Showtime Boxing: Johnson Replaces Kessler In Super Six Tournament

ByBoxing Press

Veteran contender Glen “The Road Warrior” Johnson has been tapped to replace the injured Mikkel Kessler in the Super Six World Boxing Classic and is preparing to meet Allan Green in a Group Stage 3 bout on Saturday, Nov. 6, live on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast, it was officially announced today by Showtime Sports Executive Vice President and General Manager Ken Hershman.

The 12-rounder between the Jamaican-born Johnson (50-14-2, 34 KOs), of Miami, Fla., and Green (29-2, 20 KOs), of Tulsa, Okla., will emanate from MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas and open the telecast on Showtime In the second half of the excellent Nov. 6 doubleheader, undefeated WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel “JuanMa” Lopez (29-0, 26 KOs) of Puerto Rico will defend his title against two-division world champion Rafael Marquez (39-5, 35 KOs) of Mexico City.

A former IBF light heavyweight champion, Johnson is a hard-knocking veteran who has fought and defeated some of the best fighters of this era. Seemingly always in close, rough, crowd-pleasing fights, Johnson owns victories over Roy Jones Jr. and Antonio Tarver, among others.

Johnson has appeared in seven world title fights and now has an opportunity to reestablish himself as one of the world’s elite prizefighters.

“I want to thank Showtime for including me in their Super Six tournament,” he said. “Having dedicated so many years to the sport of boxing, it is gratifying to still be considered worthy of competing with some of the top fighters in the world and on such a prestigious platform.”

Regarding the super middleweight limit of 168 pounds, at which Johnson has not fought since 2000, he stated: “I typically weigh in at 172 pounds for my light heavyweight fights. I will have no trouble making the 168-pound limit as a super middleweight.”

Group Stage 3, the final Stage of the point-based round-robin portion of the tournament, will determine the four fighters who will advance to the single-elimination Semifinals. As per tournament rules, a replacement fighter enters the Group Stage tied with the last place fighter—in this case, Green with zero points.

Both men go into the Nov. 6 showdown on equal ground. But only one will have the opportunity to qualify for the Semis. The winner of Green vs. Johnson—with either 2 or 3 points—would need help from Andre Ward and/or Arthur Abraham to qualify.

Allan Green, who was badly outmatched in his Group Stage 2 bout against Ward, is ready for the challenge ahead of him. Inspired by his last fight, his intense preparation will continue as planned despite the change from Kessler to Johnson. No matter the opposition, Green needs a strong performance in Group Stage 3 to advance.

Following Nov. 6, Group Stage 3 will conclude on Saturday, Nov. 27, on Showtime when Ward of Oakland, Calif., faces Andre Dirrell of Flint, Mich., in a battle of American stars and Abraham of Germany takes on former WBC titlist Carl Froch of England, in a matchup that pits arguably the hardest punchers in the Super Six at Hartwall Areena in Helsinki, Finland. Ward-Dirrell will be televised live; Abraham-Froch will be shown on same-day delay.