Andre Ward poised for great things if he beats Carl Froch

Andre Ward stands on the brink of becoming the super-middleweight tournament champion, perhaps the fighter of the year, and being regarded as the greatest American boxer behind Floyd Mayweather Jr.

“It’s a confirmation, and if we go in and fight the type of fight I’m capable of, those things will come,” said Ward, 27. “I just need to execute.”

Saturday night in Atlantic City, N.J., Oakland’s Ward (24-0, 13 knockouts) meets England’s hard-hitting Carl Froch (28-1, 20 KOs) in the finale of the Super Six super-middleweight tournament.

During his run, Ward dethroned World Boxing Assn. champion Mikkel Kessler, then in May convincingly defeated former champion Arthur Abraham by unanimous decision at Home Depot Center in Carson.

“Each win definitely does something for your confidence,” Ward said. “It was one thing to beat a guy like [Super Six entrant] Allan Green, but Arthur Abraham is a tough, desperate, hard puncher.”

The challenge with Froch is the Englishman’s power and resilience. Froch knocked out former middleweight champion Jermain Taylor to start the Super Six, edged Andre Dirrell and Glen Johnson in decisions and beat Abraham convincingly, as Ward did.

The exception was a preliminary-round loss to Kessler.

“He believes in his power, and believes he’ll walk through me,” Ward said of Froch. “That’s not going to be the case. I’m not coming to this fight to eke out a decision. I’m here for the knockdown.”

Ward said he’s braced for Froch to land the stiffest punches the 2004 U.S. Olympic gold medalist has ever faced.

“Before any punch is landed, you have to make up your mind you’re not going anywhere,” Ward said. “He’s good. He should have some moments. He might land a big punch. But it’s about what you etch in your mind earlier — you won’t be denied. It’s a mental thing.”

Ward said his consistency should carry the fight.

“The media gets infatuated with [Froch’s] toughness, but just because he has to go to the well every time to win doesn’t make him a better fighter than someone who avoids doing that,” Ward said.

A Saturday victory could propel Ward to a shot at either middleweight champion Sergio Martinez or International Boxing Federation super-middleweight champion Lucian Bute. Beating Froch would validate a bold decision by Ward to take on more experienced champions in the Showtime-televised tourney.

“I knew it was going to be a tough road, but I felt I was ready for it,” Ward said. “I knew I was the young pup coming in without a belt, but, hey, call us crazy, let’s go do this.”

lance.pugmire@latimes.com

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