Much has been said about Arturo Gatti, that for all of his accomplishments, excitement, blood and drama that he may have given boxing fans too much of himself. And to ask for another pound of flesh would be not only selfish, but inconceivable.

Leave it to Gatti, who found a way to give just a little more. Except this time he gave an inside look to MaxBoxing.com, which traveled to his training camp in Vero Beach, Florida, in April, where he was in his sixth week of training.

Gatti was intent on showing he's not a once-great action hero clinging to the end of his rope and his last seven-figure payday. Instead, he's projecting an aura of a rejuvenated force in the talent-deep junior welterweight division (he has been saved in the ring by his transformations more than nemesis Angel Manfredy claims to have been saved outside of it) and intends to make a push for undisputed champion Kostya Tszyu.

First, there's the rubber match with Micky Ward, who Gatti will face a final time this Saturday at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall (televised on HBO, 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 PT), capping a saga that began just more than a year ago when Ward squeaked out a close decision in 2002's most thrilling fight. After Gatti redeemed himself last November in the rematch with a unanimous decision victory, he expected to move on. Not quite.

"I wanted to fight Micky Ward again because I told him after the fight I would," said Gatti, who will be embarking on the first of a three-fight deal with HBO this Saturday. "I was looking forward to fighting for a title again, but I gave him my word."

Gatti's focus has been mostly on conditioning and roadwork, finally taking seriously the wisdom of his late conditioning coach Bob Warring.

He's running more than ever -- six times a week and as many as 10 miles on Saturdays -- and his taut physique served as Exhibit A to his dedication. Gatti, who already was within 7-10 pounds of fight weight two months removed, is so confident this time out that he expects the third time around to be the easier than the last, when he scored a knockdown in the third round and paintbrushed Ward in the anticlimactic rematch that was a boxing clinic.

Gatti has swapped identities from boxer to puncher in a career that's littered with many peaks and valleys.

His fifth-round TKO loss to welterweight Oscar de la Hoya in March 2001, however, was the ultimate turning point. That's when Gatti realized he had to dedicate himself to training harder to make 140 pounds, which is where he always belonged. No more ballooning in weight and between fights and after weigh-ins.

"I took Oscar at 147," he says of the most lopsided loss of his career. "After that, a lot of guys would've said, 'F__k that s__t. I'll get a job.'"

Actually, Gatti, a multi-lingual, New Jersey-based, Italian-Canadian, just got smarter in his approach. He knows at this stage there's no room for error, and that the harder he works before fights means the luckier he'll be during them.

Just don't conveniently pigeonhole Gatti as a club fighter. He has exhibited a greater boxing acumen than that, and trainer Buddy McGirt has been there to remind him if he ever strays. Besides, there aren't any club fighters who were world champions, or who hold victories against ex-champions such as Terronn Millett, Tracy Patterson and Gabe Ruelas.

So many fighters talk the talk, about being willing to risk their health to win. Only about 1 percent of them actually mean it.

"It's my will, my desire," says Gatti. "It's balls. Guts. What can I say?"

Nothing, really. Your fighting spirit says it all.