Podcast: Berlanga interview, Serrano-Cruz card preview, Showtime/Paramount merger
Plus: Plenty of news of the week and memories on the anniversary of an epic battle
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There are two notable cards this weekend: Friday night when Emanuel Navarrete takes on Liam Wilson for the vacant WBC junior lightweight title in the Top Rank/ESPN main event and Saturday night when Amanda Serrano and Erika Cruz meet for the undisputed women’s featherweight title in the Matchroom Boxing/DAZN main event. We previewed both cards. There is also my one-on-one interview with unbeaten rising super middleweight Edgar Berlanga, who is free agent and has attracted major interest from various promoters. Plus, we covered tons of news of the week and saved some time for a bit of nostalgia.
Here is what’s on the show (in order):
We previewed Navarrete-Wilson, including Wilson’s wild travel schedule to assure him of the fight and discussion of the controversy of Wilson coming in nearly four pounds under the limit and claiming a rigged scale to assist Navarrete.
We chatted about the quality co-feature between junior welterweights Arnold Barboza and Jose Pedraza and others you’ll see on the undercard.
A preview of Serrano-Cruz and the co-feature of Alycia Baumgardner vs. Elhem Mekhaled for the undisputed women’s junior lightweight title and how impressive it is to have two undisputed title bouts on the same show and where the winners may go.
My interview with Berlanga. We discussed his free agency, what he’s looking for in a promoter, his view of the break up with Top Rank, the end of his KO streak, his recent performances, his desire to fight Canelo Alvarez and why he thinks it’s possible as well as other possible opponents, including his interest in Jaime Munguia and John Ryder, and more.
The David Benavidez-Caleb Plant kickoff news conference to promote their Showtime PPV fight on Thursday and why the presser was so disappointing.
The announcement of WBO interim heavyweight titlist Joe Joyce’s fight with Zhang Zhilei.
Showtime’s announcement of the Brandon Figueroa-Mark Magsayo tripleheader for March 4 and thoughts on the card.
A detailed discussion on what we think the announcement that Showtime will merge with Paramount+ might mean for its boxing franchise.
Memories on the 27th anniversary of the debut of the landmark HBO “Boxing After Dark” series that featured an all-time great main event between the young future Hall of Famer Marco Antonio Barrera and Kennedy McKinney in one of the best fights of the 1990s and one of the best I have ever seen.
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Photo: Edgar Berlanga social media
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Thanks for the Pod......
Only thing that got me to thinking was this business of Showtime merger. Lot of talk of comparing it to HBO and the fall of boxing on HBO and how this could repeat itself. I do not think so at this time and the comparision to HBO is a bit different. HBO lost money and spent money on shows that were hits and felt they could get away without boxing. Show is a dif story. Details later.
What I think COULD happen and i hope will happen is that Show will realize as it does this merger that the dinosour is not boxing on show but PPV boxing on Showtime. That is the waste of money lets merge those fighters that will fight for a decent payday with contractual signings to ShowPara and keep the boxing alive and keep the fighters who want to make a decent and win a decent Prize for there fights to stay with ParaShow and allow boxing to continue on. Why all this fear of loosing boxing the bussiness side of Boxing Sucks everyone knows that. Look at how boxing has taken from its fans and given no respect to loyalty to the sport. The list is enless esp when it comes to PPV fights. So many last year were a total insult to fight fans real fight fans. Let the big money boys like GDavis go away if they do not want the money they get offered. The first fight that should have been a PPV for Tank has not even been signed yet. The heavies the hype train of no nothing fights should be over. Maybe just maybe this is what boxing needs. A new look at it self from a stance of what are you selling to the public. Scare tactics do now work anymore on fans. Boxing will continue and move on even if Show leaves the scene. Nothing is forever not even boxing after dark. Or night of the Flies or Tuesday night fights or Friday Night Fights or boxing on Saturday Afternoon. This it the price of not apreciated what you have, not the fans not appreciating the sport but the powers that be in boxing. Who always sell the fans short. Let heads roll let them look at the books so be it. Go at it Para tear thru it all and decide. Boxing will surive as long as there is some poor bastard looking for a way out of poverty and develops a bad attitude and learns who to go round. OH and as long as some parasite of a promoters see's and steels a fighter and makes a million off his blood.