Callum Johnson

Callum Johnson
Statistics
Real name	Callum Johnson
Nickname(s)	The One
Rated at	Light Heavyweight
Nationality	British
Born	20 August 1985 (age 31) Boston, Lincolnshire, England, UK
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	16
Wins	16
Wins by KO	11
Losses	0
Medal record Men's Boxing Representing  Scotland Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi Light heavyweight

Callum Johnson is a British professional boxer fighting in the light heavyweight division. He won gold whilst representing Scotland at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. He turned professional following the tournament. He joined Matchroom Boxing in 2015.

Amateur career

Callum began boxing at a local club in his home town of Boston from an early age but moved to train at Terry Allen Unique ABC in Lincoln by the time he was sixteen. He fought 40 times in international contests.^[1] In total Johnson boxed on 120 occasions as an amateur winning 95.^[2] Despite being English and living in Lincolnshire, Johnson boxed for Scotland for six years qualifying by way of his Grandmother who came from Springburn in Glasgow. For the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi he was made the captain of the Scottish boxing squad.^[3]

Commonwealth Games

Johnson was part of the Scotland team to compete at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Picked at the 81kg Light heavyweight category Johnson fought his way to the final beating the likes of Krystian Borucki of the Isle of Man in his first bout, defeating British number one Obed Mbwakongo representing England 6-2 in the quarter finals^[4] and stopping Jermaine Asare of Wales in the semi's. In the final he claimed the gold medal with an 8-1 win over Northern Ireland's Thomas McCarthy. Speaking of his win Johnson said that he needed to keep his concentration following the attempts of his teammate Steve Simmons trying to play the Flower of Scotland on a Vuvuzela during the last 3 minutes of the fight. He said "I could hear Stevie, and, to be honest, in the last round I nearly started singing it myself...It was in my head - I was singing it in my head in the last 30 seconds. But you've got to keep focused, because it only takes one shot in this game."^[5]

Professional career

After the Commonwealth Games Johnson made the decision to turn professional signing with promoter Frank Warren and being managed by former world champion Prince Naseem Hamed.^[6] Speaking of signing professional forms Johnson said "It's fantastic to turn professional under Frank Warren who is the man to guide me to achieve my dream, to become world champion."^[6] The decision to join Warren's stable of boxers meant that Johnson joined the likes of other former Commonwealth Games gold medalists to have turned pro with Warren including Scotsman Alex Arthur who won gold in 1998 and Stephen Smith, Jamie Cox and Don Broadhurst all of whom won gold in 2006.^[6] Speaking of his decision to go into boxing management Naseem Hamed claimed that boxing had become "downtrodden" Johnson would add a bit of "sparkle" to the sport saying "Callum Johnson is going to be the guy to put that in. He is going to be the best breath of fresh air boxing can have." He added "I think his first ten fights will be ten knockouts and he'll be world champion within three years."^[7] On 4 December 2010 Johnson made his professional debut at the Braehead Arena in Glasgow boxing on the undercard of Ricky Burns world title defence against Andreas Evenson. The fight against Phillip Townley was stopped in the second round, handing Townley his first stoppage defeat and a first win for Johnson.^[8] Speaking of the nature of the victory, Naseem Hamed said "This guy's got dynamite in his hands...I just feel that he is so explosive, so chilling. He throws his punches so correctly. That is one of the reasons I got involved with Callum Johnson."^[8] His second fight took place on 14 March 2011, in which he faced Jody Meikle. The fight went on to the final stage and was won by points (40-35 to Callum). This marked his second victory in 2 professional fights, keeping his record as a 100% win.

Professional boxing record

Professional record summary
16 fights	16 wins	0 losses
By knockout	11	0
By decision	4	0
By disqualification	1	0

References

1. This is Lincolnshire | Callum keeps his feet on the ground despite turning professional
2. This is Lincolnshire | Hamed back protege Johnson to rule boxing world
3. The Herald | Scotlands commonwealth boxing captain hopes to celebrate medal glory
4. This is Lincoln | Callum Johnson ensures bronze and sets his sights on Olympic games spot
5. The Scotsman | Euphoria nearly got the better of Callum Johnson
6. Boxing Scene | Callum Johnson Commonwealth champion inks with Warren
7. The Scotsman | Prince Naseem tips Johnson to breathe new life into the sport
8. BBC Sport | Naseem Hamed praises 'chilling' Johnson debut
9. Callum Johnson's career boxing record