Steve Arintok, strength and conditioning coach for former light-heavyweight champion Glen Johnson, is promising “the Road Warrior” will be the stronger and more agile man when he faces Carl Froch for the WBC super-middleweight title this Saturday (June 4).
Froch, a career super-middle, has been adamant that Johnson will start to feel adverse effects from dropping down to 168 after spending the last 10 years at 175 pounds. Arintok, who also trains MMA fighters, counters this point claiming Johnson has gained agility, speed and strength in training.
“Glen has worked hard on his explosiveness and core strength and his muscular endurance with lots of aerobic and anaerobic training,” Artinok explained. “He’s very strong at this weight, plus he’s lighter on his feet and more agile.”
Over the past decade, boxers have increasingly sought the use of sports science professionals to gain and cut weight efficiently. Arintok cites this trend as the main reason he feels Froch’s theory of Johnson becoming weight-drained is without merit.
“When it comes to strength and conditioning, the world of boxing is behind other sports. In the old days anybody who wanted to could walk in a gym and say they were a trainer and that was it,” he detailed. “They were in charge of the fighter’s training, exercise, diet, everything. Now you have guys who are real sports physiologists and certified coaches who do an overall assessment of the client and tailor a program to their specific needs. That’s what we’ve done with Glen to ensure he’s lost this weight without losing any power or endurance.”
When asked his opinion on Johnson’s future past the Super Six, Atrinok believes super-middleweight is his fighter’s natural weight should he continue competing.
“Glen is in shape to put pressure for all 12 rounds. My opinion, he should have been at 168 a long time ago,” he said.
Johnson vs. Froch airs this Saturday (June 4) on Showtime at 9 PM ET.
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