Reno confident as October 30 fight looms

As of tomorrow, it will be exactly three weeks to Bahamian professional boxer Tureano “Reno” Johnson’s title bout against Mexican Jaime Munguia. That fight is set for Friday, October 30, and the Bahamian Middleweight Champion is training hard, confident that he will get the job done. He is looking to put on a show.

Johnson will be going after the World Boxing Organization’s (WBO) Intercontinental Middleweight belt. The bout is set to be held at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, in Indio, California. It will be broadcasted exclusively on DAZN Network and will also be carried live on the network’s mobile application for Android and IOS.

“This is a fight that I have been looking forward to for quite some time now. No matter what, you just know you are prepared and have the ability to go in there and be victorious. As always, nerves do come upon you but I thank God and I am very confident. Rest assured, I will come out of this victorious,” said Johnson.

At this point of his training, Johnson said they are brushing up on techniques. It is almost the winding down period for him as he is getting his heart rate up and staying polished. They will soon be in the final phase, which is rest – the week before the fight.

He and his camp started off with training four times a day before dropping it to three times a day and now twice per day. As they get closer to the fight, they will train just once per day.

As for his plans for the bout, he knows that he is the older fighter at age 36 and wants to be tactical in his fighting. Munguia is 23.

“We are fighting an opponent such as Munguia, so there is going to be a particular kind of training. We deal with conditioning and endurance, speed and agility. For Munguia, we are using all of that and we have added a few more tools in the camp. Munguia is a big, strong and youthful guy, so we are going to use some technical aspects like keeping the hands up – don’t want to get hit from him. We want to throw him off mentally, so we are doing a lot of stuff technically and tactically,” Johnson said.

The Bahamian sports a 21-2-1 win-loss-draw record, with 15 knockouts. Munguia is undefeated with a record that stands at 35-0, with 28 coming by way of knockout.

Earlier in training, Johnson’s trainer was Cuban Nicholas Isadoro. Now, he has reunited with his head trainer, Andre Rozier out of New York. The week before the fight, Johnson will look to go to California. He said he feels great at this point, mentally and physically.

“My body for this fight feels brand new,” Johnson said. “I am stronger and faster. Mentally, I am driven and determined and hungrier. There have been hills and valleys, even at home, getting to train at the national gym. Even though the government allowed me to train, there was some red tape from the federation not allowing me to train without any interruption. Thanks be to God that the prime minister gave me the opportunity to leave the country to get the full and necessary training that I needed. Come the 30th of this month, you will see a brand new Tureano, mentally and physically.”

The former North American Boxing Federation (NABF) middleweight champion said he has been studying his opponent and has seen flaws. He said he will look to expose those flaws. He said he respects Munguia as he is a world champion but with this being just his second fight in the middleweight division, Johnson said he will make Munguia fail on this fight. The undefeated Munguia had five successful title defenses of the WBO World Super Welterweight Title before moving up to the middleweight division. In the ring, Johnson said, his fans can expect a smarter and explosive version of himself.

“Expect a non-stop, exciting fight. I am wiser and [more] clever. My IQ has gotten greater. I have a good technical coach in Rozier. The things he has taught me, I wish I had known before. Fans will see the relentless fighter that I have always been. My conditioning has been better than it has been and I have added a little more speed. Fans will see an explosive version of myself,” Johnson said.

Johnson said he has no prediction as to which round he will seal the victory, but that he is prepared for a 12-round fight, adding that a knockout is inevitable with him. He said he plans to win every round.

The Bahamian fighter said he has thrown off the quarantine weight and is slim and ready to go for October 30. He had a message for the Bahamian people: “Continue to support Bahamians whether it be me, any other athlete out there, entertainer or any Bahamian doing good in their field. Support Bahamians. I am all heart for The Bahamas. I fight to provide for my family to make my country proud. This is what I was made by God to do – fight.”

The Olympian thanked Aquapure, K.S. Moses, Señor Frog’s and his church, United Faith Ministries, for their support. He said he cannot forget his parents, wife and daughter for always being there for him.

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