Delante “Tiger” Johnson is full of confidence heading into his next bout.
The unbeaten welterweight takes on rising contender Nicklaus Flaz in this Friday’s ProBox TV main event from RP Funding Center in Lakeland, Florida. Many view it as a dangerous matchup in both directions, though not an opinion shared by the Cleveland, Ohio native.
“I’m real excited. I don’t look at him like a dangerous opponent. I’m the dangerous one,” said Johnson. “A lot of people are counting me out in this fight and I’m just ready to show the world what I can do.”
Johnson, is 16-0 (7 KOs) and preparing for his third contest of the year. Flaz, 15-2 (10 KOs), has his second outing of 2025.
Two fights ago, Johnson – a Tokyo Olympics quarterfinalist for the U.S. – moved up from junior welterweight.
“One-forty [pounds] had its moment,” he said. “I couldn’t really do it no more, so it was best for me to go up to 147.”
Johnson was a good amateur - you have to be to advance as far as he did, on the world stage. His resume in the unpaid ranks includes Kelvin Davis, Ryan Garcia, and Marques Valle as well as Roniel Igleasias in the delayed Tokyo Olympics.
That wealth of experience, coupled with aggressive matchmaking on the part of Top Rank during his early pro years, has Johnson confident that he is more than ready for Flaz.
“I’ve been in tough since my debut,” said Johnson, who did not fight one opponent with a losing record coming up. “I’ve been having tough fights my whole career, and I don’t underestimate anybody. I’m not underestimating Flaz or his team, any opponent, I just know what I can do.
“I already proved myself 16 times, so I’m here to keep doing what I do. He’s got to be able to stop me and it’s not going to be nothing I can’t handle. I’ve been in the ring with a million different styles, and his style ain’t nothing I haven’t seen before. But the thing is, he’s never been in the ring with someone like me. That’s the difference.”
Johnson estimates he had around 200 fights in the amateurs and feels victory over Flaz will have him on the cusp of a world title fight.
Flaz is ranked No. 10 by the IBF and No. 11 by the WBO.
“I definitely had a lot of fights as an amateur. I had the opportunity to go to the Olympics, I’ve been on Team USA for six years, so I got the chance to travel the world and be in the ring with a lot of top amateurs in the world,” Johnson said.
“I should be right there [for a title shot should he be victorious]. A win over Flaz and I should be at the door. I feel like I’m ready for any world champion right now, but right now the job is to get through Flaz and then worry about what’s next later.”
Tris Dixon covered his first amateur boxing fight in 1996. The former editor of Boxing News, he has written for a number of international publications and newspapers, including GQ and Men’s Health, and is a board member for the Ringside Charitable Trust and the Ring of Brotherhood. He has been a broadcaster for TNT Sports and hosts the popular “Boxing Life Stories” podcast. Dixon is a British Boxing Hall of Famer, an International Boxing Hall of Fame elector, a BWAA award winner, and is the author of five boxing books, including “Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing” (shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year), “Warrior: A Champion’s Search for His Identity” (shortlisted for the Sunday Times International Sportsbook of the Year) and “The Road to Nowhere: A Journey Through Boxing’s Wastelands.” You can reach him @trisdixon on X and Instagram.
