Boxing: Andre Ward to Fight Sullivan Barrera on March 26

The past few years haven’t been kind to the ultra-talented Andre Ward. After setting the boxing world ablaze by dominating Showtime’s Super Six tournament and eventually tearing up Chad Dawson, his career was stifled by numerous injuries and contract disputes.

Ward took out unheralded Paul Smith last June and once again his ascension was curtailed by an injury and he was shelved for the rest of 2015. Now he’s back and ready to reclaim what many feel what belongs to him: the top spot among the best in the world pound-for-pound. Ward (28-0, 15 KOs) will meet Cuban defector Sullivan Barrera on March 26 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif.

The fight will headline an HBO World Championship Boxing card and will be televised live at 9:45 p.m. ET/6:45 p.m. PT.

Ward, who cleaned out the super middleweight division, is looking to do the same at 175 pounds and eventually meet undisputed light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev. But in order to do that, he must get past the unbeaten Barrera, who was a multiple world champion in the amateurs.

Though he hasn’t faced the caliber of opponent as Ward, Barrera has a TKO win over former champ Jeff Lacy. In his most recent outing, he knocked out Karo Murat in December.