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Andres Taylor's father was a professional boxer, and as long as he can remember, he always wanted to be a boxer, too.

It hasn't been easy, though, for the 30-year-old Taylor, who will be the headliner for "Fright Night Fights" to be held Saturday, Oct. 31, at the War Memorial Arena in Johnstown.

Although he was born in New Jersey, Taylor has lived in Johnstown since he was 10.

"Johnstown is my home," he said. "I went to Johnstown High, wrestled and played football. I played a lot of sports, but I always wanted to box."

Unlike Altoona, which, thanks to local icon Johnny Robertson and the Altoona Boxing Club, has promoted amateur boxing for years, Johnstown didn't have a boxing venue for amateurs until recently.

"I finally started in 2000 or 2001," Taylor said. "They didn't have a gym there, however, and when they finally got one, they'd opened it for awhile and then close it. I'd box for six months, and then be idle for awhile."

The gym was finally opened for good in 2005 and Taylor's father moved to Johnstown to help him train.

"If I had known about this [Altoona Boxing Club], I would have been over here years ago," he said while preparing to spar a few rounds with ABC heavyweight Jeremiah Witherspoon last week.

Taylor praised the work of Robertson and said he also trained in the past with former Altoona boxer Tom Wilt, a six-time Golden Gloves champ.

"I used to be over here every other day," he said. "They've been great to me and have helped me a lot. They extended their hand to me when it was hard to get sparring partners."

Taylor, who had 13 amateur fights, is a former state Golden Gloves champion at super heavyweight.

"I was the only guy from western Pennsylvania to win my year," he said. "Philadelphia took everything else."

That success, he said, made him take boxing more seriously.

In 2007, he won the Western Olympic Trials, took a silver medal at the Midwestern Olympic Trials, and lost to the second-ranked boxer in the nation, which cost him a chance at the 2008 Olympics.

"From there, I fought for Team USA in Romania, and because I was getting older, I decided to go pro after that," Taylor said.

His pro career includes 12 fights - 10 wins, one loss and one draw. His only loss was to Leo Bercier in Ohio four months ago, and Taylor will get a chance to avenge that setback when he meets Bercier on Saturday at the War Memorial.

In their first meeting, Taylor said he felt he had the upper hand for the first three rounds. However, Bercier, who hails from Montana, knocked down Taylor at the end of the fourth.

"I thought I had to get him back, and I went from boxing to fighting," said Taylor, a 6-foot, 200-pounder. "Then I was fighting his fight, and I wound up losing on points.

"It made me a better fighter, though, because I realized nothing is given to you. You've got to earn everything because everybody in that ring has a puncher's chance."

Lesson learned, Taylor said he's been training hard and won't take Bercier lightly when they step into the ring Saturday for the WBF-sanctioned eight-round title fight for the WBF Cruiserweight Championship Belt of the Americas.

Saturday's card also includes Joey Gilbert of Reno, Nev., a super middleweight and West Coast Team member from NBC's reality TV series "The Contender."

Jesse Lubash, a Pittsburgh welterweight, also will fight, as well as former Russian amateur standouts, the Chudinov brothers.

"It's Halloween, and some of the fans will be in for a trick and others will be in for a treat," Taylor said, laughing.

Fred Vega, travel coordinator/street team director of the sponsoring TKO Boxing Promotions, is excited about Saturday, too.

"We've got seven pro fights, including Andres Taylor and Joey Gilbert," Vega said. "There'll be talent from all over.

"I've worked with Andres for over a year, and I'm impressed with the way he fights and his commitment," said Vega, who hails from Houston. "He's always out there promoting and trying to get people to the fights.

"I think it will be a great night."

Presented by Chet Koerner's TKO Boxing Promotions, Inc. of Las Vegas and Team TaylorMade Boxing, the "Fright Night Fights" will be video-taped for rebroadcast by Speros Video for the "Ringside Boxing" TV series.

The program will be shown locally on Tuesday, Nov. 17 from 8 to 10 p.m. on the Pittsburgh Fox Sports Network. PFS will rebroadcast the program Sunday, Nov. 29 from 1 to 3 p.m. and again on Tuesday, Dec. 1 from 8 to 10 p.m.