No Holds Barred: John Perretti on Why We Watched Boxing over UFC This Weekend

No Holds Barred: John Perretti on Why We Watched Boxing over UFC This Weekend

http://nhbnews.podOmatic.com/entry/2009-03-09T00_13_06-07_00

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman begins the fourth year of this show as a podcast by speaking with the legendary matchmaker, promoter, announcer, and martial artist, and our senior correspondent on this show, John Perretti.

This past Saturday night, March 7, there were two live televised fight cards on at the same time. One was an HBO boxing card featuring a TKO victory by unbeaten, rising junior middleweight James Kirkland over Joel Julio. The other was another UFC pay-per-view.

In a lengthy discussion, we explain why we both chose to watch the boxing over the UFC (and it was not because of the price of the pay-per-view). We discuss the training methods used by James Kirkland, who is under the tutelage of former boxer Ann Wolfe. We also discuss why, despite excellent fights and fighters, televised boxing often comes off looking so lame, tired, and old. And we touch on many more issues in both boxing and mixed martial arts, including fighter safety.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes at http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=150801513&s=143441.

The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by musician Ian Carpenter (http://iancarpenter.com/).

Make sure to check out my regular weekly boxing show SecondsOut Radio, at http://www.secondsout.com/radio/. On this week's edition of SecondsOut Radio, we begin by commenting on a good weekend of televised fights. These included the comeback decision win by Delvin Rodriguez over Shamone Alvarez, the second-round TKO by Victor Ortiz over Mike Arnaoutis, the breakout performance by James Kirkland in stopping Joel Julio at the end of six rounds, and the brutal knockout by Mike Alvarado of Emmanuel Clottey at 2:58 of the tenth and final round. We also discuss the implications of these fights for the rankings. This coming weekend marks the start of four straight weeks of mid-level pay-per-view telecasts in the U.S. The first of these, on March 14, will pit Amir Khan against the legendary but aging Marco Antonio Barrera. This is a major test for both fighters, although of a different kind for each. Can Khan, knocked out in the first round in September 2008 by little-known but unbeaten Breidis Prescott, defeat a top-level fighter? And can the 35-year-old Barrera, who has twice fought lower-level opposition since being dominated by Manny Pacquiao in October 2007, and who contemplated retirement, still safely and competitively compete in the ring? We had a chance on a recent media conference call to get comments from both Khan and Barrera. And we also comment on this glut of pay-per-views, and what it means, and doesn't mean, for boxing. Finally, we comment on the efforts to market and position the boxing shows on Showtime. Despite showing many excellent fights, Showtime is way behind their premium cable network rival, HBO, in popularity. We discuss some of the reasons why, in particular their failure to use the Internet and the Internet boxing media properly and effectively, and the almost total absence of the use of social media for their boxing program. It is free to listen to or download SecondsOut Radio, but you must register to gain access to it. Just click here, http://www.secondsout.com/radio/, and listen, learn, and enjoy.

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

Gladiator Magazine (http://gladmag.com/), for in-depth coverage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, submission grappling, and MMA, as well as lifestyle articles on surfing, cars, movies, and more. Gladiator Magazine is available at any major bookstore and online at BJJMart.com (http://bjjmart.com) or Jiu Jitsu Pro Gear (http://jiujitsuprogear.com/).

BJJMart.com (http://bjjmart.com), your premier source for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gear, videos, books, and much more.

Wrestling 411 (http://wrestling411.tv), providing coverage of the sport of wrestling on TV, the Internet, and radio. Wrestling 411 is produced by Media Sports Productions (http://www.mediasportsproductions.com/), whose sole mission is the marketing and promotion of the sport of wrestling.

Thanks, Eddie Goldman
http://eddiegoldman.com

Enjoy!
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See you at the Fights.
Thanks for your time.

Starlite Boxing's Sweetscience The Video Channel Online http://www.youtube.com/ELEmpress1

EL Boxing Empress Keisha Morrisey's Myspace http://www.myspace.com/Keishadivine

Honorable Keisha Morrisey http://www.keishamorrisey.com

©®™2007, 2008 All photos by "EL Boxing Empress" Keisha Morrisey- Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios, Khris Kirkpatrick Morrisey for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and Starlite Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved