Sometimes the best fight on the card isn’t the title fight. On July 4 in Cleveland, Delante “Tiger” Johnson and Christopher “Machine Gun” Guerrero are being matched for exactly one reason: someone knew this could be a show-stealer. Both fighters are unbeaten. Both debuted in 2021. Both carry genuine power at 147 pounds, and neither has faced anyone close to the level of the fighter across the ring from them on Saturday night. One walks out with their 0 intact and a path to a world title. The other starts again.
Delante Johnson is one of Cleveland’s own, and this crowd will know his name. He competed at the Tokyo Olympics in the welterweight division — going out in the quarter-finals against eventual gold medallist Roniel Iglesias of Cuba — and returned home to a professional career that has quietly built into something significant. A 2016 Youth World Championship gold medallist and Pan American Games multi-medallist, Johnson brings the kind of amateur pedigree that earns you the first fifteen fights in the pros before anyone seriously tests you.
At 27, with a 17-0 record and 8 knockouts (47% KO rate), Johnson is now ranked in the top fifteen by both the WBO and IBF at welterweight. The NABO welterweight title he won in November 2025 — stopping Nicklaus Flaz in four rounds — established him as a serious contender. His 5’11” frame gives him a height edge over most welterweights, and his jab is his best weapon. But that 47% KO rate tells you something: Johnson boxes to win, not to hurt. He will need to find a different gear against Guerrero.
The name is earned. Christopher Guerrero from Gatineau, Quebec — of Mexican and Italian heritage, trained by Giuseppe Moffa, promoted by Eye of the Tiger Management — has built a 16-0 record with 9 knockouts (56% KO rate) since turning professional in the same year as Johnson. He is shorter (5’8”), carries the WBC Continental Americas welterweight title, and in 2024 spent time sparring with the elite Jaron Ennis in Philadelphia. That detail is not promotional noise. Ennis is arguably the best welterweight on earth. If Guerrero survived and learned in that camp, he has been tested in places Johnson has not yet reached.
“I’m not here to collect a paycheck. I’m here to take what’s mine,” Guerrero said in the build-up. His trainer Giuseppe Moffa adds: “You don’t get anything without taking risks, but Christopher is ready. This is the fight that will change his life.” A fighter from Quebec, fighting in Cleveland, against the hometown Olympian — if that doesn’t bring out his best, nothing will.
| Delante Johnson | Christopher Guerrero | |
|---|---|---|
| Age | 27 | 25 |
| Height | 5’11” / 180 cm | 5’8” / 173 cm |
| Record | 17-0 | 16-0 |
| KO Rate | 47% (8 KOs) | 56% (9 KOs) |
| Pro Debut | 2021 | 2021 |
Johnson has the height edge (3”) and the hometown advantage. Guerrero has the higher KO rate and five years less mileage on the odometer.
Johnson (last fights):
| Result | Opponent | Method | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| W | Nicklaus Flaz | TKO | 4 |
| W | Janelson Bocachica | UD | 10 |
Guerrero (last fights):
| Result | Opponent | Method | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| W | Williams Herrera | UD | 10 |
| W | Sandy Messaoud | TKO | 10 |
Johnson went the full ten against Bocachica and looked composed throughout. Guerrero closed his Messaoud fight with a late stoppage — going the full distance before finishing — which tells you something about his engine and his patience under pressure.
Two orthodox welterweights who both prefer to box. Johnson uses his height and jab to control range; Guerrero uses pressure and volume to close that range and make it uncomfortable. Johnson’s amateur background gives him elite defensive habits — head movement, footwork, shoulder rolls — that a pressure fighter will need to solve. Guerrero’s slightly higher KO rate suggests a more emphatic finishing gear when he lands clean.
The Ennis sparring adds a layer of credibility to Guerrero’s preparation that doesn’t show in any statistic. Jaron Ennis is fast, powerful, and precise. Surviving rounds with Ennis — and learning from them — is worth more than most opposition welterweights can provide at this stage of Guerrero’s career. If Johnson tests him with fast combinations, Guerrero has felt that before. Johnson, fighting a road warrior with that gym background for the first time, may not find the same tactical leverage his amateur IQ usually provides.
Johnson’s home crowd is a real intangible. Cleveland will be loud for the local Olympian — noise doesn’t punch for you, but it does affect how judges score close rounds, and it sustains a fighter through hard moments. Guerrero will need to be so clearly ahead that the scorecards can’t help Johnson.
Johnson needs to:
Guerrero needs to:
| Fighter | US Moneyline | UK Fractional |
|---|---|---|
| Delante Johnson | -500 | 1/4 |
| Christopher Guerrero | +375 | 3/1 |
The market leans Johnson, and the home advantage makes that feel right. But -500 is steep for a fight that has “genuinely competitive” written all over it. Guerrero is dangerous, well-prepared, and has nothing to lose fighting in an opponent’s building.
Prediction: Delante Johnson by split or majority decision. Guerrero will make this genuinely hard — expect him to take the middle rounds with pressure and body work, and there will be a moment around rounds 6-7 where the crowd gets nervous. But Johnson’s amateur defence and hometown composure will stabilise the fight in the championship rounds. Expect Guerrero to push to the final bell, with Johnson winning by the narrowest of margins on at least one card. The fight of the night is very much on.
| Country | Broadcaster | Time |
|---|---|---|
| USA | TNT / truTV / DAZN | 8:00 PM ET |
| UK | DAZN | 1:00 AM BST (Sun Jul 5) |
| Worldwide | DAZN | Check local listings |
Don’t sleep on this one. Put it in your calendar alongside the title fights, because Johnson vs Guerrero has the ingredients to be the most visceral fight on the card. Cleveland’s Olympic hero defending his unbeaten record against a hungry Canadian who trained with the best welterweight in the world to get ready — that is the kind of fight that builds careers and ends them simultaneously. Also on the same card: Abdullah Mason defends the WBO lightweight title against Albert Bell — read our Mason vs Bell preview — and Bruce Carrington makes his first WBC featherweight title defence against Rene Palacios — read our Carrington vs Palacios preview.
When is Johnson vs Guerrero? Saturday, July 4, 2026. Main card starts at 8:00 PM ET / 1:00 AM BST. Johnson vs Guerrero is expected in the first half of the main card.
What weight class is Johnson vs Guerrero? Welterweight (147 lb), scheduled for 10 rounds. There is no title at stake in this bout.
What are the odds for Johnson vs Guerrero? Delante Johnson is favoured at -500 (1/4). Christopher Guerrero is the underdog at +375 (3/1).
Who is Delante Johnson? A 27-year-old welterweight from Cleveland, Ohio. Johnson competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the welterweight division and turned professional in 2021. He is 17-0 with 8 knockouts and holds the NABO welterweight title.
Who is Christopher Guerrero? A 25-year-old unbeaten welterweight from Gatineau, Quebec, of Mexican and Italian heritage. He holds the WBC Continental Americas welterweight title and is promoted by Eye of the Tiger Management. His 2024 training camp included sparring sessions with elite welterweight Jaron Ennis.
How to watch Johnson vs Guerrero in the UK? On DAZN. The fight is expected in the early main card, around 1:30–2:30 AM BST on Sunday July 5.
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