NO HOLDS BARRED

 

My latest piece, "Everyone's Talking About Martin Bakole", is up on the No Holds Barred Patreon page.

Labels: Billy Nelson, boxing, Eddie Goldman, Joseph Parker, Martin Bakole, No Holds Barred, Turki Alalshikh

My latest piece, "Saudi-DAZN Deal, Feb. 22 Card, and the Monopolization of Boxing", is up on the No Holds Barred Patreon page.

Labels: Artur Beterbiev, boxing, Daniel Dubois, DAZN, Dmitry Bivol, Eddie Goldman, Joseph Parker, No Holds Barred, Saudi Arabia

 

My latest piece, "The Day of Reckoning Was A Day of Redemption", is up on the No Holds Barred Patreon page.

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Daniel Dubois, Day of Reckoning, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Joseph Parker, No Holds Barred, Saudi Arabia

 

My latest piece, "What to Expect From Joshua vs. Wallin and Wilder vs. Parker", is up on the No Holds Barred Patreon page.

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Deontay Wilder, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Joseph Parker, No Holds Barred, Otto Wallin, Saudi Arabia

 

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with our colleagues Chris Baldwin of the WAAR Room and Malissa Smith of Girlboxing on the WAAR Room. A video of this discussion has also been posted on the WAAR Sports YouTube page.

Labels: Amanda Serrano, boxing, Chris Baldwin, David Morrell Jr., Eddie Goldman, Gilberto Zurdo Ramirez, Girlboxing, Joseph Parker, Malissa Smith, Marlen Esparza, No Holds Barred, Seneisa Estrada, WAAR Room, WAAR Sports

by Eddie Goldman

The champ looked stale
As he fought in Wales.
For speed he lost fat,
But he looked awfully flat.

Didn't cut off the ring,
Yet he still is the king.
Couldn't swat down a fly,
And we want to know why.

Adapt he did not
As Parker moved a lot.
Well, late in the fight
He did, but still looked tight.

And the power, where'd it go?
We all want to know.
Parker has a good chin,
But a disappointing win.

Yes, a doufus for a ref.
Amateurish at best.
OMG and the scores!
Were they judges or whores?

No creative offense
Yet we know he's not dense.
Where's the help from his trainer?
This should be a no-brainer.

Sure, this fight he cleanly won,
But the knockout streak is done.
Worse, no magic did we see.
A mere mortal is he.

Now the Wild Man from the States
Who imagines he is great,
Wants to fight for all the belts
Before the Arctic melts.

Now it's up to the suits.
And the fans they give no hoot.
Whatever brings in the most money,
Money, money, money, money.

Is it Ali we need?
Both in word and in deed?
In and out of the ring,
Whose praises we sing?

Not just the best in fights,
But who fights for our rights.
A Citizen of Earth
With wisdom and mirth.

So is Joshua our man?
Not today, as it stands.
He may triumph with gloves,
Yes we like, but not love.

Don't look for a new king.
Our world needs no such thing.
All they do is steal and loot,
In your back they will shoot.

Don't ask them for favors,
We can be our own saviors.
We can free ourselves, we can,
Everywoman, everyman.

(Photo of Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker by Esther Lin/Showtime.)

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Champ Looked Stale, Eddie Goldman, Joseph Parker, No Holds Barred

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with our colleague, correspondent, and the award-winning boxing writer, Charles Farrell.

We spoke with him by phone Tuesday.

Our main topic was the biggest fight of the year so far, the heavyweight title unification fight taking place this Saturday, March 31, between the two undefeated belt holders Anthony Joshua of the U.K. and Joseph Parker of New Zealand.

The 28-year-old Joshua is the IBF and WBA champ and has a record of 20-0 with 20 KOs. The 26-year-old Parker is the WBO champ and has a record of 24-0 with 18 KOs.

This fight takes place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. It will be televised live on Sky Sports Box Office in the U.K., Showtime in the U.S., and many other networks around the world.

We discussed how we see this fight going, why Joshua is deservedly a big favorite, what is likely to happen in the series of events which may lead to the crowning of an undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, the many options in the heavyweight division and business-wise for Joshua should he defeat Parker, the music of Marvin Gaye, and much more.

(Photo of Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker by Esther Lin/Showtime.)

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Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Charles Farrell, Eddie Goldman, heavyweights, Joseph Parker, No Holds Barred

by Eddie Goldman

Welcome to 2018, which is shaping up to be the year of the heavyweights.

Two heavyweight title mega-fights were just officially announced, as you may already know. And while neither was a surprise and both were long reported to be in the works, the timing of these announcements was curious, to say the least.

On Friday afternoon Eastern Time, right before a long weekend in the U.S., with Monday being a national holiday to mark the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., it was officially announced,that March 3 in Brooklyn, New York, the 32-year-old American, WBC heavyweight champ Deontay Wilder, 39-0 with 38 KOs, would finally face the ageless Cuban Luis "King Kong" Ortiz, 28-0 with 24 KOs.

Then on Sunday morning U.K. time, and still before sunrise in the U.S., came the official news that on March 31 in Cardiff, Wales, the 28-year-old Anthony Joshua of the U.K., the IBF and WBA super champion, with a record of 20-0 with all 20 wins coming by knockout, would face the 26-year-old WBO heavyweight champ Joseph Parker of New Zealand, who has a record of 24-0 with 18 KOs, in a title unification bout.

It almost seemed like these two announcements were made for fights competing with one another. In reality, they could signify the first round of a series of historic fights which could not only eventually lead to the crowning of one undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, but the elevation of such a champion to the status of being the top and most intriguing athlete in the world, not seen since the heydays of fighters like Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, and Mike Tyson. And, of course, such developments could lift the sport, if you can call it that, of boxing further out of its self-imposed marginalized status, assuming that for a little while at least the people running it can avoid barreling down a self-destructive path.

Not a lot of people are expecting Joseph Parker to defeat Anthony Joshua. Though both are undefeated, Parker has not looked like a world-beater in his last several fights. In December 2016 he won a close majority decision against then-unbeaten Andy Ruiz Jr. to win the WBO belt. He was also taken the distance against late replacement Razvan Cojanu in May of last year, and won another majority decision in September in a terrible fight against the then-unbeaten and highly awkward Hughie Fury, the younger cousin of former champ Tyson Fury. Parker had been knocking most of his opponents out before those three fights, and they raised questions about both his power, speed, and ability to adapt to higher-level competition.

Parker's signature win, so far, was a controversial third-round knockout in the fight right before those three decisions, in October 2016 when he stopped perennial contender Alexander Dimitrenko. Even though Parker sometimes looked sloppy in this fight, he repeatedly hurt the taller Dimitrenko, who is an inch taller than Anthony Joshua. But the final, and fourth knockdown of the fight, in just the third round, appeared to take place when Dimitrenko had been pushed down to the canvas and was on a knee, and Parker landed a hard body shot after a clearly legal one. The referee, the late Marlon Wright, originally signaled that there was no knockdown. But when Dimitrenko stayed on the canvas writhing in pain and spitting out his mouthpiece, Wright counted him out, for this non-knockdown. Still, Parker was dominating the fight and Dimitrenko was never in it. And if you think Parker just beat up a washed-up bum, remember that in his two most recent fights, Dimitrenko has scored victories over previously-unbeaten opponents, including a first-round knockout of the highly-touted Adrian Granat.

But for Parker to be even competitive with Joshua, he will have to show more speed, better footwork, and more accurate punching than in his last three fights. It is obvious that Joshua has the advantages in power and size, and Parker does not have the power Klitschko had to take advantage of a mistake by Joshua when he knocked him down last year and came close to stopping him. Parker has said that he thinks Joshua has a glass jaw, which obviously is hyperbole, although his chin is one vulnerability Parker will seek to exploit.

If Parker fights like he did, though, in his recent fights, Joshua will have no trouble finding him, hurting him, and stopping him. Expect a competitive fight with impressive moments for both guys, but Joshua remains a prohibitive favorite for logical reasons. Even after Joshua's less-than-impressive performance against late replacement Carlos Takam in his most recent fight, he still dominated that entire fight. But if Joshua gets distracted by all the glitz and business side of things during his training, he could underestimate Parker and take a win as a given, which can never be done, especially in heavyweight boxing.

The business side of this fight also may indicate some important changes for Joshua. He and Klitschko were extremely respectful of each other in the lead-up to their fight, with both, of course, promising victory. The Joshua-Parker fight has already descended into nastiness, with Parker's promoter David Higgins lacing into Joshua, Parker joining the chorus, and Joshua vowing not to shake Parker's hand after the fight after his expected victory. This is how they are building this fight, as if they need this rubbish to sell it.

If this fight is to elevate boxing to must-see status around the world, it cannot be viewed as akin to the fake "wrestling". It should be sold as a unification fight of major heavyweight titles, and a prelude to the winner fighting to unify all the major belts. That would be historic, so the hysterics are both self-defeating and unnecessary. But this is professional boxing, which has always skirted the law and laughed at decency, and appears to be quite ready to squander the prestige and even glamour it achieved after the Joshua-Klitschko fight.

If the favorite Joshua wins and then holds three of the major four belts, it is far from a given that he will try to win the one he doesn't have, the WBC belt, this year. Holding multiple titles means having multiple mandatory contenders, which can range from being an annoyance, a farce, or a fair way to guarantee that top contenders are not locked out of having a title shot for political or business reasons. But Joshua satisfied his obligation to fight the IBF mandatory by beating Takam, and may be able to take care of two mandatories at once by facing Alexander Povetkin. He has been announced as the WBA mandatory, and also knocked off the WBO number one contender, Christian Hammer, with a lopsided unanimous decision in December. That fight would free up Joshua for another unification fight afterward.

It does make sense for a victorious Joshua to face Povetkin after Parker, rather than WBC champ Deontay Wilder. The Russian Povetkin, who has also fought several times in Germany but never outside Europe, is better known in Europe, which is Joshua's home base, than the American Wilder. Wilder is also not a big draw in the U.S. or on U.S. TV, at least so far, so there is not even a business urgency for Joshua to plan to fight him.

There is also another wrinkle to having a Joshua-Wilder fight. Wilder is contracted with Al Haymon, with his premium cable fights on Showtime. Joshua's TV home in the U.K. is Sky Sports, which airs his fights on pay-per-view. Joshua has had a deal with Showtime for U.S. TV, but that reportedly has only one more fight left on it, with Showtime having the ability to match any offer from a rival network, as they did with the Takam fight when HBO tried to step in. HBO also aired the Joshua-Klitschko fight on same-day tape-delay after Showtime aired it live in the afternoon U.S. time, and had expressed an interest in signing Joshua as its own boxing program has been sinking of late.

Also, Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, started Matchroom Boxing USA last year, and has a deal with HBO to televise those shows in the U.S. So will Hearn, who now has fights on HBO, Showtime, and ESPN, try to take Joshua with him to HBO? Or will he just play the networks against each other to get the most lucrative deal? It should also be noted that the announcement of the Joshua-Parker fight listed no other TV than Sky Sports Box Office, meaning the American network which will show it, in the afternoon of March 31 in the U.S., has not been determined yet.

Another wild card in all of this is CBS, the broadcast network which is part of the parent company of Showtime. If CBS wants to air Joshua-Wilder thinking that Wilder will win, and that fight is held in the U.S., in either New York or Las Vegas, there may be too much money, coverage, and publicity involved to turn it down.

But if Joshua does end up at HBO, it then seems much less likely that a fight with the Showtime-contracted Wilder would happen any time soon, and especially since it does not appear to be a fight with potential to set or even approach any TV or pay-per-view records. And if Joshua fights Povetkin and then Wilder, and wins all these fights, once again he will have four new mandatories, giving the sanctioning bodies a reason to strip him of a belt or two if he fails to fight them. So where is the urgency to unify all these belts, when almost no one cares about them anyway?

Joshua also has the potential of more lucrative fights with David Haye, if he defeats Tony Bellew in their rematch in May and manages to stay healthy. And the elephant in the room, who still almost looks like one, is former champ Tyson Fury, assuming he can get in any kind of fighting shape and avoid too many physical and mental problems. Then, perhaps in 2019, it's on to Wilder, if he still has his belt, but he also for now should be a lower priority for Joshua than Povetkin, Haye, and Fury.

The plan does seem to be for Wilder to hold onto that belt, by any means necessary. He was originally scheduled to fight Ortiz in November, but that fight was cancelled after Ortiz failed a VADA drug test due to banned substances he said was in his prescription blood pressure medication, for which he never applied for a therapeutic use exemption or even listed that medicine on his prefight medical questionnaire. For that, Ortiz was removed from that November 4 main event and replaced by then-WBC mandatory contender and former champ Bermane Stiverne. Then Stiverne lasted less than a round with Wilder, throwing a total of four punches and landing exactly zero, in a performance in which Showtime announcer Al Bernstein said euphemistically, "Bermane Stiverne was a cooperator."

It appeared very convenient that Ortiz did not face Wilder then, as many believed that in a fair fight Ortiz would clobber the awkward Wilder and ruin Wilder's chances of a massive payday in a unification fight with Joshua. That episode of boxing's brand of trickeration has been analyzed in great detail by the best boxing writers out there, Charles Farrell and Frank Lotierzo, as well as by myself. Not only is it not worth repeating all that, but the only thing that needs to be added now is that it appears that boxing's gods (or devils) will not allow Wilder to lose to Ortiz on March 3, one way or another. Otherwise, this fight will never have been made, and still may end up not taking place for one reason or another.

Friday's announcement of Wilder-Ortiz did not include any mention of who is televising it, meaning that it likely is also being pitched to CBS, since it probably has to land there or Showtime. But unlike boxing, CBS is run professionally, and these major networks usually have their sports schedules in place many months and even years in advance. For example, Super Bowl LIII is scheduled for Sunday, February 3, 2019, in Atlanta, Georgia, and will be televised by CBS. The 2018 Major League Baseball World Series is scheduled to begin October 23 and be televised on Fox, even though the regular season doesn't start until March 29. So what is the likelihood that CBS will shuffle its schedule and risk annoying advertisers, who buy ads also months and sometimes years in advance, for a fight which was already cancelled once? It could be a mistake if they try such a thing.

What is likely to happen is that sometime, somewhere, there will be a WWE-style faceoff between Joshua and Wilder, especially if Joshua-Parker is televised on Showtime in the U.S. Who will be the face and who will be the heel remains to be determined, but let's at least hope that masks and steel chairs are not part of that charade.

Also likely this week are press conferences for these two fights. The Joshua-Parker one will take place Tuesday in London, with foreboding warnings of anger boiling over, and so on. As of Sunday, the date for the Wilder-Ortiz press conference has not been announced and is presumably awaiting the TV deal to be finalized. It may take place this Thursday as part of the final press conference for the January 20 Spence-Peterson card, also on Showtime and also at the Barclays Center, or possibly the day of that fight, but we shall see.

Despite all the behind-the-scenes business maneuverings and typical trickeration, we do seem to be on the cusp of another promising era in the heavyweight division. Let's just hope it doesn't get screwed up.

(Photo of Luis Ortiz and Deontay Wilder by Douglas DeFelice, Premier Boxing Champions.)

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Deontay Wilder, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Joseph Parker, Luis King Kong Ortiz, No Holds Barred

by Eddie Goldman

Do not heed the stupefying and foolish tweets, Facebook and Instagram posts, and the scribbling on the bathroom walls. They mean, to quote the Fugs, nothing, nothing, less than nothing.

Boxing is a business first, second, and third. Yes, boxing is a sport, but in this business the sporting aspects are among the most neutered and trampled upon to serve the perceived interests and, of course, profits, of the promoters, including the TV networks, soon to be joined by more and more online and mobile services.

It's a business, and who fights whom next only has to do with what the fans want and plead for to the degree that they can be convinced and/or tricked into parting with their cash. Fights have to be "built up", we are told, by endless mismatches, showcase fights, obscure mandatory challenges, and plainly fixed encounters. That is why there is such organizational chaos and confusion in boxing, with a governance structure easier to manipulate than peeling a banana.

Of late, every day it seems there has been an unending piss stream of challenges, taunts, insults, accusations, and denials. The forcible removal of Wladimir Klitschko from atop the heavyweight division by Tyson Fury in 2015 reignited interest, along with disorder, in it. That order has only been partially restored with Anthony Joshua's dispatching of Klitschko in April of this year to add the WBA "super" title to his IBF strap, followed by the retirement of the 41-year-old former champion.

Yes, Joshua is generally regarded as the best heavyweight today and holds two major belts. But there are holes in his game, seen by his inability to put away Klitschko after a brutal fifth-round knockdown, only to be knocked down hard himself in the sixth almost to the point of losing the fight. Joshua's brilliant comeback and subsequent 11th-round TKO of Klitschko showed his vulnerabilities may not be fatal to his title reign, but they are there to be watched and exploited.

And despite dominating and winning by a tenth-round TKO victory over Carlos Takam in his next fight on October 28, many regarded the ending as being a fast stoppage, and virtually everyone noted that it was a less-than-stellar performance by Joshua.

Joshua, however, remains not only the top heavyweight, but by far its biggest attraction. 90,000 people saw him beat Klitschko in Wembley Stadium in London, and about 78,000 watched him against Takam in Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Sky Sports in the U.K. shows all his fights on pay-per-view, while he is currently contracted to Showtime in the U.S., with HBO waiting to pursue him.

So fighting Joshua, who at 28 years old still has an unblemished record of 20-0 with 20 KOs, even if one loses, would be an enormous payday, perhaps the most in a challenger's professional boxing career.

The idea of heavyweight unification is also an appealing one, both to fans and some of the money guys. But it also involves numerous risks. For example, on two successive weekends Showtime aired the Joshua-Takam fight and the Deontay Wilder-Bermane Stiverne WBC title rematch, billing both as being for THE heavyweight championship of the world. Fewer title holders means fewer title fights, however inflated or bogus those titles may be.

And in the rare instances where unification is achieved, the demands by the rival sanctioning bodies that the champ immediately face their number one mandatory challenger leads to un-unification, as the champion relinquishes one or more belts, as Terence Crawford did after becoming undisputed 140-pound champion, or more belt-stripping than you'll see in a weekend in Las Vegas.

So yes, many of us would love to see Joshua's next series of fights be to unify his WBA "super" and IBF titles with those of WBC champ Deontay Wilder (39-0, 38 KOs) and WBO champ Joseph Parker (24-0, 18 KOs). But the end game here for Joshua is thus not unification, since it probably won't last long anyway, but raking in the most money for the longest possible period of time while still being able to remain on top.

And that means, despite all the rubbish, basura, and Scheiße being flung around between the top heavyweights and their flacks, it does not necessarily make business sense for Joshua and his team for those to be his next two fights, with Wilder and Parker.

While Joshua fulfilled his obligation for a mandatory defense of his IBF belt by beating Takam, a late replacement for the injured Kubrat Pulev, Pulev is still the highest ranked contender by the IBF, at number two, as they have no one at number one. At some point Joshua may need to face Pulev to retain the original title he first won in 2016.

Then there is the WBA, which has a "super" champion, meaning a belt holder who has or had more than one of these things, and a "regular" champion, whom they sometimes claim is next in line for the "super" champion. This past weekend Manuel Charr, now 31-4 with 17 KOs, captured the then-vacant WBA "regular" heavyweight title with a unanimous decision win over 40-year-old Russian and now-former WBA number one contender Alexander Ustinov (34-2, 25 KOs). The 33-year-old Charr scored what many felt was an upset win based on his record, which included knockout losses to Alexander Povetkin and Mairis Briedis, who usually fights at cruiserweight and is presently the unbeaten WBC cruiserweight champion.

Charr was next ordered by the WBA to negotiate a fight with Fres Oquendo, who has been inactive snce 2014 but who won a lawsuit against the WBA for failing to give him another title shot. Charr is based in Germany where he usually fights, so perhaps the network there, Sky Sports in Germany, which showed his fight with Ustinov, would televise such a rather farcical bout. Or perhaps Oquendo will find one more reason not to take this fight, opening the door for Charr to face Joshua sometime soon in 2018.

Joshua would be a massive favorite to knock out Charr, but such a fight would be good business, besides fulfilling his need to face a WBA mandatory. While Charr is based in Germany and has a following there, he was born in Lebanon but went to Germany as a refugee at age five. He reportedly vowed to give his belt to Turkish president Erdogan. His victory over Ustinov and winning this belt, although derided in boxing circles, was hailed by some in the Arab world.

An ironically cliched headline in the "Arab News", Saudi Arabia's first English-language newspaper, read: "Refugee 'Rocky' becomes first Arab heavyweight champ".

Note that Joshua has stated his desire to gain popularity and fight in many countries and regions, including in the Middle East, and often spends his holiday time in Dubai. A fight with Charr should not only be a decisive win in the ring, but also outside the ring in establishing his presence in Germany and the Arab world.

In several Arab countries there has been growing and serious interest in hosting boxing events as of late. The World Boxing Super Series cruiserweight finals are scheduled to take place next year in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The semifinals have four unbeaten champion fighters, with WBA champion Yunier Dorticos (22-0, 21 KOs) taking on IBF champion Murat Gassiev (25-0, 18 KOs) in one semi-final, and WBO champ Oleksandr Usyk (13-0, 11 KOs) facing the aforementioned WBC champ Mairis Briedis (23-0, 18 KOs) in the other. So whoever is matched up in the finals, it is bound to be a major world boxing event in Saudi Arabia.

And perhaps of lesser significance for now, the launch of KHK Boxing was just announced in Bahrain. This is being sponsored by the 28-year-old Shaikh Khalid Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, a leading sports organizer who already has an MMA promotion there, and is a member of the ruling family in this monarchy. So the time is right for Anthony Joshua to venture into the Arab world.

And what was the urgency of Joshua fighting Wilder and Parker right away again?

Many fans, particularly in America, may end up being disappointed by the opponents chosen by Joshua in 2018, especially if he does not take these two consecutive unification fights. There is no urgency for Joshua to face Wilder, who does not draw that well either in arenas or on TV in the U.S., or Parker, now based in the U.K., but whose last fight, against Hughie Fury, was a YouTube pay-per-view. Wilder and Parker need Joshua far, far more than he needs them, if he needs them at all.

Wilder may want to fight Joshua next year, a possibility which should not be entirely ruled out, but if it doesn't happen, expect him to remain protected and face someone eminently beatable like WBC number two Dominic Breazeale. The WBC number one contender is Dillian Whyte, but Wilder's handlers know too much to risk a mega-payday with Joshua, whenever it may come, by facing someone like Whyte, who himself may get a shot at some belt or another.

Parker also has his WBO duties to fulfill, and his next mandatory may become an interesting one. The current WBO number one challenger is Christian Hammer, but he has a stiff test when he faces Alexander Povetkin, back from his drug suspensions, December 15 in Russia for the WBO international title, and, more importantly, their number one ranking. If Povetkin wins and becomes the WBO mandatory for Parker, and if Parker fails to get that big payday versus Joshua, he may have to face Povetkin this year, in a fight where Povetkin will surely be heavily favored unless he keeps testing dirty. And if Povetkin wins, a Joshua-Povetkin unification fight would be far more lucrative that a Joshua-Parker fight, and could open up even more doors for Joshua around the world.

But Parker, who turns 26 in January and is the youngest of these heavyweight belt holders, has other perhaps more appealing options than facing Joshua or the Hammer-Povetkin winner. Parker is from New Zealand and is predominantly of Samoan descent. The 38-year-old Lucas Browne, still unbeaten at 25-0 with 22 KOs, is from Australia, and is back in action following his own drug test problems. A Parker-Browne fight would be a smash hit in their region of the world as well as one which is far less dangerous for Parker than a clash with Joshua. Browne has also reportedly been in talks to fight Dillian Whyte in February, so where the dominoes fall for next year's heavyweight lineup should be known soon.

For the U.K., a mega-fight for Joshua would be with Tyson Fury, who supposedly will finally have his long-delayed hearing with U.K. Anti-Doping in December. It is absurd that this body has taken so long to adjudicate Fury's failed drug tests from 2015 and 2016. Fury remains suspended and unlicensed, and has not fought for two years, although his own well-documented physical and mental problems have been key to his departure from the ring as well. And Fury also has been charged with throwing out the dope testers when they came to collect a sample from him last year.

There has been the threat of a lawsuit by Fury for these delays and his not being allowed to fight without even a hearing for so long, which potentially could bankrupt the hapless U.K. Anti-Doping if he wins it. But expect some sort of compromise, where everyone agrees that his suspension has been fulfilled by time served, or maybe with just a short extension, while he tries to get in shape to fight once more. If Fury can shed some of his 300-plus-pounds, and stay sober and clean long enough to climb into the ring, it would make far more business sense for Joshua to face him in 2018 than either Wilder or Parker. Such a fight could easily smash U.K. pay-per-view and attendance records, even if Joshua ends up smashing the obese and inactive Fury in the ring.

Plus, it was announced just a few days ago that Fury had signed an advisory deal with the fast-growing management company MTK Global, which already works with his pal, WBO middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders, and the popular Carl Frampton. This indeed is another sign that Tyson Fury is very likely coming back soon.

So don't be shocked if in 2018 Joshua faces Charr, Fury, and/or Pulev. Unification can always come later.

Also do not expect Joshua to take a risky fight with the unbeaten Luis Ortiz, assuming he even is going to fight at a high level again. But if one or more of these belts becomes available, Ortiz just might get a title shot somewhere, and just might win, before preparing to pass the torch to someone two decades younger than him.

While Jarrell "Big Baby" Miller has worked his way into the mix, being rated number 5 by the IBF, 3 by the WBO, and 7 by the WBA, he will still need to raise his profile to get a major title shot. His listless win over Mariusz Wach in his HBO debut November 11 did not help his cause, as this entire show, headlined by Daniel Jacobs, was also a dud both in the TV ratings and at the box office.

Of course, you can just toss the boxing rankings in the trash when the money is right for an important and highly profitable fight. But it usually does help with the hype, marketing, and trickeration to build up such a fight if some more-than-unknown belt is on the line.

So whom will Anthony Joshua face in 2018, between his choices of Manuel Charr, Kubrat Pulev, Deontay Wilder, Joseph Parker, Tyson Fury, and maybe someone else? Whomever brings in the most pounds, dollars, euros, and rubles, that's who.

(Photo credits: Anthony Joshua and Robert Joshua, Esther Lin/Showtime. Deontay Wilder-Bermane Stiverne 2, Tom Casino/Showtime. Tyson Fury, MTK. Joseph Parker, Hennessy Sports. Dillian Whyte and Anthony Joshua, Lawrence Lustig/Matchroom Boxing. Manuel Charr, WBA. Luis Ortiz, Eddie Goldman/No Holds Barred.)

Labels: Alexander Povetkin, Anthony Joshua, boxing, Deontay Wilder, Dillian Whyte, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Joseph Parker, Luis Ortiz, Manuel Charr, No Holds Barred, Tyson Fury

by Eddie Goldman

As a follow-up to my latest show, "No Holds Barred: A Sweet But Dysfunctional September for Boxing", which was posted early Monday, September 4, as anticipated there has been a flurry of announcements Tuesday, September 5. Most of these seem to be quite late in coming.

One of the worst kept secrets in boxing was that on Saturday, October 28, heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will defend his belts against his IBF mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev. That fight has now been officially announced. Joshua had wanted to have a rematch with Wladimir Klitschko, whom he defeated on April 29 in a classic fight by 11th-round TKO, but the 41-year-old Klitschko decided to retire instead.

The Joshua-Pulev fight will take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, and will be shown live in the U.K. on Sky Sports Box Office. Joshua is also contracted to fight on Showtime in the U.S. There was no accompanying announcement about this, so we shall see if they show this fight, and either live or on tape-delay.

While the September 16 Golovkin-Canelo fight was long ago announced as being shown on HBO pay-per-view in the U.S., details of how to watch it in the U.K. on BoxNation have just come out.

From BoxNation:

"'Canelo' Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin on September 16th is exclusively live in the U.K. and Ireland on BoxNation Box Office from just £16.95/€21.95.

"BoxNation's current paying subscribers, and any new customers that wish to subscribe instead of buying it via Box Office, will get the fight as part of their monthly subscription at no extra cost."

The World Boxing Super Series has finally announced a U.K. TV deal, just four days before their first card takes place. These fights will be on ITV, both free-to-air and pay-per-view. But there still is no word on if they will get a TV deal in the U.S.

From the World Boxing Super Series press release:

"MP & Silva are delighted to announce a media rights agreement with ITV to showcase the inaugural 2017/18 season of the World Boxing Super Series starting September 9. ITV will exclusively cover 16 elite boxers competing across 14 different Fight Nights all over the world to see who will claim the Muhammad Ali Trophy.

"The Super Middleweight and Cruiserweight tournaments will be shown on a combination of ITV's free-to-air and pay-per-view platforms with the second Quarter-Final Fight Night featuring Callum Smith vs. Erik Skoglund from Liverpool's Echo Arena to be shown live on ITV4 on September 16.

"The World Boxing Super Series will be of more particular interest to the British audience this season with Chris Eubank Jr. fighting Turkish Avni Yildirim and the all British duel between George Groves and Jamie Cox at The SSE Arena, Wembley in October both being shown on ITV Box Office."

And in an announcement which already has earned the wrath of many fans online, the September 23 fight between WBO heavyweight champ Joseph Parker and Hughie Fury in Manchester, U.K., will be shown in the U.K. and Ireland as a YouTube pay-per-view. Again, there has been no announcement about showing this fight in the U.S.

From the Hennessy Sports press release:

"The blockbuster WBO World Heavyweight Championship title fight between Joseph Parker and Hughie Fury on Saturday 23rd September at the Manchester Arena will be shown exclusively live in the UK and Ireland on YouTube (www.youtube.com/parkerfury) on a pay-per-view basis with further countries to be announced shortly.

"A portion of the undercard will also be streamed for free before the big fight, this is also available live on www.youtube.com/parkerfury. Watch this event anywhere online or on your smart TV, game console, PC, Mac, mobile, tablet and more for a special advance purchase offer price of only £9.99 in the UK and €11.99 in the Republic of Ireland until midnight on Sunday 17th September.*

"youtube.com/parkerfury is the home of Hennessy Sports YouTube Channel which is called The Boxing Channel presented by Hennessy Sports.

"*£14.99 in the UK and €16.99 in the R.O.I from Monday 18th September."

Overall this still seems like a pretty dysfunctional way to get fans to watch boxing. All this reliance on pay-per-view is far inferior to how most other major sports popularize their events through free TV and streaming.

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Canelo, Golovkin, Hughie Fury, Joseph Parker, Kubrat Pulev, streaming, TV, World Boxing Super Series

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the heavyweight maze which so many fighters want to get through to get a title shot at the division's best and most popular fighter, IBF and WBA champion Anthony Joshua.

This past week, the 41-year-old former champion Wladimir Klitschko announced his retirement from boxing. We discuss the positives and negatives from his lengthy career.

The scramble to get big money title fights is often inhibited or even prevented by the various rival sanctioning bodies naming undeserving and little known fighters as mandatory challengers for their champions. We discuss the mess with the various heavyweight mandatories put forth by the WBA, WBC, and IBF, a mess which has gotten worse since Klitschko's retirement.

We also discuss what may be ahead for WBC champ Deontay Wilder, who wants to fight Joshua next; for Luis "King Kong" Ortiz, now Joshua's WBA mandatory, while no one seems to want to fight him; for Joshua, who seems to be set to face his IBF mandatory, Kubrat Pulev; what this all means for the heavyweight division and for boxing; and much more.

(Photo of Deontay Wilder by Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions. Photo of Luis Ortiz by Rosie Cohe, Showtime. Photo of Tyson Fury from Frank Warren.)

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The Catch Wrestling Alliance, resurrecting and promoting the sport of authentic catch-as-catch-can wrestling. The Catch Wrestling Alliance provides tournaments, seminars, and training as well as education about catch wrestling. Join the movement and keep real wrestling alive. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.

Skullz Double-End Bags, the perfect bag for your combat sports training. Skullz Double-End Bags provide a realistic striking target, and help improve timing, distance, and hand and eye coordination. Hang it and hit it right out of the box! No pump required. For more information, go to SkullzDeBags.com.

USA Combat Wrestling, the official U.S. governing body for combat wrestling and U.S. delegate of the International Combat Wrestling Federation (FICW), which was founded by the legendary wrestler Noriaki Kiguchi of Japan. For more information, go to CombatWrestling.us.

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Deontay Wilder, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight maze, Joseph Parker, Luis King Kong Ortiz, No Holds Barred, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the news about real boxing taking place the weekend of July 15, which has been mostly drowned out by the contrived propaganda in the 'media' about the August 26 circus fight.

This Saturday, July 15, Chris Eubank Jr. fights Arthur Abraham in London to secure a spot in super middleweight tournament of the World Boxing Super Series. This will be shown on ITV pay-per-view in the U.K.

In the U.S., the unbeaten Omar Figueroa Jr. returns from an extended injury layoff to face veteran Robert Guerrero in Uniondale, New York. This will be shown on PBC on Fox and Fox Deportes.

There will also be an HBO tripleheader from the Forum in Inglewood, California. WBC super featherweight champ Miguel Berchelt will fight former champ Takashi Miura, WBA super featherweight champ Jezreel Corrales will fight Robinson Castellanos, and light heavyweight Joe Smith Jr. will face Sullivan Barrera.

We also discuss the press conference announcing the September 23 fight between WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker and Hughie Fury, and the announcement by Hayemaker Ringstar, the joint venture between David Haye and promoter Richard Schaefer, of their TV rights deal with UKTV, the biggest multichannel broadcaster in the UK, for its entertainment channel Dave.

(Photo of Chris Eubank Jr. and Arthur Abraham courtesy of Poxon Sports. Photo of Miguel Berchelt and Takashi Miura card from Golden Boy Promotions. Photo of Omar Figueroa and Robert Guerrero from Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment.)

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The 2017 Frank Gotch World Catch Wrestling Tournament. On Saturday, July 15, 2017, catch wrestlers from all around the world will compete in Humboldt, Iowa, the hometown of the legendary world champion wrestler Frank Gotch. Organized by the Catch Wrestling Alliance (CWA) and co-sponsored by City of Humboldt Chamber of Commerce, Sprout Living (official protein powder of the CWA), and Ultima Replenisher (official electrolyte drink of the CWA), the event will take place at Humboldt High School. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.

Skullz Double-End Bags, the perfect bag for your combat sports training. Skullz Double-End Bags provide a realistic striking target, and help improve timing, distance, and hand and eye coordination. Hang it and hit it right out of the box! No pump required. For more information, go to SkullzDeBags.com.

USA Combat Wrestling, the official U.S. governing body for combat wrestling and U.S. delegate of the International Combat Wrestling Federation (FICW), which was founded by the legendary wrestler Noriaki Kiguchi of Japan. For more information, go to CombatWrestling.us.

Labels: Arthur Abraham, boxing, Chris Eubank Jr., Eddie Goldman, Hayemaker Ringstar, Hughie Fury, Joseph Parker, Miguel Berchelt, No Holds Barred, Omar Figueroa, Robert Guerrero, Takashi Miura

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the long wait for the next moves of boxing's top heavyweights, including Anthony Joshua, Wladimir Klitschko, Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Joseph Parker, and Luis Ortiz.

(Photo of James Corden, Anthony Joshua, and Russell Brand on "The Late Late Show" courtesy of CBS.)

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The 2017 Frank Gotch World Catch Wrestling Tournament. On Saturday, July 15, 2017, catch wrestlers from all around the world will compete in Humboldt, Iowa, the hometown of the legendary world champion wrestler Frank Gotch. Organized by the Catch Wrestling Alliance (CWA) and co-sponsored by City of Humboldt Chamber of Commerce, Sprout Living (official protein powder of the CWA), and Ultima Replenisher (official electrolyte drink of the CWA), the event will take place at Humboldt High School. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.

Skullz Double-End Bags, the perfect bag for your combat sports training. Skullz Double-End Bags provide a realistic striking target, and help improve timing, distance, and hand and eye coordination. Hang it and hit it right out of the box! No pump required. For more information, go to SkullzDeBags.com.

USA Combat Wrestling, the official U.S. governing body for combat wrestling and U.S. delegate of the International Combat Wrestling Federation (FICW), which was founded by the legendary wrestler Noriaki Kiguchi of Japan. For more information, go to CombatWrestling.us.

Thanks, Eddie Goldman
EddieGoldman.com

Labels: Anthony Joshua, boxing, Deontay Wilder, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Joseph Parker, Luis Ortiz, No Holds Barred, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with our correspondent Chris Baldwin.

Our subject was the main fights of Super Duper Saturday, December 10.

In a fight for the vacant WBO heavyweight belt, Joseph Parker (22-0, 18 KOs) won a majority decision over previously unbeaten Andy Ruiz Jr. (29-1, 19 KOs). This fight took place in Auckland, New Zealand.

Unbeaten IBF heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua (18-0, 18 KOs) kept his record perfect by knocking out Eric Molina (25-4, 19 KOs) in the third round of a fight headlining a card in Manchester, England.

Abner Mares (30-2-1, 15 KOs) won the WBA featherweight belt with a split decision over defending champion Jesus Cuellar (28-2, 21 KOs). This fight took place at the Galen Center on the campus of USC in Los Angeles.

On that same card, in a battle of two unbeaten young fighters, Jermall Charlo (25-0, 19 KOs) retained his IBF junior middleweight belt with a fifth-round knockout over Julian "J-Rock" Williams (22-1-1, 14 KOs).

We spoke with Chris Baldwin, who covered the card in Los Angeles, by phone Wednesday.

We discussed these fights and their significance, especially for the turbulent and intriguing heavyweight division.

This coming Saturday, December 17, one of boxing's greats will have what he says will be his final fight. The 51-year-old Bernard Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) will face Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) at The Forum in Inglewood, California. We spoke with Bernard Hopkins and Joe Smith Jr. on a recent media conference call.

(Photos of Abner Mares and Jesus Cuellar, and Jermall Charlo and Julian Williams, from Stephanie Trapp/Showtime. Photo of Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko from Lawrence Lustig. Photo of Bernard Hopkins and Joe Smith Jr. from Tom Hogan - Hoganphotos/Golden Boy Promotions.)

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The Boxing Tribune, boxing's independent media. Unlike every other major boxing website, The Boxing Tribune is not funded or owned by promoters, managers, or networks, and is fully independent and free to write the truth. For independent boxing news and views, go to http://boxingtribune-news.com.

The North American Catch Wrestling Association, a grassroots organization designed to help rebuild the sport of catch-as-catch-can-wrestling. For more information, go to their Facebook page at facebook.com/NorthAmericanCatchWrestlingAssociation.

Labels: Abner Mares, Andy Ruiz, Anthony Joshua, Bernard Hopkins, boxing, Eddie Goldman, heavyweight, Jermall Charlo, Jesus Cuellar, Joe Smith, Joseph Parker, Julian Williams, No Holds Barred, Wladimir Klitschko

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the main title fights which will take place on Boxing's Super Duper Saturday, December 10.

The action starts in Auckland, New Zealand, as two undefeated heavyweights meet for the vacant WBO heavyweight title. Mexican-American Andy Ruiz Jr. (29-0, 19 KOs) will face Joseph Parker of New Zealand (21-0, 18 KOs) at the Vector Arena in Auckland, New Zealand. This fight will be shown live in New Zealand on Sky Arena, in the U.K. on BoxNation, and in the U.S. in Spanish on UniMas, and on tape-delay in the U.S. on HBO.

A second major heavyweight belt will be on the line that day, this time in the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Unbeaten IBF champion and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Anthony Joshua (17-0, 17 KOs) will face veteran Eric Molina (25-3, 19 KOs). This will headline a card shown live in the U.K. on Sky Sports Box Office, with the Joshua-Molina fight also being shown live in the U.S. on Showtime.

That evening in the U.S. there will also be a championship doubleheader at the Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles, which is part of the PBC (Premier Boxing Champions) series of TV shows. In a match postponed from June, WBA featherweight champion Jesus Cuellar (28-1, 21 KOs) will face former three-division champion Abner Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs), and IBF super welterweight champion Jermall Charlo (24-0, 18 KOs) will fight undefeated contender Julian "J-Rock" Williams (22-0-1, 14 KOs). This will be shown live in the U.S. on Showtime and in Mexico on Televisa.

We spoke with Jesus Cuellar, Abner Mares, Jermall Charlo, and Julian Williams on media conference calls. We also run a short interview with promoter Richard Schaefer conducted by our colleague Chris Baldwin. And we explain how and why the idiot mainstream and boxing media are mainly ignoring the significance of all these fights on Super Duper Saturday, why HBO's latest mismatch is not included as part of Super Duper Saturday, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The Boxing Tribune, boxing's independent media. Unlike every other major boxing website, The Boxing Tribune is not funded or owned by promoters, managers, or networks, and is fully independent and free to write the truth. For independent boxing news and views, go to http://boxingtribune-news.com.

The North American Catch Wrestling Association, a grassroots organization designed to help rebuild the sport of catch-as-catch-can-wrestling. For more information, go to their Facebook page at facebook.com/NorthAmericanCatchWrestlingAssociation.

Labels: Abner Mares, Andy Ruiz, Anthony Joshua, boxing, Eddie Goldman, Eric Molina, Jermall Charlo, Jesus Cuellar, Joseph Parker, Julian Williams, No Holds Barred