Johnson Came Out Strong, Worked Tarver for Decision Win
by
Monty McMahon - Ringside
12/19 - LOS ANGELES – With nine losses, many people didn’t quite know what to make of Glen Johnson coming into his fight with Antonio Tarver. After taking a majority decision from the man largely considered the class of the light heavyweight division, they can most likely label Johnson fighter of the year.
Johnson, the 35-year-old Miami-based fighter known as the Road Warrior, came into the Staples Center and came right at Antonio Tarver – constantly moving forward and pursuing Tarver around the ring.
“I was never concerned about (Tarver’s) power. My defense is good and when I do get hit, it didn’t affect me in any way. I just kept coming and kept throwing punches,” Johnson, who improved to 42-9-2, 28 KOs, said after the fight.
Despite his aggressive approach, Tarver outlanded Johnson 296 to 217, according to Compubox numbers, including a 220 to 140 advantage in power punches. Tarver, who fell to 22-3, with 18 KOs, threw 853 punches compared to Johnson’s 796 and connected on 35 percent, compared to Johnson’s 27 percent.
However, the judges saw a different fight, with Melvina Lathan and Chuck Giampa scoring the fight 115 to 113 for Johnson. Marty Denkin scored it 116 to 112 for Tarver.
The result had the Orlando-based fighter asking for a rematch.
“In my heart of hearts I thought I did enough to win, but that’s just boxing,” the 36-year-old Tarver said.
Johnson came out strong at the opening bell, working Tarver’s body and fighting him into the corner several times during the first round.
In the second, Tarver became the aggressor and the fighters had several exchanges at close proximity in the center of the ring that Tarver seemed to get the best of. Tarver continued his assault in the third, when he began to land his left hook with regularity.
The momentum swung back towards Johnson in the fourth, when he again drove Tarver to the ropes behind strong combinations. As Tarver has done many times before, he tried to steal the round, finishing with a flurry that culminated with two solid left hooks to Johnson’s head in the final 30 seconds.
Johnson dominated the fifth round, measuring his southpaw opponent with his left jab and following with the right uppercut. After the fight, Tarver said he hurt his left hand by catching Johnson on the top of the head in the fourth or fifth round.
“My best weapon – but that’s boxing, it’s a tough sport,” Tarver said. “Anything can happen in a fight.”
Even though he claimed he was hurt, Tarver still fought like a champion, using straight lefts and later left hooks to take the sixth round.
In the seventh, the pendulum swung again, as the Road Warrior came straight ahead and Tarver couldn’t seem to find the range.
However, Tarver showed fans why he’s called the Magic Man, seemingly turning the fight in his favor with strong eighth and ninth rounds. The eighth started with Johnson landing the big punch in the first 45 seconds, but by the end of the round Tarver was wearing Johnson out against the ropes. In the ninth, the Magic Man showed off his defensive abilities, staying low and ducking most of Johnson’s shots, while throwing effective counterpunches.
Both men coasted through the tenth, but Johnson got the nod on all three scorecards and then, as champions do, he finished the fight with a bang.
The biggest exchanges occurred in the eleventh, with Tarver throwing a right-left combination to land the rounds first big blow. Tarver stayed active with three and four punch combos, but ended the round in the corner looking dazed after Johnson landed a thunderous hook.
In the final round, Johnson came out slow. But with his corner pleading with him to move forward he turned in memorable final two minutes, stalking Tarver, throwing and landing power punch after power punch. At the end of the round Tarver looked exhausted.
All three judges gave the championship rounds to Johnson, which ultimately proved to be the margin of victory.
Afterwards, Johnson had a welt under his left eye, but was feeling pretty good.
“This is the best win, it’s the next step,” he said. “It’s the next level.”
The next level is something Johnson has been searching for for some time. Although he followed Tarver’s lead and knocked out Roy Jones Jr. in October, it wasn’t long ago that he and his nine losses almost had him out in the street.
After starting his career 32-0, he was on a 8-9-2 streak going into the Jones fight and only made $55,000 for that fight. But after knocking out Jones he upped his take to more than $1 million for the fight against Tarver, which wouldn’t have happened if both men wouldn’t have dropped their respective title belts – Johnson the IBF and Tarver the WBC.
Now that he’s on top, Johnson said he’s willing to give Tarver another shot.
“I’ll fight Antonio Tarver anytime, anywhere,” Johnson said. “If you look at my history, I never back down from a fight.”
He certainly won’t be backing down from a payday either. And Tarver isn’t backing down from anything.
“I’m pretty good in my rematches,” Tarver said, referring to rematches with Jones and Eric Harding in which he avenged earlier losses.
“Three times is a charm.”
On the undercard, the only U.S. gold medalist from the 2004 Olympics 165-pounder Andre Ward made a successful debut, stopping Chris Molina by TKO 40 seconds into the second round.
After the bout, Ward announced he signed a multi-fight contract with HBO.
Also on the undercard Julio Gonzalez prevailed at 174, knocking out David Telesco at 1:06 in the eighth round. Middleweight Travis Simms won an eight-round majority decision over Carlos Bojorquez. Heavyweight Vinny Maddalone took an eight-round unanimous decision over Ronnie Smith. In women’s lightweight action Mia St. John took out Lisa Lewis by TKO 1:46 into the first round.
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