Kevin Johnson, a 36-year-old Baltimore native, defeats Glen Burnie’s Danny Kisner

GLEN BURNIE, Md. (Map, News) - There’s no sponsor on Kevin Johnson’s boxing trunks. The heavyweight doesn’t have a nickname.

When Johnson entered the ring for his first professional bout on Thursday at Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, he was wearing a white polo shirt with thin blue stripes.

“I’m basically just going with the flow,” he said. “I really didn't have time to really set up anything. I was just coming to fight.”

The 36-year old Baltimore native may have started boxing for the money, but it’s certainly not easy to tell by watching him in the ring.

Yet for Johnson, whose boxing experience had been limited to an unheralded amateur career that began in 2000, Thursday's fight represented a giant step forward.

And after defeating Glen Burnie’s Danny Kisner with a fourth round technical knockout in his pro debut, the big pay days might not be too far behind.

Trainer Lamont “Chin” Farmer first saw Johnson at the Mac Lewis Gym in Baltimore in 2001, but when Farmer left to form his own gym, he lost touch with Johnson.

Three years ago, Johnson came to Farmer's Honey Comb Hideout Boxing Gym, and the pair went to work.

“Kevin had a very low opinion of himself, so we had to do almost a complete renovation,” Farmer said. “It was like buying a house that was tore up from the floor up and going in there and fixing it up, so hopefully when we’re finished we have a palace.”

Farmer worked hard with Johnson on his technique to make sure the fighter reacted in the ring without thinking. The mild-mannered Johnson trained to be more aggressive.

He entered a few amateur tournaments and competed in individual bouts to gain experience without focusing on wins and losses.

Last year, Johnson started looking for a professional fight to turn his hobby into a money-making endeavor.

“You can’t keep a guy on the shelf forever,” Farmer said. “I’m a very cautious guy. I don’t like to put a guy out there until I think he’s really ready, but still you can’t hold him back and he did do some good things.”

One reason to believe Johnson has a successful career ahead of him is his size. Johnson weighed in at 201 1/4 pounds to face Kisner (1-1), who outweighed him by 30 pounds. Johnson realizes dropping under 200 pounds to fight as a cruiserweight probably is his best option.

“I think this was a good tune up for bigger and better fights,” Johnson said.

Johnson is not sure exactly what his boxing future holds, but said he’d be open to commercializing his image with a nickname or sponsor if Farmer decides it is best.

Until then, he'll continue to “go with the flow.”

edetweiler@baltimoreexaminer.com

Advertisement