NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Wade Schalles.

Besides being a two-time NCAA wrestling champion, a master pinner, and a 1991 inductee in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, Wade Schalles is also presently training people in catch wrestling by serving as coach of Scientific Wrestling.

A lot of his attention of late has been aimed at chronicling the many problems facing the sport of wrestling in his multi-part series called "How Wrestling Wins", and offering solutions.

On the occasion of a major event such as the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, which just took place March 19-21 in St. Louis, Missouri, it is important to find out his take on what it reveals about the state of wrestling today.

We spoke with Wade Schalles by phone Wednesday.

Speaking about the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, he said, "It's another wonderful event. It's our flagship event. I could either take this interview and make it all positive, which people tend to do in wrestling. I think it's smart to do the positive, talk about the greatness of the sport, and where we're headed, and the things it does for children."

He cautioned, however, "But I'm afraid we have very little time left to be positive."

The wrestling community, he said, "has to awaken to the problems we have. We only have maybe two-three years at most before bad things are going to happen to a lot of the non-revenue sports, not only wrestling."

Here he is referring to the effects of the O'Bannon decision, which mandates that colleges directly compensate many athletes in "revenue" sports like football and basketball, and where they will find the money to do so.

What must be done is, "Basically we have to get our costs in line. We have to increase our revenue potential. We have to spend wiser," he said.

"Every major institution in wrestling loses money."

We discussed why the current decision-makers in wrestling have not been making the "tough calls"; why the TV ratings for the 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships were not really impressive; how there is "no one in charge" of the sport of wrestling as a whole; why the college wrestling season should be moved to the spring so as not to conflict with the widely televised NCAA basketball tournament; why everything in wrestling must become "spectator-centric"; why he is planning on leaving wrestling; the potential for the re-emerging sport of catch wrestling to be "spectator-based" and exciting; and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Labels: catch, college, crisis, Eddie Goldman, How Wrestling Wins, NCAA, No Holds Barred, scientific, Wade Schalles

(Photos by Bob Mayeri)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Kyven Gadson, who just won an NCAA Div. I wrestling championship at 197 pounds at the 2015 NCAA national tournament, representing the Iowa State Cyclones.

And he did it in grand fashion, pinning his opponent, Kyle Snyder of team champion Ohio State, in the second period of their final match.

After the match, ESPN, which was telecasting this event, interviewed Kyven Gadson, who, when asked how he felt, cracked that he wanted some ice cream, and then ended the interview. This interview went viral online, and was one of the most talked about stories at this year's NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships.

We spoke with Kyven Gadson by phone Wednesday.

Explaining why he called his pinning move in the finals 'The Gadson', he said, "The reason we call it 'The Gadson' is because that's something Coach [Kevin] Jackson had taught me a while back, but I was really the only one on the team hitting it. So when I was hitting it in competition, we would say, 'Gadson Airlines' or 'Cyclone Airlines'."

He continued, "It's actually called a 'Polish Steparound Throw', according to Daniel Cormier. But I told Daniel last night when I was talking to him, that I would never, I couldn't call it the 'Polish Steparound Throw'. It just doesn't have that flavor to it. But I'd call it 'The Cormier-Gadson'. I saw him hit it in his highlights versus Dan Henderson, if you watch that on YouTube," referring to the Cormier-Henderson MMA fight.

"It was something that I had been practicing and had actually used it earlier in the tournament to get a fall in the second round, and had been using it a good amount of the season," he said. He also explained how to do this move, which involves getting an overhook on one side, an underhook on the other side, and hooking the leg as you throw your opponent to the mat.

We also discussed his viral interview where he said he wanted some ice cream, and how he only found out afterwards, and unexpectedly, that it had gone viral.

In addition, we delved into his career as a wrestler at Iowa State, which has now concluded on such a high note. We discussed his "roller-coaster relationship" with his late father, Willie Gadson, an All-American wrestler at Iowa State and his high school coach, who passed away from cancer in 2013, and how that affected his life on and off the mat. We also discussed the need for more diversity in college wrestling, his plans to become an athletic director at a university and get a master's degree and Ph.D., how he presently has no plans to continue wrestling, why he no longer uses social media, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: champion, college, Cyclones, Eddie Goldman, ice cream, Iowa State, Kevin Jackson, Kyven Gadson, NCAA, No Holds Barred, wrestling

Here are the Nielsen Ratings for all six sessions of the NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships. Note that neither prime time telecast on Friday or Saturday on ESPN made the top 100 cable shows among adults 18-49 for the whole day. I assume ESPN will soon release the numbers for the ESPN3 webcast.

These numbers are not terrible, but appear to be flat and stagnant. Friday's semis did about the same as a repeat of the Berto-Lopez boxing on Spike, a weaker network than ESPN. Friday's numbers on ESPN are also about the same as ESPN gets for a regular weekly telecast of Friday Night Fights, which is being cancelled in May.

UFC, which claims to support wrestling, once again ran a show in direct competition with the NCAA finals. Their UFC Fight Night on Fox Sports 1, also a weaker network than ESPN, started at 10 PM EDT, right as the last several matches were taking place, including Logan Stieber's fourth straight title win. Their show averaged 617,000 viewers, a little less than the NCAAs, but got a 0.3 adults 18-49 rating because it ran later than the NCAAs.

Here are the numbers from the Sports TV Ratings site (http://sportstvratings.com), with some info added from TV By the Numbers (http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com):

2015 NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships TV Ratings

Thursday, March 19, 2015
Program Net Episode Start End Viewers (000) 18-49 Rtg

Session 1 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L ESPNU 2015 NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

12:00 PM 3:52 PM 60 0.0

Session 2 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L ESPNU 2015 NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

7:00 PM 10:57 PM 109 0.0

http://sportstvratings.com/harvard-north-carolina-ohio-state-vcu-wofford-arkansas-lead-cable-sports-nets-for-thursday-march-19-2015/1824/

Friday, March 20, 2015
Program Net Episode Start End Viewers (000) 18-49 Rtg

Session 3 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L-03/20/2015 ESPNU 2015 NCAA WRESTLING

CHAMPIONSHIPS 11:00 AM 2:26 PM 123 0.1

Session 4 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L-03/20/2015 ESPN NCAA WRSTLNG CHAMPIONSHIP

8:00 PM 11:07 PM 451 0.2

(Did not make top 100 cable shows among adults 18-49 for the whole day.)

http://sportstvratings.com/coastal-carolina-wisconsin-valpo-maryland-davidson-iowa-lead-cable-sports-tv-ratings-for-friday-march-20-2015/1836/

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Session 5 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L ESNU Sat 11:00A-02:12P 184

Session 6 -- COLLEGE WRESTLING L ESPN Sat 08:00P-11:13P 694

(Did not make top 100 cable shows among adults 18-49 for the whole day.)

http://sportstvratings.com/butler-notre-dame-arkansas-north-carolina-nc-state-villanova-lead-cable-sports-nets-for-saturday-march-21-2015/1845/

Labels: 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, college, Eddie Goldman, ESPN, No Holds Barred, ratings, TV

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman, who is celebrating his birthday on Sunday, March 22, offers some thoughts and observations on the state of sports in general and the combat sports in particular. Discussed are the growing concern with head trauma and concussions; why retirement is not an option for him; the many problems facing wrestling and grappling events; the need to understand the world as a whole in order to understand the sports world; and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: birthday, boxing, catch, combat, concussions, Eddie Goldman, grappling, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Steve Koepfer, the owner and head coach of New York Combat Sambo.

Our main topic was a new and important event, the 2015 U.S. Combat Wrestling World Team Trials.

This event takes place Saturday, April 11, at the TK Martial Arts Academy, 223 East Monroe Avenue, Lowell, Arkansas 72745.

Combat wrestling, originally developed in Japan over 20 years ago by wrestling legend Noriaki Kiguchi, is being revived internationally. It is a style of submission wrestling which includes winning by submission or points, with points being awarded for attaining takedowns, superior positions, pins, and more.

The U.S. Combat Wrestling World Team Trials is a qualifying event for the first-ever Combat Wrestling World Championships held by the International Federation of Combat Wrestling (FICW), which will take place August 22, 2015, in Varna, Bulgaria.

A crowdfunding page to help support the U.S. combat wrestling team has been set up here.

We spoke with Steve Koepfer Monday at the headquarters of New York Combat Sambo.

"The end of last year, I was contacted by Ivaylo Ivanov," the founder and president of the FICW, he said.

"He had been working with Kiguchi-san from Japan on really getting this world federation together for combat wrestling."

As for the sport of combat wrestling, "It's been around a long time. This is pre-Abu Dhabi submission wrestling sport. It kind of declined in Japan for a bit, like MMA and everything else, but I think the rise and popularity of no-jacket submission wrestling-type events has really brought it back."

With plans being made for the first combat wrestling world championships in August, "Ivaylo had reached out to me to help through the American Sambo Association organize the first U.S. team trials and put the team together."

We discussed the rules of combat wrestling, how the U.S. Combat Wrestling World Team Trials are being organized in a professional manner, the rapid growth around the world of combat wrestling and its international federation in just one year, some of the other important events coming up in sambo and catch wrestling, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: catch, Combat Wrestling World Team Trials, Eddie Goldman, FICW, Ivaylo Ivanov, No Holds Barred, Noriaki Kiguchi, sambo, Steve Koepfer

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with our long-time colleague and wrestling correspondent, Bob Mayeri.

In our discussion, we previewed the 2015 NCAA Div. I Wrestling Championships.

The 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships run from Thursday, March 19, through Saturday, March 21, in St. Louis's Scottrade Center, and in the U.S., powerhouse telecaster ESPN is slated to show all the action. The finals Saturday night, along with the often epic semifinals Friday night, will both be shown live in prime time on ESPN. The other four sessions will be shown live on their college sports-oriented network, ESPNU.

In addition, all the action will be available live online on ESPN3, which will offer a multi-mat, simultaneous viewing format showing up to four different mats at one time. And both the TV and ESPN3 content will be available on their WatchESPN app.

Here is the TV schedule, with all times EDT:

2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship Television Schedule

Date Time Session Network

Thursday, March 19
Noon - 3:30 p.m. 1st Round ESPNU & ESPN3
7 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. 2nd Round ESPNU & ESPN3

Friday, March 20
11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Quarterfinals ESPNU & ESPN3
8 p.m. - 11 p.m. Semifinals ESPN & ESPN3

Saturday, March 21
11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Medal Round ESPNU & ESPN3
8:00 p.m. - 11 p.m. Championship Finals ESPN & ESPN3

For more information on ESPN's TV and online coverage, go here.

We spoke with Bob Mayeri by phone Tuesday.

"I think the team race seems to have piqued everybody's curiosity, because when I look at it I see at least five teams that have a possibility of winning this whole thing, although three of them seem to have the main focus," he said.

"Iowa, Ohio State, Missouri -- those are the main three, with considerations got to be given to Minnesota and Cornell also in the team race."

With team points being earned both in the regular tournament matches and the wrestlebacks, "It will have everybody waiting to see how it turns out," he said.

We also discussed the favorites for winners in each of the ten weight classes, the quest by Ohio State's Logan Stieber to win his fourth straight NCAA title, what team victories by upstart teams like Missouri or Ohio State would mean for college wrestling, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: 2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, Bob Mayeri, college, Eddie Goldman, ESPN, Iowa, Missouri, No Holds Barred, Ohio State

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with wrestling historian and author Mike Chapman.

He has recently written a book on undefeated college wrestler, 1920 Olympic silver medalist wrestler, pro catch wrestler and shooter, and Hollywood actor Nat Pendleton.

We spoke with Mike Chapman by phone Saturday.

While wrestling for Columbia, which had the first college wrestling program in the U.S., "He was an exceptional college wrestler, never lost a match," he said.

"This is before the days of the NCAA tournament, of course. He won the Eastern Intercollegiate Wresting Association title twice, which is a really tough tournament," in 1914 and 1915, he said.

"He won the AAU Nationals twice," in 1916 and 1920, he said, in what was then called amateur catch-as-catch-can wrestling, and today is known as freestyle wrestling.

Also in amateur catch-as-catch-can wrestling, in 1920, he said, "He won a silver medal in the Olympics." Many observers of that match have argued that Pendleton was robbed of the gold medal, "which happens a lot in international competition."

Pendleton's next stop was pro wrestling, which had not completely devolved into the spectacle we have today.

This was "at a time when pro wrestling was starting to evolve from a pure athletic contest -- well, actually it was already well into the evolution into show business and theatrics."

As to how Nat Pendleton reacted to this change in pro wrestling, he said, "I maintain from my research through the last ten years, and what I've known about Nat, that Nat really felt that he was a catch wrestler extraordinaire. He loved catch wrestling. He cared deeply about it. And he resisted the movement into theatrics."

Of course, to theatrics it was for pro wrestling, so after a few years, he decided to go where people were upfront about their theatrics -- Hollywood, where he had a career appearing in almost 100 films.

We also discussed a legendary pro catch wrestling match which Nat Pendleton had in 1923 with the great John Pesek, which is one of the last real, or shoot, matches in pro wrestling. Held in Boston with heavy newspaper coverage, Pesek was able to defeat Pendleton by submission in two straight falls.

In addition, we discussed the legacy of Nat Pendleton for college wrestling and his alma mater, Columbia; the lessons of the devolution of catch wrestling last century into a staged spectacle; what the re-emerging catch wrestling movement of today has to learn about good governance of the sport and the battle against corruption from the tragedy of the real sport's demise in the past; and much more.

Mike Chapman's biography of Nat Pendleton is a must-read for all those interested in the history of college, Olympic, catch, and pro wrestling. It provides a rare insight into the life of a remarkable individual who went from the Ivy League halls of Columbia University to the wrestling mats and rings of his era, and then to an acting career during the golden age of Hollywood films. The book is also appropriate for teens and children, who will no doubt learn a lot about life and history in the 20th century.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: catch, college, Columbia, Eddie Goldman, Hollywood, Mike Chapman, Nat Pendleton, No Holds Barred, Olympic, pro, wrestling

My latest blog for the Defense Soap site, "Everything! ESPN to Show All of NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships", is up at http://blog.defensesoap.com/news/everything-espn-to-show-all-of-ncaa-division-i-wrestling-championships.

Labels: Defense Soap, Eddie Goldman, ESPN, NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, No Holds Barred

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the conflict between the International Judo Federation and its continental union, the European Judo Union (EJU), and mixed martial arts organizations, especially UFC. This dispute has falsely been described by some as "judo vs. MMA".

This conflict recently received much attention when the EJU pulled the 2015 European Judo Championships from Glasgow, Scotland, in April, and moved it to become part of the inaugural European Games in June in Baku, Azerbaijan. The key reason was that the original local host of the event, the British Judo Association, had gotten UFC to be a sponsor, despite MMA being illegal in France and the EJU repeatedly warning the British judo leaders that they disapproved of the values promoted by UFC.

Sergey Soloveychik, the president of the EJU, was recently quoted by the BBC saying: "MMA is not a sport, it is some kind of show." He added, "Sport should have some human values and sports should help society develop human values. With MMA, it is not so."

He also is quoted as saying: "It's not good if your opponent is on his stomach and you sit on him and beat his head.

"It's not good for the education of the young generation, so we don't like to promote this kind of organisation during our competition. The spirit is to destroy your opponents by different ways and this is not good." (http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/judo/31759834)

The EJU slogan is: "Judo -- more than sport!"

Soloveychik also served as the SportAccord Chairman of the 2013 World Combat Games. This event featured competition in 15 Olympic and non-Olympic combat sports, so Soloveychik's views can be seen as being widely held among those in the combat sports and martial arts organizations, along with SportAccord itself.

Also discussed are the long-standing promotion of anti-social values by MMA organizations like UFC, as well as the problems the judo organizations have had in retaining athletes and keeping them from going to other disciplines, the hypocrisy of many judo leaders in claiming that they actually do promote "human values", and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Eddie Goldman, EJU, European Championships, IJF, judo, MMA, No Holds Barred, SportAccord, UFC

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the Andre Berto-Josesito Lopez welterweight fight and speaks with both fighters about what to expect in their March 13 showdown.

In what is considered a crucial fight in the careers of both men, Andre Berto (29-3, 22 KOs) will face Josesito Lopez (33-6, 19 KOs) on the debut Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) show on Spike TV. This takes place Friday, March 13, at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California. The co-feature will have Shawn Porter (24-1-1, 15 KOs) facing Roberto Garcia (36-3, 23 KOs).

We spoke with both Andre Berto and Josesito Lopez on Monday's media conference call. We also comment on the reception of the PBC's telecasts, how it may plan to recoup the investments made through the various time buys on several TV networks, why PBC is attempting to reduce the usual sleaziness associated with boxing in order to succeed on free TV, and more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Al Haymon, Andre Berto, Eddie Goldman, Josesito Lopez, No Holds Barred, PBC, Premier Boxing Champions, Spike TV

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with our colleague, correspondent, and award-winning boxing writer, Charles Farrell, who is also co-editor of The Boxing Standard.

The return of boxing to network TV in the U.S. and the announcement that the long-awaited mega-fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will take place May 2 have sparked much interest and discussion about the state of boxing.

Saturday's debut PBC (Premier Boxing Champions) on NBC show featured an exciting decision victory by Keith Thurman over Robert Guerrero and a not-so-exciting decision victory by Adrien Broner over John Molina Jr.

According to the Nielsen Ratings, the PBC on NBC telecast averaged 3.4 million viewers, ranking as the most-watched professional boxing broadcast in 17 years (Oscar De La Hoya’s Fight Night on FOX, 5.9 million, Mon., March 23, 1998). Viewership increased every half hour through the telecast and peaked at 4.2 million from 10:30-11 p.m. ET during the final six rounds of the Keith Thurman-Robert Guerrero fight. The PBC on NBC also led NBC to a Saturday primetime victory among adults 18-49, with a 1.08 rating in that demographic. Also, according to NBC Sports, more than 575,000 minutes (576,435) of PBC on NBC coverage was live streamed via NBC Sports Live Extra to desktops, tablets and mobile devices. The show thus has to be considered a ratings success.

We spoke with Charles Farrell by phone Sunday.

"I do think the idea of making competitive fights is a very good idea. I think star-building is a very good idea," he said.

"There's probably interest in trying to resurrect Adrien Broner. I dont think that that happened, and I think maybe they have to think about what to do with Adrien Broner at this point."

He continued, "But they probably did pretty well by Keith Thurman. And my guess is that people who were watching who were casual fans will be inclined to watch the next one. So you give it a passing grade, and I would say at this point we sort of have to wait and see."

As for the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, where Mayweather puts his 47-0 record on the line, we discussed potential outcomes, including one possibility that the fight will end in a highly controversial and disputed decision, thus leading to much antipathy for boxing but also a highly lucrative rematch.

We also discussed the announcing and overall production of the debut PBC on NBC show, the need to present boxing "as boxing" on TV, the decision loss by Chinese fighter Zou Shiming to IBF flyweight champion Amnat Ruenroeng of Thailand in Macao in China, why boxing seems to rebound after each period of decline, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Adrien Broner, boxing, Charles Farrell, Eddie Goldman, Floyd Mayweather, John Molina, Keith Thurman, Manny Pacquiao, NBC, No Holds Barred, PBC, Robert Guerrero

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Bob Carson, the host of Carson's Corner.

To mark the ninth anniversary of the No Holds Barred podcast this week, we did not have cake or drink beer, but had a lengthy and wide-ranging discussion on the state of MMA and the combat sports in general.

We spoke with Bob Carson by Skype Wednesday.

Speaking of the state of MMA today, he minced no words.

"What you have is basically a spectacle that I don't think is on a solid foundation anymore," he said.

"I think that this is a sport now unfortunately that is one scandal away, one mishap away from extinction."

We discussed these myriad scandals plaguing MMA and whether or not it could survive in the long-term. We also discussed the lessons and implications of these scandals for re-emerging sports like catch wrestling and combat wrestling, the pathetic role played by virtually all of those who masquerade as the MMA "media", the current revival of boxing, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Bob Carson, boxing, Carson's Corner, catch, combat, Eddie Goldman, grappling, media, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Kevin Jackson, the Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion freestyle wrestler, who is in his sixth season as head wrestling coach for the legendary Iowa State Cyclones.

Iowa State will be the host this year for the Big 12 Wrestling Championship, which takes place Saturday, March 7, at Hilton Coliseum on the campus of Iowa State University. The 2015 NCAA Div. 1 Wrestling Championships take place March 19-21 in St. Louis, Missouri.

We spoke with Coach Kevin Jackson by phone Wednesday.

"We're excited to host the tournament. The Big 12 Championship has always been competitive, always been a highly-contest event," he said.

"Oklahoma State has held that title for the last few years, and obviously we're in a position where we feel like we can fight for it this year. Make no mistake, they're the clear favorite going into the tournament, but we feel we've been wrestling pretty well. We have three guys seeded number one. They're going have to hold their number one seeds, and then everyone else is going to have to out-perform their seeds to give us a chance to win."

The home advantage for Iowa State could also play a role this year.

"Our crowds have been great. I think they can play a vital role in cheering on our wrestlers. But it's going to be a lot of fun," he said.

"And this is the time of the season that we're most excited about that we do all the training and hard work for throughout the year."

We discussed how the Iowa State wrestlers match up with their rivals in this tournament, how the team usually gets better as the season progresses, some of the plans of the seniors whose college wrestling careers will be over after the NCAA national tournament, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Big 12, college, Cyclones, Earl Hall, Eddie Goldman, Iowa State Wrestling, Kevin Jackson, Kyven Gadson, Lelund Weatherspoon, Michael Moreno, NCAA, No Holds Barred, Tanner Weatherman

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the light heavyweight title fight between WBA/IBF/WBO champion Sergey Kovalev (26-0-1, 23 KOs) and former WBC champion Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 KOs). The co-feature will have veteran Steve Cunningham (28-6, 13 KOs) facing unbeaten prospect Vyacheslav Glazkov (19-0-1, 12 KOs) in an IBF heavyweight title eliminator.

This card takes place Saturday, March 14, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It will be shown live in the U.S. on HBO and in Canada on pay-per-view.

We spoke with Sergey Kovalev, Jean Pascal, and Steve Cunningham at a news conference in New York January 14, as well as Roy Jones Jr., who is Pascal's assistant trainer. We also have a comment from Kovalev's trainer, John David Jackson, from a February 24 media conference call.

In addition, we comment on the disgraceful lack of any drug-testing for the Kovalev-Pascal fight.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: boxing, Eddie Goldman, Jean Pascal, No Holds Barred, Sergey Kovalev, Steve Cunningham