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Labels: . boxing, Chris Baldwin, Dmitry Bivol, Eddie Goldman, Girlboxing, Malissa Smith, No Holds Barred, Russia, Saul Canelo Alvarez, Ukraine, WAAR Room, WAAR Sports

My latest piece, "Canelo vs. Saunders and the DAZN Dilemma", is up on the No Holds Barred Patreon page. A subscription is required to read it, so subscribe today to support independent journalism. The article is at https://www.patreon.com/posts/canelo-vs-and-50971964.

Labels: Billy Joe Saunders, boxing, DAZN, Eddie Goldman, No Holds Barred, Saul Canelo Alvarez

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the November 2 fight between Saul "Canelo" Alvarez and Sergey Kovalev, and the ill-conceived decision by streaming service DAZN to delay its start until after a UFC event on another platform was completed. This outraged many in boxing, as the Canelo-Kovalev fight only started after 1 AM Eastern Time. Also discussed are how this was a gross insult to the core audience of boxing fans DAZN has built in the U.S. for the past year, what this might mean for DAZN amidst the very competitive "streaming wars", and much much more.

(Photo of Canelo and Kovalev by Tom Hogan-Hoganphotos/Golden Boy.)

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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.

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Labels: boxing, DAZN, Eddie Goldman, No Holds Barred, Saul Canelo Alvarez, Sergey Kovalev, streaming

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the October 27 fight between Daniel Jacobs and Sergiy Derevyanchenko for the vacant IBF middleweight belt. This fight takes place at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, and will headline a card shown in the U.S. on HBO on its next-to-last boxing telecast.

We spoke with Daniel Jacobs, Sergiy Derevyanchenko, and promoters Eddie Hearn and Lou DiBella on this week's media conference call about this fight. We also discussed the possibility of creating a tournament to unify the various middleweight titles.

Before that, an analysis is given of why there are now five so-called middleweight world champions, and the obstacles to unification. Besides the usual suspects of the sanctioning bodies, the effect of these recently-signed big money TV and streaming deals in the U.S. in blocking the best from fighting the best is examined.

(Photo of Demetrius Andrade and Walter Kautondokwa, Ed Mulholland/Matchroom USA.)

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.

Labels: boxing, Daniel Jacobs, DAZN, Demetrius Andrade, Eddie Goldman, ESPN, Fox, Gennady Golovkin, Jermall Charlo, middleweights, No Holds Barred, Saul Canelo Alvarez, Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Showtime

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the Nov. 4 heavyweight title fight between WBC champ Deontay Wilder and Luis "King Kong" Ortiz, the controversial draw in the Gennady "GGG" Golovkin-Saul "Canelo" Alvarez fight, and what these all say about the business of boxing and its history of trickeration.

(Photo of Golovkin and Canelo courtesy of HBO/Ed Mulholland.)

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, Gennady GGG Golovkin, heavyweight, Luis King Kong Ortiz, No Holds Barred, Saul Canelo Alvarez

(Photo credit: Tom Hogan - Hoganphotos/Roc Nation Sports/Golden Boy Promotions)

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

He is also co-editor of The Boxing Standard.

Our main focus was the major fight card taking place this Saturday, November 21, as Miguel Cotto (40-4, 33 KOs) takes on Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (45-1-1, 32 KOs) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. This card will be shown live in the U.S. on HBO pay-per-view and in the U.K. on BoxNation, as well as on many other networks around the world.

We spoke with Charles Farrell by phone Thursday.

"Were they both in their prime and were they both fighting at 147, I would go with Cotto. He's a better fighter. He's more versatile. He is actually the better puncher of the two," he said.

"But I think at this point it's a question of their respective arcs, where each one of them is heading. And I think it's a propitious time for Alvarez."

He continued, "I think that Cotto will start well. He's a good boxer, and Alvarez is a slow starter. But the years and the abuse that he's going to take from Alvarez, who is a good body puncher, are going to catch up with him. And I don't think anybody is going to sit around and let him take too much abuse. So my guess is eight or nine rounds."

Besides discussing more on this fight and the pay-per-view card, we delved into our continuing analysis of the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), which has been running numerous fight cards on non-pay TV in the U.S. since March. We discussed PBC's stagnant and sometimes sagging TV ratings, how PBC has offered many competitive and exciting fights and upsets, how PBC has good matchmaking but has not been good at star-making, and much more.

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

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, at http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/no-holds-barred-with-eddie-goldman.

The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free 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 free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City December 12 and 13, 2015, for the sixth annual MMA World Expo, featuring submission-only grappling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, December 12, and Sunday, December 13, 2015, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

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.

Gracie Tournaments, featuring regional, national, and world competitions in submission-only Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. For more information, go to GracieWorlds.com.

The National Registry for Wrestling, whose mission is to increase wrestling's fanbase, to build a registry of all wrestling fans, to serve as a connecting point for all wrestling fans, and to provide TV and Internet listings for wrestling. For more information, go to NR4W.com.

Labels: Charles Farrell, Eddie Goldman, Miguel Cotto, No Holds Barred, PBC, Premier Boxing Champions, Saul Canelo Alvarez

(Photo credit of Canelo and Angulo: Esther Lin/Showtime)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the issues of transgender athletes and concussions in combat sports, and previews the Canelo Alvarez-Alfredo Angulo fight and the return to Bellator of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

The commentary begins with a brief examination of the issues in the ESPN Grantland article "Dr. V's Magical Putter" about a transgender woman who invented a controversial but popular golf putter. Recommended reading are two essential replies. ESPN writer Christina Kahrl wrote "What Grantland Got Wrong". MMA fighter Fallon Fox wrote, also in reply, "The Wrong Way To Write About Trans People".

Also noted are the different reactions in boxing and MMA to the issue of transgender athletes, and how the fight for rights for transgender people has become a major focus in the general battle for human rights.

Next is a discussion of the issues of concussions in contact and combat sports, the recent string of deaths in MMA, and recreational and performance-enhancing drugs.

Major fights are already being announced for 2014. In boxing, Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, following the first loss of his professional career in September to Floyd Mayweather, returns March 8 to face slugger Alfredo Angulo, in Las Vegas, Nevada. This fight will headline a Showtime pay-per-view in the U.S.

We spoke with both Canelo Alvarez and Alfredo Angulo on a media conference call this week.

In MMA, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will be entering the four-man Bellator light heavyweight tournament, beginning February 28 at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. He will face former Bellator light heavyweight champion Christian M'Pumbu in the opening round. The other bracket has "King" Mo Lawal facing Mikhail Zayats. These fights will be telecast live in the U.S. on Spike TV.

We spoke with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson on a media conference call this week.

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:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

GrappleGnostic, sponsored by Defense Soap. Where the will to win meets the power of knowledge. Features, interviews, analysis, health tips, and information on wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and all the grappling arts, written by some of the best writers and experts in the world. Check out their web site, a http://defensesoap.com/grapplegnostic.

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 http://defensesoap.com.

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 http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Alfredo Angulo, Bellator, boxing, concussions, Eddie Goldman, Fallon Fox, MMA, No Holds Barred, Quinton Rampage Jackson, Saul Canelo Alvarez, transgender

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses some of the recent coverage of boxing, MMA, and wrestling in the sports media, including Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine, and why it is a combination of mediocre writing, idiocy, and abject shilling. This is related to an exodus, particularly in the U.S., from the mainstream media in general, and highlights the need for the combat sports in particular to develop media providing both quality and critical analysis and reporting.

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:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

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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 http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: boxing, catch, catch-as-catch-can, combat sports, Eddie Goldman, ESPN Magazine, Floyd Mayweather, Guardian, IOC, media, mediocrities, MMA, No Holds Barred, Olympics, Saul Canelo Alvarez, Sports Illustrated, wrestling

(photo: Esther Lin/Showtime)

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.

Our main subject was what is expected to be the biggest fight this year, and perhaps the biggest grossing pay-per-view of all time, the September 14 showdown between Floyd Mayweather and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.

In this bout between these two unbeaten fighters, the 36-year-old pound-for-pound king Mayweather (44-0, 26 KOs) faces the 23-year-old WBA and WBC 154-pound champion Alvarez (42-0-1, 30 KOs) at a catch weight of 152 pounds. It takes place Saturday, September 14, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and will be shown live in the U.S. on Showtime pay-per-view, in the U.K. on BoxNation, in Mexico on Televisa, and also on many networks around the world. The event is promoted by Mayweather Promotions, Golden Boy Promotions, and Canelo Promotions.

We spoke with Charles Farrell Thursday to preview this fight.

Mayweather is the favorite to win this fight, and we both agreed with that assessment.

"I do think it should be a pretty decisive win for Mayweather," said Charles Farrell. "Aside from some difference in size -- Canelo is a bigger guy and he's a growing guy -- I don't see that Mayweather doesn't have every appreciable advantage. There's nothing that Canelo does that he hasn't seen many, many times before." He added that he expects the likeliest outcome to be a comfortable 12-round decision for Mayweather.

However, this being boxing, we also discussed the possibility, as some others have as well, that Mayweather would win the fight but would lose the decision. Robberies and horribly bad decisions are common in boxing, so we discussed the business considerations behind such a possibility, including Canelo's popularity and potential longevity as a star.

We also discussed the many prominent boxing writers "who don't know anything about boxing", as well as some comments on the compelling co-feature on this show, where WBA and WBC 140-pound champion Danny Garcia (26-0, 16 KOs) takes on slugger Lucas Matthysse (34-2, 32 KOs).

In addition, we play a brief excerpt from the media conference calls for this fight, one with Canelo and another with Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions.

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:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.

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 http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: boxing, Charles Farrell, Eddie Goldman, Floyd Mayweather, No Holds Barred, Saul Canelo Alvarez