The comeback trail Stevie Johnston has been on the past six months has been a happy one.
It winds through Atlantic City, N.J., tonight, when the veteran Denver boxer (37-13-1, 17 knockouts) is scheduled to fight former NABF and WBC lightweight champion Steve Quinonez (31-9-1, 11 KOs) in a pay-per-view event at the Tropicana Casino and Resort.
Johnston, a former two-time world lightweight champion, will be defending the NABC light welterweight (140 pounds) crown he won Dec. 3 in a unanimous 10-round decision over Vladimir Khodokovski. The fight will be Johnston’s third since returning to the ring after a two-year layoff. He defeated James Crayton in his first comeback bout Oct. 15.
“So far, so good,” Johnston said. “I’m 2-0. Hopefully after (tonight) I’ll be 3-0. I’m just glad to be back after going through that windshield about 2 1/2 years ago. I’m lucky to be alive, much less back fighting.”
Johnston, 33, suffered numerous cuts and bruises when he was thrown from the car in which he was riding after a collision near the Pepsi Center. After the accident, he decided to get back in the ring, teaming with trainer Buddy McGirt in Florida.
“I left boxing on a bad note,” Johnston said of an 11-round TKO loss to Juan Lazcano on Sept. 13, 2003. “I didn’t really prepare for my last fight, and I shouldn’t have gone out like that. Me and Buddy knew each other when he was still boxing, and when I decided to come back, I found out he was training boxers down there, so I gave him a call.”
About Quinonez, Johnston said: “He’s a lefty like me, and he’s tough, very tough. So I’ve got to be on my game. Be smart and outbox him.”
At 139 pounds, Johnston said he likes the weight he’s fighting at and hopes a victory tonight will get him a match against any of the 140-pound champions: Floyd Mayweather, Ricky Hatton or Miguel Cotto.
Previously among the main fighters for Top Rank, Johnston is promoted by Silverhawk Boxing and managed by Rider Boxing. Tonight’s main event is a match between former three-time world champion Virgil Hill (49-5, 23 KOs) and unbeaten Russian Valery Brudov (23-0, 20 KOs) for the vacant WBA cruiserweight championship.
Joseph Sanchez can be reached at 303-820-5458 or jsanchez@denverpost.com.
