By Jim Dower: Undefeated heavyweight contender Kevin Johnson (22-0-1, 9 KO’s) will be taking a risky fight against unbeaten former 2004 heavyweight Gold Medal winner Odlanier Solis (14-0, 10 KO’s) on August 15th at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Johnson, 29, is ranked number #4 in the WBA, #7 WBC and #13 in the IBF, is within striking distance of a fight against World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Nikolay Valuev and is looking to make an impression on the boxing world by fighting the unbeaten former Cuban gold medal winner Solis.
Johnson needs to speed up his career because at 29, he doesn’t have a lot more time left in the sport before younger fighters start breathing down his neck. Johnson is known for his excellent jab and good ring movement. He doesn’t have much power.
However, in his last fight against former 2004 heavyweight Olympian Devin Vargas, Johnson proved that he can punch when he has an opponent that is standing directly in front of him trying to trade punches with him. Johnson’s work rate, once good, didn’t look at that great against Vargas. However, Johnson didn’t need to throw a lot of punches in the fight, dropping Vargas in the 3rd and 5th, and unloading on Vargas with a huge barrage of punches in the 6th causing Vargas’ team to throw in the towel.
Solis, 29, ranked #8 in the WBC, has been hand speed and power than Johnson, but he’s faced next to no one as of yet. Since turning pro in 2007, Solis has been carefully matched by his management team put in exclusively with C and D level opponents.
In facing the top ranked Johnson, Solis is being pushed up in a huge way. It’s curious why Solis’ team has decided to put him in with such a highly ranked fighter at this point without having him face a bottom 15th ranked fighter beforehand. It could be that they see Johnson as being an easy mark because of his weak power and his diminishing work rate in his last fight.
Solis, though, has had problems with his weight since turning pro. Solis fought at 200 pounds as an amateur in 2004, but immediately upon turning pro three years later in 2007, Solis had ballooned up to a huge 258. Some of the weight is muscle, naturally, but quite a bit of it is fat.
When one takes a look at Solis’ 2004 amateur bouts and compare it to how he looks and fights now, it’s like looking at two different fighters. Back in 2004, Solis was slender, moved well and had a lot of hand speed. But since turning pro, Solis looks bear-like, moves slowly and doesn’t have the hand speed that he once possessed. He still looks good, but not nearly as impressive as he was in 2004.
Picking a winner in this fight in his fight against Solis isn’t that easy. Johnson has the better jab, has fought better opposition and moves well around the ring. However, Solis has the hand speed, power and the ability to throw in combinations. Solis’ chin is top notched and he can put together powerful bursts of combinations.
I can’t see Johnson matching Solis’ combinations nor can I see Johnson hurting him with any of his left hooks or right hands. If I was to pick a winner in this fight, I’d have to go with Solis by a close decision. He’ll force Johnson to work harder than he’s had to in a long time and make him expend energy. At 245, Johnson looks 15 to 20 pounds overweight for his frame and will likely have problems with Solis’ pressure.
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