The Opening Bell; A boxing podcast

After the performances of Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury last
weekend, there can now be no doubt that the two British heavyweights are both
past their best. Furthermore, it is more obvious than ever before that the
fight we wanted all those years ago – when they were 1 and 2 in the heavyweight
division – is gone forever.

So, what are we left with?
Joshua remains a frightful puncher, that much is clear. But he looks so
susceptible these days it’s difficult to imagine him surviving any kind of
onslaught from Fury. Whether Fury is these days capable of producing that
onslaught, while also avoiding Joshua’s right hand, when he couldn’t avoid that
of 46-year-old Marius Wach, likely makes the bout as well-matched as it’s ever
been.

Don’t expect either to walk
away until this long and winding saga has reached a close, though. Unlike Errol
Spence Jnr, who realised against Tim Tszyu that his days as a prize-fighter are
over and announced his retirement in the aftermath.

We look ahead to Pierce
O’Leary-Mark Chamberlain in Ireland and Lamont Roach-William Zepeda in the US,
before kicking back in the DeLorean, setting the flux capacitor to July 1999,
and enjoying the last hurrah of Michael Carbajal against Jorge Arce.

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Opening Bell, folks. And thanks, as always, for the support.

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Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Errol Spence will all this weekend exhibit what is left of themselves. Even if it turns out to be very little, that should still be enough for Joshua and Fury to triumph against Kristian Prenga and Mariusz Wach respectively. If the point of those exercises is questionable then the task that awaits Spence is, by comparison, somewhat formidable.

He takes on Tim Tszyu in Australia in a bout set at 160lbs. Will Spence show he still has what it takes at 36 or will he become the latest athlete to realise that time is the cruellest opponent of them all?

Elsewhere, Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn reminded everyone how much noise they can make and how hard they can appear.

Thanks for listening and for your support, amigos.



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Joe Joyce
was again on the wrong end of a painful loss, one that might, this time, mean
the end. But that’s easy for those who merely watch and pass judgement to say.

A case in
point, when examining how difficult retirement is for a fighter to accept is
Derek Chisora who teased another return by going nose-to-nose with Murat
Gassiev on the same Russia event where Joyce was defeated.

We examine
the latest comings and goings at Zuffa and Matchroom as Johnny Fisher makes the
switch. Shakur Stevenson has joined up with Dana White’s men, too plus in This Week,
we go back to 1999 when Baby Jake Matlala shocks Michael Carbajal.

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Oleksandr Usyk looks set to
fight Deontay Wilder, potentially under the Zuffa umbrella, in a bout that
could signal the end of the current heavyweight era.

But not before we get Tyson Fury
vs Mariusz Wach. Whether marking time or just wasting it, Fury's decision to
fight a shot 46-year-old is curious.

The good times seem to be just
beginning for Abdullah Mason who rebounded from a slow start to stop Albert
Bell in the 12th and final round.

In This Week, we set the dial to
1991 and head back for some vintage Tony Lopez action as he takes on Lupe
Gutierrez atop a bill that featured a young Lennox Lewis getting the better of
Mike Weaver.

Keep listening to The Opening
Bell, folks; the sweetest sound in boxing.

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Oleksandr Usyk last week vacated three heavyweight titles to focus on a “last dance”. Who will be Usyk’s final dance partner? Where does his departure leave the rest of the division? And what does this decision mean for his legacy?   

Jaron ‘Boots” Ennis, meanwhile, at last found a befitting dance partner in Xander Zayas last weekend as the pair unleashed some sumptuous moves in Brooklyn. Ennis wasn’t perfect but reminded the boxing world exactly why he’s been held in high regard for such a long time. But then, with the fight being stuck behind a paywall, it’s easy to wonder if this was a missed opportunity to draw new fans to the sport.

Ben Whittaker dazzled again on the undercard only days after one of British boxing’s most reliable showmen, Chris Eubank Jr, revealed his plans to keep fighting “until the wheels fall off” at the age of 36.

We review Lewis Crocker’s tight loss to Liam Paro before heading back to the 1990s and not one but two “Sugar” Shane Mosley fights. Thanks to some classic Christie chaos we look at his victory over Wilfrido Ruiz in 1998 AND his beatdown of Wilfredo Rivera the following year.

Thanks for listening to The Opening Bell, one and all. Your support is treasured.

 
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