Arturo Gatti (left) and Micky Ward fought three times in 13 months in bouts considered some of the most brutal in recent history. Al Bello/Getty Images

By Andy Gray, SI.com

Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward butted heads three times between May of 2002 and June 2003 in what were regarded as some of boxing's most brutal matches of the last 25 years. After the final bout, Ward, then 36, retired, while Gatti continued to fight, defeating Gianluca Branco to win the WBC super lightweight crown in January '04.

Gatti has defended the title successfully twice, but faces his greatest challenge on Saturday when he meets undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. in Atlantic City, N.J.

In Gatti's corner will be an unlikely supporter: Ward. The two have become close friends since their 30-round trilogy, and if anyone can inspire Gatti to defeat the favored Mayweather, it's Ward.

"Irish" Micky Ward was born into a family of boxers in Lowell, Mass. He first stepped into a boxing ring at age 7, fought his first amateur bout at 15 and turned pro at 20. After winning 18 of his first 20 fights, Ward struggled and lost four of his next seven against opponents he described as "some of the best in the world." Feeling he was being used as a "stepping stone" for these fighters and burnt out from 20 years in the ring, Ward announced his retirement in 1991 at the age of 26. He returned to Lowell and found a job laying pavement.

But three years into his retirement, Ward got the itch and started boxing again, compiling a 16-4 record over the first 20 fights of his comeback. By 2002, he had climbed to the No. 7 ranking in the 140-pound division and was set for a championship match. There was only one man he had to defeat before getting that title fight. His name was Gatti.

Arturo "Thunder" Gatti was raised in Montreal, but moved to Jersey City, N.J., when he was 19 to become a professional boxer. He won 27 of his first 28 fights and earned the reputation as one of the toughest lightweights around. By March 2001, Gatti had a record of 33-4 and, in the biggest match of his career, faced Oscar De La Hoya. After five punishing rounds, Gatti's corner threw in the towel when the bleeding from a nasty cut under his eye couldn't be stopped.

After the match, Gatti hired a new trainer, James "Buddy" McGirt, and refined his slugging boxing style. Despite the loss to de la Hoya, Gatti still was in contention for the 140-pound championship. All he needed was to win one more fight before he could challenge for the title. That one fight was against Ward.

They met on May 18, 2002, at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn., in front of 6,254 fans. In interviews before the fight, Gatti claimed he would "beat [Ward] up every round" because he had "every tool to make it an easy fight." Ward laughed it off and said, "He can say anything he wants. The hard part is doing it." In the first round, Gatti caught Ward with a stiff shot above the left eye that left Ward bleeding for the rest of the fight. During the middle rounds, Ward landed punch after punch in Gatti's midsection.

Gatti abandoned his strategy of moving and jabbing. Instead, he and Ward began to brawl. In the ninth round, Ward landed two strong lefts to the body, knocking Gatti to the canvas. But Gatti got up, and he made it through the 10th round, only to lose by a close decision. Talk of a rematch began immediately after the fight, something Ward felt Gatti deserved after a close fight.