Andre Ward will be making his debut in the light heavyweight class this coming March, and the man who will welcome him will be the dangerous IBF light heavyweight contender Sullivan Barrera.

The clash is set for March 26 at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California and is considered a prelude to his upcoming fight with light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev.

It will be Ward’s first match in a three-fight deal with HBO which will be televised on that day starting at 9:45 ET/PT.

The two-time world champion will test the mettle of the Cuban pug who himself is hoping to make an impression, as he is also in hot pursuit of the ‘Russian Krusher’.

Will Ward implement any changes on the upcoming tiff? For Ward, the only thing different is that he is fighting in a different weight class and will try to see just how tough Barrera is.

“I’ll be in great shape and ready for battle. Sullivan Barrera has had a lot to say lately and I love it. He’s going to have an opportunity to back up every word that he has spoken. These are the type of challenges I like, and on March 26, it’s go time,” says Ward via Boxing News 24.

On his end, Barrera will be coming into the fight riding on the momentum of a win. He last fought and disposed of Karo Murat in December in an IBF eliminator bout. The victory propelled him to be the mandatory challenger to Kovalev’s IBF title.

Barrera started the trash talks via social media recently, and he claims that he will be going for a knockout against Ward via Boxingscene.com.

There will be no title on the line in the Barrera vs. Ward fight, and the only thing at stake is who gets to fight Kovalev first. However, for Barrera, he intends to crash the party and give Ward a rude welcome into the light heavyweight division.

“We as a team had a tough choice to make – crash the party by taking out Ward first or wait for the mandatory and take out Kovalev,” said Barrera. “We decided that the time is now. Ward will fall first and then we will go after the belts.”

Seeing that Kovalev carries three belts, there is no promise that Barrera is the next opponent in line in the event of a win for the Cuban fighter. Either way, the 33-year-old wants another win to his credit and against a known boxer in the person of Ward.

“I am a warrior. I'm fully prepared for Andre Ward. I highly respect him as a boxer and a great former world champion. However, just like any other opponent I face, my goal is to destroy them (in the ring),” said a confident Ward in the same interview.