 The first five minutes of competition saw neither man strike a blow and then when Perrins tried to make contact Johnson dodged and felled Perrins in return.Although Perrins recovered to hold the upper hand in the first few rounds, Johnson then began to dance around the ring, forcing Perrins to follow in order to make a fight of it.This was the first time in his career that Johnson had found it necessary to resort to this tactic of shifting.