Flaz vs Johnson Predictions: Nico tries to tame the Tiger in Florida

Nicklaus Flaz steps back into the ring for a tough test on Friday, November 7 as he takes on unbeaten Delante Johnson. The welterweight 10-rounder is free-to-air on the ProBoxTV YouTube channel, with the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, Florida hosting the contest. 

Read on for my Flaz vs Johnson predictions.

Flaz vs Johnson Odds

Johnson did start out as the betting favourite. But as of press time, he had dropped to 1/1 to win this close match-up. Flaz inches ahead at 20/21. The draw is priced at 14/1 and might interest a few given how tight this fight is.

Flaz vs Johnson Fight Preview

These warring welterweights come into Friday’s fight in fine form, but only one can add to their swelling winning streaks in Florida.

Flaz’s last outing was a fourth-round TKO over Alan Sanchez, who beat world-level Pablo Cesar Cano once upon a time. Meanwhile, Johnson’s last activity was a 10-round decision victory over Janelson Figueroa Bocachica, who holds a very notable win where Friday’s clash is concerned.

Bochachia knocked Flaz out in one round back in 2020. It was a naive performance from Nico, who tried to fight fire with fire rather than employ evasive tactics. With just seconds left in the round, the Puerto Rican chose to go to war and got consumed in the process. A brutal lesson.

It is one Flaz seems to have learned from. While his opponent went on to fight big divisional names like Roiman Villa and current WBO champion Brian Norman Jr, Nico has ploughed a lonely furrow. The names haven’t been as big, but not all that glitters is gold. While Bochachica is 1-5-1 with 1 No Contest since the win, beaten Flaz is 6-0 since that painful reverse.

The first two of those victories came against unbeaten fighters, as the Puerto Rican resisted a new life as fodder for up-and-comers. The wins have got bigger and now Flaz is world-ranked, sitting at 11th with the WBO and 10th with the IBF. A win over Johnson would put him into the discussion for a world title shot, with IBF champion Lewis Crocker yet to announce a next move.

‘Tiger’ Johnson is looking for his own way into the world top-10. At 16-0, the 27-year-old is ready for that transition from prospect to contender. If he pulls this off, it won’t be the only big move Johnson has made this year. The Cleveland pugilist moved up to welterweight from the 140-pound division back in March.

A sharp-shooting fifth-round stoppage of Kendo Castaneda introduced ‘Tiger’ to the 147-pound division with aplomb. The Bochachica fight was more of a tactical chess match, but that is to be expected against a big punching gatekeeper who has been in with the best.

The welterweight switch partially blunts one of Johnson’s best assets; his long 5’11 frame. The 27-year-old was a physical oddity down at 140, but his Friday foe is only two inches shorter and outdoes him in reach by an inch.

Johnson is no power puncher, with just seven knockouts in 16 victories. Most of those were against men who had been KO’ed before and in some cases have been since. Conversely, Flaz has proper pop in his shots, with 10 finishes in 15 wins. 

The boxers are only separated by two years, with Flaz the elder at 29. But for him, this feels like the last chance saloon. For Johnson, he can probably stomach a setback at this stage and still battle on. However, ‘Tiger’ will be keen to save himself the trouble.

Flaz vs Johnson Full Card

Nicklaus Flaz vs Delante Johnson

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Xavier Bocanegra vs Sergio Aldana

Ranulfo Bocanegra vs Julio Lanzas Carrillo

Benjamin Smith vs Czegory Days

Flaz vs Johnson Prediction

I like Flaz in this one. He is a natural welterweight with the punch power to match. He boxes like a man who has learned from his two defeats and has gone unbeaten in five years since the last one. 

Meanwhile, Johnson is gifted but will find himself stalked all night long. He cannot rely on long limbs to keep his foe off and his power is unlikely to interrupt what Flaz wants to do. I’m taking Flaz to pull this one off at 20/21.

You can find all our latest boxing betting tips and analysis at our Betfred Insights Boxing page and our latest boxing odds here.