Andre Ward had a nice workout Friday night in Lemoore, Calif.

The 2004 Olympic gold medalist's opponent, Henry Buchanan, offred only token resistance but survived to lose every round of the 12-round super middleweight bout.

All three judges scored it 120-108.

Ward (18-0, 12 knockouts) offered a nice array of punches from both orthodox and southpaw stances, landing hard punches throughout the fight as Buchanan bobbed and weaved in apparent fear.

Indeed, Buchanan (17-2, 12 KOs) was far more interested in not getting hurt than landing his own punches, which happened very infrequently.

The only thing one could say for him is that he didn't get knocked out.

Buchanan came in with decent credentials, losing only to unbeaten Jean Paul Mendy in 2006, but had no business in the ring with a talent like Ward, who is becoming a serious title contender.

Now, such prominent fighters as Glen Johnson and Jermain Taylor are being mentioned as possible opponents for Ward.

“I’m excited about the future,” he said. “I'm ready for the top guy(s) now. This fight was just a prelude to what's ahead. The right doors will open. I want to be a seasoned champ and I want to reign.”

It was the longest fight of Ward's young career.

Also on the card, John “John” Molina (15-0, 12 KOs) knocked out overmatched Kpakpo Allotey of Ghana (16-7, 14 KOs) 1:28 into the third round of a scheduled eight-round lightweight bout.