Ward: Barrera Not Stronger, Hasn't Seen This Speed, Conditioning

By Keith Idec

Andre Ward isn’t worried about Sullivan Barrera's size advantage as he prepares for his debut as a full-fledged light heavyweight.

Ward was an undersized light heavyweight amateur star who often boxed bigger opponents on his way to winning a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. The 6-foot Ward (28-0, 15 KOs) has defeated taller foes as a pro as well, most notably 6-1 southpaw Chad Dawson, and thus is confident about beating Barrera (17-0, 12 KOs) on March 26 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California (HBO).

“I’ve fought bigger guys my whole life, my whole career,” Ward said. “It’s something that I’m accustomed to. … I’m actually fairly comfortable fighting guys that may look physically bigger and may even be taller. It’s never really been something that really alarms me. I’ve really been comfortable with it throughout the years. My brother, who I grew up with, is two, three inches taller than me and I went to war with that guy every day. Fighting in the light heavyweight division, when I was 170 pounds, fighting at 178 as an amateur for two or three years, and then going to the Olympics, fighting those giants at the highest stage, at the highest level.”

Ward, who’ll turn 32 on Feb. 23, made his pro debut at 165 pounds in December 2004. The Hayward, California, native was a middleweight until he moved up to super middleweight early in 2007.

The 6-2 Barrera has been a light heavyweight and cruiserweight throughout his 6½-year pro career. 

“Obviously the pro game is different,” Ward said. “I don’t think it’s an adjustment that we can’t make. And I think the reality is he’s gonna have to make some adjustments, too, because though he may look bigger and may have bigger muscles, I think he’s gonna realize he’s not stronger. And I think he’s gonna have to deal with speed he’s never dealt with before, and he’s gonna have to deal with conditioning that he’s never dealt with before. So there are adjustments that have to be made on both sides. It’s not just one side doing it.”

Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, N.J., and BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.