The Opening Bell

Naoya Inoue did as expected, and largely as he pleased, when he punched holes in TJ Doheny to the extent the Irishman suffered back spasms and had to quit.Afterwards, Bob Arum spelled out plans for Inoue to conquer Las Vegas in 2025 - with a suggestion that a superfight with Junto Nakatani is on the horizon.As ever, there is plenty of news to digest, from Joshua-Dubois ‘selling out’, the IBF’s selection of mandatories and the comebacks of Conor Benn and Billy Joe Saunders.In This Week we remember when Daniel Zaragoza reluctantly, but classily, handed the torch to a 21-year-old Erik Morales.Patreons - thank you for your support, we will love you forever. As for the rest of you - click here to feel the warmth of that unconditional love:

https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcastYour good friends at The Opening Bell are delighted to present our new weekly series - ‘Boxing’s Best’ - where, every Saturday morning, we focus on a specific subject within boxing and reveal our own Top 10 favourites. This week we attempt to rate Boxing’s Best Dressed Fighters.With Steedo (claiming) not getting the memo on this one – which was to name the best in-ring outfits – he goes rogue and reels off those fighters who turned heads with their clothing away from the battleground.Christie sticks to boxing and fighters like Muhammad Ali, with his white and black shorts, and Mike Tyson, with his iconic and frighteningly simple all black attire, are among those in the running. As always in Boxing’s Best, you can also expect some leftfield choices.We’d love your feedback and your own personal choices. It is your divine right to disagree! Thanks, as always you lovely lot, for your much cherished support.

With the boxing calendar between seasons we spread the conversation far and wide, much like Eddie Hearn's public persona. As Matchroom Boxing prepare to get the Netflix treatment, we look back on the impact the promoter has made in British boxing and beyond - and focus also on his signing of Shakur Stevenson.After a nondescript boxer was caught out for doping on the recent Los Angeles bill we ask the question: How rife is doping and how many cheats actually get caught? We also re-examine the potential implications of the Saudi revolution in light of Tris Dixon's recent article on BoxingScene and look ahead to Diego Pacheco's next test.There's a forgotten slugfest in This Week as we go back to 1981 and Rolando Navarrete upsetting Cornelius Boza-Edwards.Finally, another thank you to those who've signed up to out Patreon! We're now producing exclusive bonus content every week so don't miss out: https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcast

https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcastYour good friends at The Opening Bell are delighted to present our new weekly series - ‘Boxing’s Best’ - where, every Saturday morning, we focus on a specific subject within boxing and reveal our own Top 10 favourites. Kicking things off is Boxing’s Best One-Punch KOs.From Julian Jackson knocking out Herol Graham to Andy Lee knocking out John Jackson, we cover a lot of ground in this one while recalling exactly what it’s like to be at ringside in that moment when the lights of one of the combatants suddenly go out.There’s an awful lot of KOs to choose from so please forgive us if we don’t include your personal favourite but, that said, we’d love to hear YOUR Top 10s too! Bother and berate us, but please keep spreading the good word of The Opening Bell, your trusty – and completely independent – boxing podcast.

The latest Saudi event has been unveiled with a whopping 84 rounds scheduled featuring fighters from Top Rank, Matchroom, Queensberry and Boxxer.The main event, Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol, can’t be faulted and therefore sells itself. Which begs the question: Is a gargantuan undercard, that will last for hours and contains only one 50/50 affair, really necessary?We examine the ongoing - and still unclear - implications of the Saudi takeover in detail.The performances of Christian Mbilli and Denzel Bentley are reviewed - as is the 1969 coronation of the legendary Ruben Olivares in This Week.Your support is what keeps us going - please join our group of wonderful Patreons if you can, you won’t regret it…https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcast

Billy and Bakole; Billy Nelson on Martin Bakole as the big time beckons.Listen to the full interview + all our other bonus content + get AD free listening via our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcast

Chris Eubank Jr promises a May 2025 date with Canelo Alvarez, but if that doesn’t happen, has his career been a success?We also ask if Martin Bakole could have obliterated a peak George Foreman while looking back on two serious contenders for Fight and KO of the year.This Week takes you back to the days of the ‘Old Mongoose’ and the one and only Archie Moore. You decide if he’s 45 or 48!https://x.com/bbcnews/status/1821813065408520681?s=48&t=-0A88ThNwioQY2Hi5HAMCwSupport the pod on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcast

The case of Imane Khelif has dominated the sporting headlines this week, casting a shadow over the Olympic Games in the process.Whether she should have been permitted to fight is a separate matter to the treatment she’s received and both subjects are dealt with in detail.Israil Madrimov ran Terence Crawford much closer than we predicted to leave question marks over the brilliant American’s future (and our ability to predict fights).Please support us if you can by subscribing to Patreon. If you can’t please rate and review, every little helps!https://www.patreon.com/TheOpeningBellPodcast

This week Matt and Alex reflect on the all British heavyweight battle between Derek Chisora and Joe Joyce; a heroic though worrying effort from two ageing boxing warriors. Star man Terence Crawford returns after a year and moves up in weight to face a younger, hungry champion while This Week in history we remember the hard hitting little man Vic Darchinyan. And with Cycling facing an ongoing public battle with perception and performance, we discuss the real legacy of cheating in Sport and where does Boxing stand in that discussion.