OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -Andre Ward feels he's been an underdog from the moment he was born. Even with his prodigious boxing gifts, his undefeated ring record and that Olympic gold medal, he still firmly believes that nobody gives him a chance.
Ward knows that's the Oakland in him - and on Saturday night, he'll try to get some of it out.
Far too many young people fail to beat the same long odds in the hardscrabble neighborhoods of his Bay Area hometown. Ward survived with a relentless, almost robotic belief in himself - a mindset that keeps a 25-year-old star athlete in training, in church and in a young marriage while keeping him away from alcohol, swearing and any inkling of a negative attitude.
Yet if Ward (20-0, 13 KOs) wins his bout against WBA 168-pound champion Mikkel Kessler (42-1, 32 KOs) on Saturday night to claim his first world title, Ward finally might have to acknowledge somebody believes in him - particularly the 400,000-odd residents of his grateful hometown.
``I feel like the quiet storm right now,'' said Ward, who hasn't lost a fight in 11 years, since early in his amateur career. ``I'm ready to explode. I've been preparing for this night since I was 9 years old. I seem to always be the underdog. I've learned to embrace it. I understand Mikkel wants to keep his title, but I want it really, really bad.''
When he meets Kessler, the longtime Danish champion making his first U.S. appearance in nearly a decade, Ward will be an actual underdog in the ring for the first time since his quarterfinal bout at the Athens Olympics against Evgeny Makarenko. Ward destroyed the Russian world champion in the most surprising fight of those games, setting him up to become the only American gold medalist in the past three Olympics.
``It all started even before that, though,'' said Virgil Hunter, Ward's trainer and longtime mentor. ``Andre doesn't get distracted, and he doesn't care if people don't think he can do something. He's never let anything slow him down from where he wants to go with boxing and with his life.''
His pro career has progressed with extreme deliberation, to be kind, but Ward insists he never became frustrated. He had faith he'd eventually get the chance to fight the best in his division - and when he received a spot in the Super Six tournament, Ward finally got his wish.
Ward welcomes his difficult opening draw against Kessler, the intimidating Viking Warrior with an impressive record of victories almost exclusively in Europe. Although he's quite personable in conversation, the sinister, totemic tattoos etched across the entire right side of Kessler's body make him an easy villain in this scenario - and Kessler seems amused by the chance to be a bad guy.
``I tried it before against 55,000 in Australia,'' Kessler said of his 2005 win over Anthony Mundine in Sydney. ``Of course, it's always better to fight at home. You can't let it get to you, that a lot of people aren't rooting for you, but are rooting for your enemy. But it's OK.''
Kessler, whose only loss was a well-fought decision to Joe Calzaghe in 2007, doesn't watch much tape of his opponents, but he spent the past weeks training in Sacramento to get adjusted for his first stateside fight since a single bout in Las Vegas in 2000.
``He reminds me a lot of myself when I was his age,'' Kessler said. ``I won my first world title at 24, but I'm more experienced in a lot of different ways. I can see that he is hungry, has good speed and good technique. He's a good fighter.''
Neither fighter had much to say about strategy in the days leading up to the fight, but Ward believes his speed and shifty technique can expose weaknesses in Kessler's more straightforward style. Kessler said he'll provide the hardest punching Ward has ever faced, planning to get inside and test Ward's chin.
``I don't think anybody likes to get hit,'' Ward countered. ``(Edison) Miranda hit me more than I would have liked in my last fight, but I responded and came right back. Who has hit Mikkel Kessler clean? Who has really caught him so we could see what his chin is really like? Joe Calzaghe isn't a puncher.''
Ward is the last hope for an American victory in the opening matchups of the Showtime-backed tournament. On Oct. 17, England's Carl Froch beat Andre Dirrell after Arthur Abraham stopped Jermain Taylor a few hours earlier in Germany.
While Kessler has the world's respect after a lengthy reign as the WBA champion in Europe, Ward is still a relative unknown. When Abraham was asked to pick a winner, he acknowledged he had never seen Ward fight, either live or on television.
The fight is a welcome event for Oakland, which proved its support for Ward by packing Oracle Arena for his victory over Miranda in May. The East Bay has a long boxing history that includes some of George Foreman's formative fights, but Oakland hasn't hosted a world title bout since Curtis Cokes beat local favorite Charlie Shipes on Oct. 2, 1967, for the welterweight belt in the same arena where Ward and Kessler will meet.
Kessler and Ward attended a Raiders game last weekend, with Kessler undoubtedly meeting similar tattoo enthusiasts. Ward, an ardent Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors fan, bemoaned the disreputable state of the Bay Area's sports franchises.
``Things aren't going well right now, and they really haven't been for a while,'' Ward said. ``I don't want to make it seem like I'm going to come in and save the show, but I do want to do my part. It's good for the Bay Area as a whole, and it's good for the city.''
