Andre Ward dismisses criticism of fighting in Oakland

Andre Ward is content to be fighting in his hometown as he continues preparation for Sergey Kovalev by facing Alexander Brand.

The unbeaten American (29-0-KO15) takes on the Colombian (25-1-KO19) in Oakland, California on Saturday night and is expected to provide his loyal fans with another stoppage victory to cheer about.

Ward, who will be fighting at light-heavyweight for the second time since vacating his world super-middleweight crown, said: "The Bay Area is a beautiful place. I'm blessed to be here in my city and to represent you all.

"I've gotten a lot of heat in the press about fighting here but I won't apologise. I dreamed about fighting here and being a headliner. We're going to continue to headline."

Ward is due to challenge divisional kingpin Kovalev (30-0-1-KO26) for the WBA Super, IBF and WBO world titles on November 19 - but insists the booking won't distract him from the task in hand.

"I'm excited about the future," he added. "I want to be the light-heavyweight champion of the world, a two division champion. Everyone knows that, but it's impossible for me to overlook this man (Brand).

My ribs are showing, I'm hungry.

"I'm not built like that. I wasn't raised like that. I wasn't groomed like that. As a young fighter, I don't operate like that. This man is coming, this is his super bowl. Because this is his super bowl, it has to be my super bowl.

"My ribs are showing, I'm hungry. I'll see you all Saturday night."

Ward was last in action in March when he knocked Sullivan Barrera down on his way to a comfortable unanimous decision.