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Denmark's WBA champion, Mikkel Kessler, is considered boxing's premier 168-pounder -- and for good reason.

And it is among those same reasons why the 30-year-old "Viking Warrior" is favored to take down 25-year-old former Olympic gold medalist Andre Ward in defense of his title on Saturday night at Oracle Arena.

"Mikkel Kessler's just been in with a higher quality of opponent. And Kessler's been involved with more big fights, fighting, more or less, for 12 rounds since Andre Ward has been a professional boxer," said Doug Fischer, co-editor of RingTV.com. "And now he's fighting in Andre Ward's hometown of Oakland, Calif., which is going to be nothing new to him."

Former Olympic gold medalist, Andre Ward, calls upcoming rival, Mikkel Kessler, of Denmark, "absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt the most skilled" fighter that he will have faced over the course of his nearly five-year professional career.

"He's the champion. He's very tough. I take nothing away from Mikkel Kessler," said Ward, who will put his 20-0 record with 13 knockouts on the line in pursing Kessler's WBA 168-pound title on Nov. 21 before a partisan crowd at Oracle Arena in Oakland. "At the same time, this is what it's all about -- taking the challenge and rising to it. And I plan on doing that 11 days from now."

Their first-round clash is part of Showtime's Super Six Middleweight World Boxing Classic.

Confidence has never been an issue for WBC champion Carl Froch.

In a wide-ranging interview, the outspoken and talented Englishman, who is 26-0 with 20 knockouts, says why he thought Andre Dirrell was "scared" in their Oct. 17 fight, why he believes Dirrell will defeat Germany's Arthur Abraham and why he will defeat WBA champ Mikkel Kessler.

Read what Froch had to say during this Q&A after the jump.

Showtime's Sports general manager, Ken Hershman, said that he is "thrilled" concerning the success of last weekend's two super middleweight bouts of the Super Six World Boxing Classic tournament, even as he expressed concern and well-wishes toward Jermain Taylor, who was diagnosed with a concussion following his 12th-round knockout loss to Germany's Arthur Abraham.

After losing to Abraham (31-0, 25 KOs) in a clash of former middleweight (160 pounds) champions, Taylor (28-4-1, 17 KOs) was hospitalized for a few days in Germany following their 168-pound battle.

Junior middleweight contender Alfredo Angulo of Coachella, Calif., has moved his training camp from his hometown to that of his promoter, Gary Shaw, in Wayne, N.J., in preparation for his Nov. 7 match-up opposite undefeated Harry Joe Yorgey of Bridgeport, Pa.

Shaw is in Nottingham, England, where he will watch another of his prospects, super middleweight (168) Andre Dirrell (18-0, 13 KOs), of Flint, Mich., take on WBC champion Carl Froch (25-0, 20 KOs) at the Trent FM Arena on Saturday night on Showtime.

A 154-pound native of Mexicali, Mexico, Angulo's 12-round fight for the WBO Inter-Continental crown will take place at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn.

Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Classic super middleweight tournament begins on Saturday evening when former middleweight champs Arthur Abraham and Jermain Taylor step into the ring in what has the early making of a puncher-versus-boxer matchup.

Their 168-pound meeting, from the O2 World Arena in Kreuzberg, Germany, will be shown on a tape-delayed basis prior to the second featured bout, which will pit WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch of England and former Olympic bronze medalist Andre Dirrell from the Trent FM Arena in Froch's hometown of Nottingham.

By the slim margin of seven votes to four on Wednesday, 11 boxing experts predicted that American Andre Dirrell will dethrone England's unbeaten Carl Froch as WBC super middleweight champion on Saturday night at the Trent FM Arena in Froch's native Nottingham.

The Froch-Dirrell 168-pound bout is part of Showtime's Super Six World Super Middleweight Boxing Classic, which also includes Saturday's matchup featuring Arthur Abraham (30-0, 24 knockouts) of Berlin against Jermain Taylor (28-3-1, 17 KOs) of Arkansas in a battle of former middleweight (160) world champions at the O2 World Arena before Abraham's hometown crowd in Kreuzberg.

FanHouse has yet again asked for the predicitions and opinions of 11 boxing gurus, this time concerning Abraham vs. Taylor.

On Saturday, Andre Dirrell, broke training camp in Big Bear Lake, Calif., where the former Olympic bronze medalist worked out at 7,500 feet above sea level for this coming Saturday's bid to win the WBC super middleweight crown from England's Carl Froch.

And it seems that from the moment Dirrell (18-0, 13 knockouts) landed in Froch's hometown of Nottingham, the Flint, Mich., native has been running his mouth as swiftly as he plans to move his hands and feet during their clash of 168-pounders.

"I've spent my whole life dreaming of this night when I fight for the world title," said the 27-year-old Dirrell. "Froch has been foaming at the mouth saying how hopeless my chances are against him. Frankly I find his rants tiresome."

One of the more touching moments of Showtime's Fight Camp 360: Inside The Super Six World Boxing Classic is followed by one the most brutal sequences.

Check out the complete first episode before Saturday's debut (10:30PM ET) exclusively on FanHouse below.

Andre Dirrell is dedicating his upcoming fight with England's WBC champion Carl Froch to the American troops.

Dirrell, 27, is presently training at an altitude of over 7,500 feet above sea level in the mountains of Big Bear Lake, Calif. He will leave on Saturday for Nottingham, England -- site of his Oct. 17, super middleweight (168 pounds) bout with Froch (25-0, 20 knockouts).

"The American troops overseas keep all of us safe and I support them 100 percent," said Dirrell, who is 18-0 with 13 knockouts. "I do nothing but pray for them because they do that for our country and everyone in it."