How Well Does Alex Theran Really Know Tureano Johnson

By Jake Donovan

Alex Theran insists he’s not heading into Friday’s showdown with Tureano Johnson as the opponent, but as a well-informed fighter geared to pull off the upset.

The two collide in the chief support of a Fox Sports 1 televised event (Friday, 10PM ET) at Madison Square Garden Theatre in New York City, marking the promotional debut of Jay Z’s Roc Nation Sports.

Johnson is by far the more polished of the two, but Theran sees a number of flaws he believes he can exploit.

“I know that Tureano will be strong in the beginning of the fight,” acknowledges Theran (17-1, 10KOs), a 24-year old Colombian boxer who fights in New York for the first time in his career. “But I believe he has poor technique and is slow. I’m much quicker and can move around the ring, and don’t believe he can deal with my speed.”

Both fighters claim to have the other well scouted, but there is confusion as to just how familiar they are with one another. 

Theran claims to own a win over Johnson in the amateur ranks during an Olympic qualifier, that they “fought in 2008 and I beat him. He has leaky defense… I believe I match up well with him.”

The claim doesn’t quite line up with the fact that Johnson in fact qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, representing his native Bahamas.

“It wasn’t me,” Johnson (17-1, 12KOs) insists, who vividly remembers the competition in question, just not facing or losing to Theran. “I qualified for the Olympics… he didn’t.” 

The bout is scheduled for 10-rounds, with a pair of regional titles at stake.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox