NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the recent fights of top ten pound-for-pound fighters Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford, who both formerly fought on HBO in the U.S., as well as the critical success of the World Boxing Super Series. Also previewed is Crawford's next fight, on October 13 against Jose Benavidez Jr., which will air on ESPN in the U.S. We spoke with Crawford on last week's media conference call.

(Photo of Naoya Inoue knockout of Juan Carlos Payano by Naoki Fukuda/World Boxing Super Series.)

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Labels: boxing, DAZN, Eddie Goldman, ESPN, HBO, Monster, Naoya Inoue, No Holds Barred, Terence Crawford, World Boxing Super Series

by Eddie Goldman

For those folks interested in real boxing who are fortunate enough to be spared from all this devastation and tragedy going on around the world, Saturday, September 9, is a busy day.

The World Boxing Super Series has its first card Saturday, featuring the current WBO cruiserweight champion, Oleksandr Usyk, against a former champion, Marko Huck. This fight, the opening round of this event's eight-man cruiserweight tournament, takes place at the Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin.

While the World Boxing Super Series just recently signed TV deals with networks in several European countries, including Germany and Russia, this fight will not be televised live in the U.K. or at all in the U.S.

The U.S. will host one of the strongest cards of the year, however, as three major fights in the talented super flyweight division take place at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.

Headlining this card, which has been dubbed "SuperFly", will be a rematch of a March fight between Wisaksil Wangek AKA Srisaket Sor Rungvisai of Thailand and Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez of Nicaragua. In their first fight, Rungvisai won a controversial majority decision, handing Chocolatito his first loss and capturing his WBC belt. In a battle of two exciting Mexican fighters, former WBA 108-pound champion Juan Francisco Estrada will face Carlos Cuadras, with the winner likely getting a title shot at the Rungvisai-Chocolatito victor. This fight could also be a show stealer. And in his first fight outside his home country, the unbeaten 24-year-old phenom Naoya Inoue of Japan will defend his WBO belt against American Antonio Nieves.

The "SuperFly" card will be shown on HBO in the U.S., WOWOW in Japan, and Sky Sports in the U.K.

I have already discussed these cards and other topics more in depth, including the TV situation, here:

No Holds Barred: A Sweet But Dysfunctional September for Boxing

Joshua-Pulev, Golovkin-Canelo, World Boxing Super Series, Parker-Fury TV News

So please be safe, and watch as many of these fights as you can. And remember, Mens sana in corpore sano.

(Photo of Usyk and Huck from World Boxing Super Series. Photo of "SuperFly" final press conference from Tom Hogan, K2 Promotions.)

Labels: Chocolatito, Eddie Goldman, Marko Huck, Naoya Inoue, No Holds Barred, Oleksandr Usyk, Rungvisai, SuperFly, TV, World Boxing Super Series