Chad Johnson vs. Brian Maxwell: Latest Comments, Training Videos for Each Boxer

Former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson is ready to entertain on a Sunday once again, only this time he's trading in the cleats for boxing gloves and the gridiron for a boxing ring.

Johnson will be fighting in a four-round exhibition match against boxer and mixed-martial artist Brian Maxwell as part of the undercard for the highly anticipated fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Logan Paul at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

For years, Johnson was must-see TV with the Cincinnati Bengals thanks to his eye-popping agility, creative trash talking and headline-grabbing touchdown celebrations. The Mayweather-Paul promoters are surely hoping the goodwill he's built up with fans—much of it because of football but some of it stemming from his constant, good-natured Twitter presence—will mean a few extra eyeballs for the Showtime pay-per-view card, which starts at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday.

At first glance, it seems like Johnson, 43, is taking a big risk in taking on a trained fighter like Maxwell, who has a background in bare-knuckle boxing (0-3), standard boxing (0-1) and MMA (2-3), per ESPN's Cameron Wolfe. But Ochocinco might surprise some folks in his boxing debut. He told The Ringer's Kevin Clark that he used combat sports to help him train during his football career and that he just left a training camp with boxing stars Jermell and Jermall Charlo in Houston (starts at 55-second mark of the video below).

One of the more recent fight videos shows Johnson getting in some work with the Charlos, as shared by B/R Betting and Showtime Boxing:

FightHype.com also has some footage of Johnson training for his bout.

So Johnson has a longstanding appreciation for boxing and is taking his training seriously. With only 12 minutes to show off his skills, will he go with an aggressive or a cautious approach against Maxwell? Count on the latter.

"My goal is to get out alive," Johnson said, per Wolfe. "I want my face still intact. I want my kids to still know it's me. But I want to entertain. I don't want to embarrass those who put the time and energy into me."

Maybe he will mix in a little showboating in between punches. 

As for Maxwell, the 33-year-old says he's taking this exhibition just as seriously as any other fight. He just doesn't have much tape to work with.

"I'm preparing for him just like I would anybody else. We watched a little bit of film that we have seen, and we've come up with two different game plans for whatever Chad Johnson that comes out," he said, per BJPenn.com's Cole Shelton.

Maxwell doesn't have much of a profile—you can find a couple of training clips and pictures on his Instagram—so Sunday represents a massive opportunity for the fringe fighter. 

"Once this happens and I get the stoppage, that will be instant superstar status for me," Maxwell said, per Shelton. "It will set up a lot of opportunities."

Johnson better be sharp because it sounds like Maxwell is going to come after him right away.

If you're even a little bit curious about seeing what kind of boxer Johnson is, Sunday might be your only chance to find out. Johnson told Clark that Sunday's fight is a "one-time thing." Given that his comments have been measured in the buildup to Sunday—something of a surprise for an all-time great trash talker—it could well turn out that he sticks to his word.

But who knows? Johnson has never shied away from the limelight. If he impresses in front of what should be a friendly crowd, maybe he will give it another shot someday.