No Holds Barred: Andre Ward, Carl Froch, and Boxing Governance

(Photo by: Tom Casino / Showtime)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with Super Six World Boxing Classic finalists Andre Ward and Carl Froch, and discusses why the bad governance in boxing made this super middleweight tournament necessary.

On Saturday, December 17, WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward (24-0, 13 KOs) will face WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch (28-1, 20 KOs) in the finals of the two-year-long Super Six World Boxing Classic. This fight will take place at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and will be televised live in the U.S. on Showtime and in the U.K. on Sky Sports. The winner will earn the right to be called the best super middleweight in the world.

We spoke with both Andre Ward and Carl Froch at the kickoff news conference in August for this fight, which had originally been scheduled for October 29 but had to be postponed after Ward suffered a cut during training. We discussed what to expect in this fight, as well as the need for a boxers' union. We also previewed this fight with New York TV host Kristal Hart, whose show airs on Manhattan Neighborhood Network.

In addition, we open with a commentary on why it took an American television network, Showtime, to organize a tournament of the top fighters in the world in this division, when legitimate sports regularly have competitions pitting the best against the best.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

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", by Ian Carpenter.

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

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

Thanks, Eddie Goldman
EddieGoldman.com

No Holds Barred: Amir Khan, Lamont Peterson, Seth Mitchell, Timur Ibragimov

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the Amir Khan-Lamont Peterson 140-pound title fight and the Seth Mitchell-Timur Ibragimov heavyweight fight. These bouts will take place Saturday, December 10, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., and will be telecast live in the U.S. on HBO, with the Khan-Peterson fight also being shown live on Sky Sports in the U.K.

Khan (26-1, 18 KOs), from Bolton, Lancashire, U.K., will be defending two major titles against Peterson (29-1-1, 15 KOs), who is fighting in his hometown. Mitchell (23-0-1, 17 KOs) will have the highest profile fight of his career against Ibragimov (30-3-1, 16 KOs).

We spoke with Amir Khan, Lamont Peterson, Peterson's trainer Barry Hunter, Seth Mitchell, and Timur Ibragimov on recent media conference calls. They each revealed their mindsets and told us what to expect in these fights.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

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", by Ian Carpenter.

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

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

No Holds Barred: Boxing and Bacon

(cartoon from revista-amauta.org)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the similarities and differences between boxing and bacon (hint: both involve pigs and are bad for you, but at least bacon smells and tastes good), in light of the major fights of Saturday, December 3.

Analyzed are the breakout performance by WBA bantamweight champion Anselmo Moreno, who earned a lopsided unanimous decision over Vic Darchinyan, and IBF bantamweight champion Abner Mares, who decisioned Joseph King Kong Agbeko in their rematch, this time without much controversy. But also discussed are the disputed decision win by heavyweight Robert Helenius over Dereck Chisora, and the disgraceful farce at Madison Square Garden in New York, where Miguel Cotto won by a tenth-round TKO over a fighter who should not have been licensed by the New York State Athletic Commission, Antonio Margarito. The reasons why this was a disgraceful farce are explained on this show, and remedies to this disgrace are proposed.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

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", by Ian Carpenter.

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

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

No Holds Barred: Mares-Agbeko 2 and Moreno-Darchinyan Previews

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the highly-anticipated rematch between IBF bantamweight champion Abner Mares and the former two-time IBF bantamweight champion Joseph King Kong Agbeko, and the fight between WBA bantamweight super champion Anselmo Moreno and former two-division world champion Vic Darchinyan.

These two fights take place Saturday, December 3, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, and will be telecast live in the U.S. on Showtime.

The first fight between Mares (22-0-1, 13 KOs), who was a Mexican Olympian in 2004 and now lives in California, and Agbeko (28-3, 22 KOs), from Accra, Ghana, and now fighting out of the Bronx, New York, was held August 13, 2011, in Las Vegas. While it was officially ruled a majority decision win for Mares, it was marred by a major controversy since Mares landed numerous low blows but was not penalized by referee Russell Mora. Mares even dropped Agbeko with a clear-cut shot to the groin in the 11th round, but the referee ruled it a legal knockdown. This fight was the final bout in the Showtime bantamweight tournament, but since it generated so much heated controversy, an immediate rematch was scheduled.

Although Moreno (31-1-1, 11 KOs), from Panama City, Panama, holds a WBA bantamweight belt and is highly regarded as a skillful boxer, most of his fights have been in his home country, and he has never before fought in the U.S. The slugger Darchinyan (37-3-1, 27 KOs), originally from Armenia and now fighting out of Sydney, Australia, is coming off two straight wins after losing a split decision to Mares in the opening round of the Showtime bantamweight tournament.

With Nonito Donaire moving up to super bantamweight, the winners of these fights will stake a claim to being the best bantamweight boxer in the world.

We spoke with Abner Mares, Anselmo Moreno, and Vic Darchinyan on a recent media conference call (Agbeko was also scheduled for that call but never made it on). We got their views on what to expect in their fights. We also heard Abner Mares candidly discuss the controversy in his first fight with Joseph Agbeko, and what he would have done differently if the referee had taken points away from him for low blows.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

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", by Ian Carpenter.

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

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

No Holds Barred: Kirkland-Angulo and Quillin-McEwan Previews, MMA vs. Boxing

On this audio edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the James Kirkland-Alfredo Angulo and Peter "Kid Chocolate" Quillin-Craig McEwan fights of November 5, and issues a challenge to MMA fans about the MMA vs. boxing debate.

On Saturday, November 5, there will be three televised boxing cards in the U.S., and none of them on pay-per-view. Besides the Showtime card headlined by unbeaten IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute facing Glen Johnson, and the WealthTV card promoted by Don King headlined by WBA cruiserweight champion Guillermo Jones fighting Mike Marrone, HBO will have a doubleheader coming from Cancun, Mexico.

Two sluggers who very much need a big victory will face each other in the main event of the HBO card, as James Kirkland (29-1, 26 KOs) faces Alfredo Angulo (20-1, 17 KOs) in a 12-round, 154-pound WBC title eliminator. The first-round knockout loss earlier this year of Kirkland by little-known Nobuhiro Ishida, and the 2009 decision loss of Angulo to Kermit Cintron, halted the title quests of both these highly-touted fighters, so an impressive victory is essential for both Kirkland and Angulo. Most observers expect this one to be a memorable shootout, and it is not to be missed.

Also on that televised card, the unbeaten Peter "Kid Chocolate" Quillin (25-0, 19 KOs) makes his HBO debut against Craig McEwan (19-1, 10 KOs) in a ten-round middleweight fight. McEwan is coming off the first loss of his career, a tenth-round TKO by Andy Lee in March.

On a media conference call Monday, Kirkland explained how he has become a different fighter since his loss to Ishida. We also spoke with both Peter Quillin and Craig McEwan to get their takes on their fight.

In addition, we issue a challenge to those MMA fans who watched the UFC pay-per-view this past Saturday headlined by the Nick Diaz-B.J. Penn fight. Our challenge: watch any or all of these three non-pay-per-view boxing cards this coming Saturday, November 5, and let us know whether or not they were better than the UFC pay-per-view.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.

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, featuring the Renzo Gracie Gi Open 2011 tournament, a signing of his new book by MMA legend Randy Couture, grappling and muay Thai action, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, and much more. The third annual MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, December 17, and Sunday, December 18, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

No Holds Barred: Don King

On this audio edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with the one and only Don King.

Don King was in New York Tuesday, October 25, presiding over a news conference about the November 5 card he is promoting. Headlining that 11-fight show will be WBA cruiserweight champion Guillermo Jones (37-3-2, 29 KOs) defending his belt against Mike Marrone (20-3, 15 KOs), who is moving down from heavyweight. This card takes place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, and will be televised in the U.S. and streamed for free online by WealthTV.

In a typically spirited, entertaining, and opinionated presentation at the news conference, Don King argued that boxing is in a "downward spiral" and in need of major change, including the way the television networks handle the sport. Besides hyping this card, he introduced Robert Herring and Charles Herring of WealthTV, which will be telecasting its first boxing card.

We spoke with Don King right after the formal news conference about this card, what changes he wants to make in boxing, how he views some other topics like the Occupy Wall Street protests, and more. We also spoke with Charles Herring to learn more about WealthTV and its plans.

In addition, we present the entire, unedited audio of this news conference. And we also explain why, despite there being two other major televised boxing cards in the U.S. that same night, this one is likely to be the best.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.

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, featuring the Renzo Gracie Gi Open 2011 tournament, a signing of his new book by MMA legend Randy Couture, grappling and muay Thai action, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, and much more. The third annual MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, December 17, and Sunday, December 18, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.

No Holds Barred: Bernard Hopkins, Chad Dawson, Kendall Holt, Danny Garcia, Paulie Malignaggi

On this audio edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman previews the October 15 boxing card headlined by the light heavyweight title fight between Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson.

The 46-year-old Hopkins, the oldest boxer ever to win a major title, will be defending his WBC belt against the 29-year-old Dawson, a former WBC and IBF champion, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. This card will be telecast in the U.S. HBO Pay-Per-View.

We spoke with both Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson on media conference calls where both fighters stated their cases as to why they will prevail in this fight. The legendary Hopkins explained what he represents to people and how he wants to be known, besides being a champion boxer. Dawson argued that he has the tools and desire to beat his older opponent, and is highly motivated for this fight.

We also explain why you should never, ever, bet against Bernard "The Executioner" Hopkins.

In addition, we also spoke with Kendall Holt and Danny Garcia, who fight in a junior welterweight bout, and Paulie Malignaggi, who faces Orlando Lora in a welterweight fight, on this show.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.

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

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/.

The American Sambo Association, which is committed to becoming the premier association in the U.S. dedicated to the advancement of Sambo. Sambo is a form of sport, self-defense, and combat established in the former Soviet Union during the early twentieth century. For more information, go to ussambo.com.