Ward on his toes for ring return

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 15, 2006 | by Dave Newhouse

Presently in Andre Ward's pugilistic world, everything is thumbs- up.

Ward, the 22-year-old Olympic boxing champion from Oakland, returns from a seven-month layoff to fight Derrick Findley of Gary, Ind., in an eight-round middleweight match Thursday at HP Pavilion in San Jose.

Ward has recovered from a torn ligament in his left thumb. But he feels the time off has been rejuvenating rather than rust-inducing.

"You gotta get revived," he said. "It's kind of like a racehorse. You keep running it, running it, running it, eventually that horse will be no good. So the rest has been a plus."

Ward (9-0, 5 KOs) fought seven times his first year as a pro, one more fight than originally scheduled. Then came the thumb injury, but he's now rehabilitated and rested for his semi-main bout against Findley (6-1, 5 KOs).

"My body's maturing, my mind's maturing," Ward said. "You don't want to move too fast, but you don't want to become complacent. We're right where we want to be."

Ward's trainer, Virgil Hunter, doesn't feel the ring inactivity hurt his fighter.

"He's never inactive," Hunter pointed out. "When you bring athleticism to the sport like Andre, all you have to do is keep your athleticism fine-tuned, and he's done that."

Ward spent extra time with his wife and two boys while the thumb mended. When sparring, he wore a special brace toprotect the thumb.

"(Findley's) strong and stocky and comes straight forward," Hunter said of Thursday's opponent. "Because Andre's a world (amateur) champion, everyone brings their 'A' game, because he's the gateway to a championship."

Only Ward is seeking the same gateway.

"We already know that Andre's skill is there for world-class competition," Hunter said. "Physical strength, skillwise, I put him right at the top. We're just waiting for him to mature a little more physically."

Former WBO world light-heavyweight champion Julio Gonzalez (40- 3, 24 KOs) of Huntington Beach meets Vitali Kopitko (24-8, 9 KOs) of Miami in the 10-round main event Thursday.

Three preliminary bouts precede the Ward-Findley fight. The card begins at 7:30 p.m.