Weights from Switzerland: Klitschko 246.9, Johnson 242.5 – News

By Chris Williams: In one of the rare fights in which an opponent of the Klitschko brothers weighs nearly as much as them, unbeaten Kevin Johnson (22-0-1, 9 KO’s) weighed in at 242.5 for tomorrow night’s bout against World Boxing Council heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (38-2, 37 KO’s) at the PostFinance Arena, in Bern, Switzerland.

Vitali, 38, came in at 246.9, a normal weight for him. Johnson, 30, came in at a little heavier than he usually does for his fights. Johnson typical comes in anywhere from 229 to 243 for his fights. He looks like he’s put on a little more muscle for this fight and trimmed off some flab from his physique.

Few people are giving Johnson much chance against the older Klitschko brother. That’s not because Johnson doesn’t have great boxing skills, because he certainly is a highly skilled fighter. Mostly, Johnson isn’t being given a chance in the fight because of two things: his lack of power and his total absence of experience against top level fighters.

You can add to that Johnson’s tendency to look lazy in many of his fights in which he does the minimum amount of work to get win. This isn’t a fight where Johnson will be able to get by doing the minimum, resting on the ropes and taking rounds off.

Johnson won’t be able to get by with using his jab alone in this fight. Although Johnson does have a great jab, he will need much more than that to overcome the huge size and power advantage that the 38-year-old Klitschko will have in this fight. Johnson is capable of controlling a fight with his jab alone against the 2nd tier opposition he’s faced during his career, but not against the best heavyweight in the division.

Johnson hasn’t shown the kind of talent to beat someone as good as Klitschko. Johnson would have been better off working his way up the chain and fighting one or two top tier heavyweights before facing a fighter like Klitschko. Johnson could have used the experience. At 6’3”, Johnson will be giving up four and half inches in height against Vitali.

Although Johnson will have a two inch reach advantage, but that won’t mean much because Klitschko won’t fight on the outside. Johnson will be able to land his jabs during the fight, but he’s going to find Vitali in his face more often than he perhaps would like. Klitschko likes to fight at mid range where he lands his hooks, jabs and right hands. Klitschko may not look very fast, but he has heavy hands and likes to load up with his shots from time to time to catch his opponents off guard.

Johnson may not be as flashy and as well known as World Boxing Association heavyweight champion David Haye, but he’s a very capable fighter and could give Klitschko a good fight if he focuses on staying on the outside. Johnson would be a very opponent for any other heavyweight in the division besides the Klitschko brothers, and could be good enough to beat Haye if given the chance.

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