The Next Step of an
Incredible Road Trip for Johnson:

By Terence "One Punch" Dooley


Glenn Johnson must wonder where it all went right at times over the past year; his rise from journeyman to Ring Fighter of the Year has been incredible for boxing in general and the Light-heavyweights in particular. For all his talent Roy Jones could not breathe life into this ailing division so it is all the more ironic that two fighters who legitimately vanquished him are making the division hot right now. Unfortunately the governing bodies do not agree so we have the farcical situation of seeing the two men regarded as the best in the division squaring off as former champions. In some fights though belts are a minor irrelevance and this is certainly the case with Glenn Johnson Vs Antonio Tarver as this really is a meeting of the best. Last years bout brought some fresh impetus into this often derided division, even giving it its own fairytale in the form of the affable Jamaican Johnson; now it is time to consider what the rematch may hold.

In winning a close decision over Tarver last year Johnson set himself up as an unlikely boxing hero coming as he has from journeyman status to being the recipient of a Ring title belt, however his honor in agreeing to a rematch may yet to be prove to be his undoing. Tarver has proven to be deadly in his rematches to date, this was displayed most crushingly when he handed Roy Jones a devastating KO loss after a first fight that many thought Tarver deserved to win but in which he showed a lack of desire to really go for victory. This is the intangible that Tarver brings to this match as we know he has a multitude of silky southpaw skills but whether he has the desire to back them up is worth questioning. In the first fights with Johnson and Jones Antonio repeatedly seemed to be in the process of seizing the initiative only to hold back at vital moments or even more worryingly lose focus for periods of the fights. In parading himself dressed as a king before the first Johnson fight Tarver showed that maybe for him the win over Jones was the pinnacle of his career; Johnson showed a totally different attitude. Tarver looked the real deal for periods last year but far too often he seemed content to follow up his stylish work with periods of inertia that you could argue cost him a first win over Jones as well as the fight with Johnson. At his best Tarver shows he has fast hands mixed with excellent combination punching which when married to his southpaw stance gives him a stylistic edge over the majority of his foes. At his worse Tarver is inclined to coast for full rounds or periods of rounds a habit that does him no favors with the judges.

Antonio needs to approach this fight with far more intensity than he did the last Johnson match as the early indications are that although Tarver can punch he does not have enough pop to make a dent in the excellent chin of Johnson. If Tarver cannot win by KO then he must be prepared to make a concerted effort to win every round of this fight, he must not fall into the trap of only fighting for 50% of a round as he will leave himself open to the possibility of a points decision once again swinging against him and if this occurs he will have no-one else to blame but himself. Tarver is capable of scoring in close with Johnson to assert his strength on the other man but he must also try to make sure that if he does become tired or lethargic during any of the rounds he must opt for pumping out the jab to ensure Johnson is not stealing the judge’s attention with his incessant attacks. During their last encounter it was Tarver that produced the quality whilst Johnson produced the fire, this time Tarver must not underestimate Johnson so he has to be ready to fight every second of every round in order to ensure he takes the decision or if it comes the KO.

On the other hand you could be tempted to say more of the same is required from Johnson, this is absolutely correct as Glen was the one that carried some of the close rounds last time out with his sheer will to win. He may not be the greatest stylist but nor is he prone to the self-satisfied rest periods that plague fighters like Tarver, Johnson is a worker and will not change his MO for this one fight. Expect Johnson to apply educated pressure on Tarver in the knowledge that the American will take periods off during the fight, it is almost inevitable. Johnson must also try to ensure that he steals some of the style plaudits from Tarver by utilizing his straight right, left - hook combination to keep the southpaw constantly thinking, whilst Tarver is thinking rest assured Johnson will be punching if the last fight is any indication. Johnson is relentlessly effective in his fights and recently he has improved as the championship rewards have come his way, a career of toil in the shadows has allowed him to build a robust fighting style which married as it is to an indefatigable will forms as formidable a barrier as the superior skills of his opponent.

In the last fight Glen looked at times to be the bigger, stronger man, when things got tough for him he’d grit his teeth and come though until in the end you could not begrudge him his victory. Whilst Tarver thought Glen fought and in the end this proved to be the difference. There is a tendency to claim Johnson does everything well but nothing spectacularly well, in the past year this has been proven false as he has won spectacular victories via his solid skills and fitness. Any target that Tarver offers Glen will attack, any moments of stillness from Tarver will be juxtaposed with solid punching from Johnson as he aims to show the form of last year was no mirage created by the decline of Jones and the lethargy of Tarver. After punching his way to The Man status Johnson is still shrouded by doubts and claims of luck, for this reason we will see the same determined non-stop Johnson of recent vintage; the question now remains who will win this intriguing clash?

In terms of skill it would not surprise me to see Tarver put it all together with a spectacular win however I am leaning towards Johnson on points by a narrow margin. My thinking is that Tarver will surge through the first few rounds then take a break, Johnson will be allowed to come on and Tarver will start to take his breaks on a more frequent basis until he is no longer fighting full rounds. Nothing so far has suggested to me that Tarver will maintain the pace necessary to defeat Johnson, Antonio seems to have found his bogeyman in Johnson just as Tarver provided Jones with his own bogeyman; this was the problem in dethroning a legend as Tarver maybe then saw himself as a legend and trained/acted accordingly. If Tarver looked genuinely at his loss to Johnson he will have seen it partly resulted from periods of sloth in the bout, I suggest that mistake is innate to the Tarver style and will be replicated to Johnson’s advantage. Look for some stylish stuff from Tarver but for Johnson to punch his way through this to assert his claim as The Man of this division…and rightfully so.


Questions Or Comments? Please Contact Terence "One Punch" Dooley