r5xnB YouTube: https://youtube.com/@SquareUpShow© 2026 Cumulus Podcast Network Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Sebastian Fundora: Boots Ennis Isn't a Threat | Andre Berto Square Up

    Sebastian Fundora: Boots Ennis Isn't a Threat | Andre Berto Square Up
    Oct 8 2026
    Sebastian Fundora looked me in the eye and said Boots Ennis, Josh Kelly and Vergil Ortiz don't feel like threats — "I feel like I can control this division." Ten days before his WBC title defense against unbeaten mandatory Ermal Hadribeaj, the Towering Inferno opened up his family compound for a no-holds-barred Square Up. I'm Andre Berto, two-time world champion. I went to the Fundora compound, got walked up a 2,000-foot mountain by his father Freddy, and sat down with the WBC super welterweight champion for nearly two hours. We cover everything: why he says Hadribeaj "doesn't seem like a threat," why PBC and DAZN now have "no more excuses" on undisputed at 154, why the WBO situation frustrated him so much he considered being done with unifications, and what he'd say to Boots Ennis. Fundora also gets personal — the Florida roots (Davie, FL and the fire-sprinkler building his dad turned into a boxing gym), the "Intimidator" van road trips to amateur tournaments, the knockout loss to Brian Mendoza and the moment on the canvas he only wanted to know where his dad was, getting the 11-day-notice call to fight Tim Tszyu, and beating Tszyu twice. He breaks down the Keith Thurman fight — the one name he admits made him nervous — and why a 6'6" southpaw loves fighting on the inside. Plus: sister Gabriela Fundora, the "face of women's boxing," 12-year-old Fabiola, the Errol Spence moment Fundora describes after the Tszyu fight, Johnny Cash, karaoke with Shawn Porter, the Harvard question, and his post-weigh-in meal. Fundora vs. Hadribeaj — Saturday, October 17, The Cosmopolitan, Las Vegas, live on DAZN. TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro — Andre takes on the Fundora mountain 0:53 Oct 17 vs. Ermal Hadribeaj: "He doesn't seem like a threat" 3:35 Fundora's top 3 targets: Ennis, Kelly, Ortiz 7:10 PBC on DAZN — "No more excuses" for undisputed 8:58 "I can control this division" + Florida roots 12:33 The fire-sprinkler office that became a boxing gym 15:15 The "Intimidator" van & amateur road trips 19:44 Moving from Florida to Coachella 22:26 Six kids, two world champions 27:49 Gabriela Fundora: face of women's boxing 30:30 First brother & sister unified champions + Fabiola 34:06 The growth spurt: 5'7" to 6'2" in one year 36:47 Why Fundora quit basketball 37:41 The Fundora family empire dream 39:29 Why a 6'6" southpaw fights inside + Paul Williams 43:04 Should boxing have a height division? 44:52 First PBC fight & proving the doubters wrong 47:34 Building the record in South America 52:57 Sampson Lewkowicz called him "fragile" 56:32 The Erickson Lubin fight 1:01:01 The viral sunglasses phone call 1:02:49 Ocampo & sharing a card with Gabriela 1:06:24 Why he didn't watch his title win for a year 1:08:12 The Mendoza loss: "Where's my dad?" 1:11:47 From Bohachuk camp to the 11-day Tszyu call 1:15:23 Unified champion off a loss 1:18:58 The Errol Spence moment 1:19:52 Losing the WBO belt — why it still frustrates him 1:22:34 Tszyu 2: "I already have your ticket" 1:25:15 Keith Thurman: the name that made him nervous 1:29:44 "The mountain keeps you honest" 1:31:32 Why boxing is a selfish sport 1:35:08 Karaoke nights & Ring of Fire with Shawn Porter 1:38:43 Johnny Cash, disco & his dream ring walk 1:40:31 The Harvard question 1:41:25 Foodie talk: the In-N-Out order Subscribe to Square Up with Andre Berto for real conversations with the biggest names in combat sports — champion to champion. #SebastianFundora #SquareUp #AndreBerto #FundoraHadribeaj #Boxing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 50 mins
  • O'Shaquie Foster: Shakur Is EASIER Than Ray Ford

    O'Shaquie Foster: Shakur Is EASIER Than Ray Ford
    Sep 17 2026
    WBC super featherweight champion O'Shaquie "Ice Water" Foster tells Andre Berto a Shakur Stevenson fight would be EASIER than Ray Ford, and breaks down exactly how their friendship turned into a rivalry. Recorded in Houston just before Foster vs. Emanuel Navarrete became official. The 130-pound unification is set for October 24, 2026, at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, with the WBC, WBO, IBF and vacant Ring Magazine titles on the line. On this episode of Square Up, O'Shaquie Foster (25-3, 12 KOs) goes deeper than he ever has on camera. He grew up in Orange, Texas, walked into a boxing gym at eight, and lost his mother at 12, then fought in the Golden Gloves the same day as her service. At 14 he was sparring pros in Roger Mayweather's gym in Las Vegas and appeared as an extra in the Ludacris and Floyd Mayweather "Undisputed" music video. He talks about the Olympic Trials, early pro losses, and a 2017 rock bottom when he thought boxing was over. Then he rebuilt everything in Houston with trainer Bobby Benton. Foster doesn't hold back on the purse-bid games before the Hernandez fight, almost losing his belt on the scale before Abraham Nova, the controversial Conceição decision, why Stephen Fulton "gave him nothing," and the real story behind the Shakur Stevenson and Raymond Ford beef. TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro: the Navarrete unification tease 1:02 Growing up in Orange, Texas 2:48 First boxing gym at 8 years old 5:10 Losing his mom at 12 7:48 Fighting Golden Gloves the day of her service 9:53 Moving to Las Vegas at 14: Roger Mayweather's gym 12:28 The Ludacris x Floyd Mayweather music video & sparring pros as a kid 17:38 The Olympic Trials 18:43 Turning pro & the first loss 22:22 The Virginia camp with Shakur Stevenson & Antoine Douglas 26:03 A family loss before the 2016 Chinea fight 29:41 Thinking boxing was over 31:46 Rock bottom in 2017 & the Crawford night that changed everything 34:25 4 days in the dark during Hurricane Harvey 37:02 Starting over in Houston from a couch 39:05 How he got back into boxing 42:44 The comeback fight 43:47 Upsetting unbeaten prospect Jon Fernández 45:51 Lou DiBella & 16 months on the shelf 47:54 Probellum & Richard Schaefer 49:25 Beating Rey Vargas for the WBC title 51:00 Purse-bid games & the Hernandez war 55:39 Abraham Nova: foot injury & almost losing the belt on the scale 59:20 The Conceição decision & the rematch 1:04:01 Stephen Fulton: "He gave me nothing" 1:08:37 Ray Ford: when it got personal 1:10:12 How the Shakur Stevenson friendship ended 1:14:53 Beating Ford & calling out Shakur 1:18:31 Foster vs. Shakur prediction: easier than Ray? 1:22:07 What weight for Shakur: 135 or 140? 1:23:08 Undisputed at 130 & the Navarrete fight 1:24:09 Giving back to Orange, Texas Subscribe to Square Up with Andre Berto for real conversations with the biggest names in combat sports, hosted by a two-time world champion who's been in the ring. #OShaquieFoster #ShakurStevenson #SquareUp #BoxingO'Shaquie Foster, Oshaquie Foster, Shakur Stevenson, Shakur Stevenson vs O'Shaquie Foster, Foster vs Shakur, Raymond Ford, Foster vs Ford, Emanuel Navarrete, Navarrete vs Foster, Stephen Fulton, Foster vs Fulton, Robson Conceicao, WBC super featherweight champion, 130 pound undisputed, Square Up with Andre Berto, Andre Berto, boxing interview, Houston boxing, Bobby Benton, Floyd Mayweather Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • Edgar Berlanga: I Fought Canelo Hurt, Sheeraz is Easy Work, "Boxing Fans Are Not Good People"

    Edgar Berlanga: I Fought Canelo Hurt, Sheeraz is Easy Work, "Boxing Fans Are Not Good People"
    Aug 27 2026
    Edgar Berlanga says he took two cortisone shots in his arm to get through the Canelo Alvarez fight — and that Hamzah Sheeraz, the man who stopped him, "has no IQ" and was "easy work." He gets into all of it with Andre Berto in Tampa: Canelo, Dana White, Eddie Hearn, Oscar De La Hoya, Fat Joe, Jay-Z, and the fans he says turned on him. Fresh off the seventh-round TKO of Steven Butler at Madison Square Garden, "The Chosen One" sat down and held nothing back. "The Chosen One" doesn't dodge much here. He walks through getting dropped in the second round against Butler and deciding right there it wasn't ending that way. He goes back to Bushwick — his father gone for seven years, the shelters, Benny Roman driving him from Brooklyn to the East Side and back every single day so he wouldn't miss the gym. He talks about the 160 amateur fights nobody credits him for, the 16 straight first-round knockouts that made him famous and, in his own words, slowed his development. Then it gets honest. He says boxing fans are not good people, and talks about what it costs to carry a flag into the ring for people who question you. He talks about the loss to Hamzah Sheeraz and the stretch after it — the drinking, the breakup, the crying in an empty six-bedroom house, and his coach Marc Farrait refusing to let him hide at the gym. Four days of fasting. Opening the Bible and landing on Jeremiah. And he talks about what's on the other side of it: signing with Dana White and Zuffa Boxing, linking with Jay-Z at Fanatics Fest, the "Baby Mamá" record that Fat Joe originally told him to shelve, the Creed III role he lost to a torn bicep, the WWE run he's pitching to Nick Khan, and exactly who he wants next — Chris Eubank Jr in London, Jaime Munguia, Jermall Charlo, Caleb Plant, and Sheeraz last. New episodes of Square Up with Andre Berto every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one. CHAPTERS 0:00 Cold open 0:45 Welcome to Square Up — live from Tampa 1:16 Steven Butler, MSG, and the weight of New York 2:36 The second-round knockdown 5:50 "Don't bring my son to the fight" 8:07 Bushwick: growing up Puerto Rican in Brooklyn 11:20 When his father went away 13:42 Benny Roman drove him to the gym every day 21:17 The 160 amateur fights nobody talks about 28:42 16 straight first-round knockouts 32:12 When the knockouts stopped feeling like his 35:47 "Boxing fans are not good people" 39:18 Carrying the flag for people who doubted him 43:51 Marc Farrait and the hardest gym in boxing 48:05 Buying himself out of Top Rank 49:31 Signing with Eddie Hearn to get Canelo 51:03 The dream that predicted the Canelo fight 58:34 "That fight with Canelo was my best fight ever" 1:01:02 "I gave myself 50%" 1:03:00 Two cortisone shots for the Canelo fight 1:07:04 Why the Hearn relationship ended 1:10:20 The Sheeraz loss 1:12:20 "He was easy work" 1:13:00 The stretch nobody saw 1:16:54 Four days fasting, and Jeremiah 1:21:37 Dana White, Zuffa Boxing, and the second run 1:28:23 The music, and Fat Joe telling him to stick to boxing 1:37:37 The Creed III role he lost 1:39:34 WWE, Damian Priest, and the character 1:40:43 Who's next: Eubank Jr, Munguia, Charlo, Plant 1:42:21 Raising Chosen 1:47:38 Andre's closing word #EdgarBerlanga #SquareUp #Boxing #Canelo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 55 mins
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