No brawler in boxing is more crowd-pleasing than Arturo Gatti. The 33-year-old Canadian is a made-for-TV warrior who excites fans every time out – hence his nickname, The Human Highlight Reel. Five times he has participated in the “Fight of the Year,” and his bloody trilogy with Mickey Ward has entered boxing lore. In the words of Roy Jones, “Gatti has given boxing better fights than the ones they make up in movies.”

On Saturday night, Gatti (39-6, 29 KOs) steps into the ring in Atlantic City to defend his 140-pound World Boxing Council title against Floyd Mayweather Jr. (33-0, 22 KOs). Arturo claims the fight will earn him recognition as a great fighter, but it seems more likely that Mayweather will inflict yet another dose of heavy punishment.

After all, Gatti is carrying the accumulated weight of thousands of blows to his head, and he has lost to the likes of Angel Manfredy and Ivan Robinson. Mayweather is a complete fighter who stands near the top of most “pound-for-pound” rankings. He can box, he can punch, and he’s five years younger than Gatti.

The odds-makers have made “Pretty Boy Floyd” a 4-to-1 favorite. Mayweather, who has no bigger fan than himself, thinks that’s not one-sided enough and envisions an easy victory.

“The truth is, he’s not a good fighter, and he’s not on my level,” Mayweather said at the kick-off press conference. “He shouldn’t even be in the ring with me. Arturo Gatti is a heavy bag with legs. He’s so slow it’s ridiculous. When he punches, I can turn, say ‘hi’ to my mom, talk to the TV people, turn back, and still beat him to the punch. He’s a C-plus fighter. He’s a street bum. I’ll walk right through him. I don’t have any respect for him.”

Gatti, for his part, is offended by the talk.

“I’ve been in a lot of fights,” he said last week.” But I’ve never been in a fight where my opponent was talking like he is. He has no class, to speak about another fighter like he does. He has ability, but I don’t know how tough he is. The only thing he has over me is speed. We’ll see what happens when speed and power go against each other.”

“I don’t know what people are watching if they don’t think I’m talented,” he added. “I’m recognized as a tough fighter and a gutsy fighter and a warrior. But I have skills; I’m talented. This fight is important to me. I want to be recognized as a great fighter, and winning this fight will do it.”

Mayweather downplays the “heart” issue.

“I’m not going to let some guy beat my brains out,” he said in reference to Gatti. “The less you get hit, the longer you last in this sport. I try to dish out as much punishment and take the least amount of punishment possible. Smart fighters last longer. I’m not in this sport to see how hard I can get hit or to see how many big punches I can take. That’s what he does.”

Gatti-Mayweather is likely to come down to the adage espoused by Cus D’Amato: “When two fighters meet in the ring, the fighter with the greater will prevails every time unless the other fighter’s skills are so superior that his will is never tested.”

Gatti is the sentimental favorite: He’s known as a good guy and a courageous fighter who ennobles the sport of boxing. Mayweather, by contrast, has a long rap sheet for domestic violence and other assaults against women. Still, it seems likely that Mayweather will carve Gatti up, with the referee intervening to stop the carnage sometime in the middle-to-late rounds.

The fight will be televised by HBO Pay-Per-View. In the primary undercard bout, Vivian Harris (25-1-1,17 KOs) defends his WBA 140-pound title against Carlos Maussa (17-2, KOs). Harris should wear Maussa down with nonstop aggression and win convincingly.