The Opening Bell Podcast

Boxing content, news, interviews and opinion from Steed & Christie.

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

Independent boxing coverage.
https://t.co/9fJQVcvsN8

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Chris Billam-Smith should have too much experience, size and quality for Ryan Rozicki. But if he's not fully switched on, Rozicki has the style, toughness and aggression to make it a very uncomfortable night.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://t.co/EBsTN88Nuw

#TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[Chris McKenna @cmckennasport]

Joined @MattCBoxingNews on @openingbellpod this week for a chat. A substitute for @alexsteedman who I think was off at a rave or horse racing. Talked Usyk v Verhoeven, stuff about changing face of media and fried the automated subtitles with my accent

https://t.co/aBaxcaWKMX

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Anthony Joshua still has plenty to prove. But mentally, he looks in a better place than he has for a very long time – and that could be a problem for the rest of the division..

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://t.co/EBsTN88Nuw

#TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

Did Oleksandr Usyk just have an off night, or are we witnessing the start of his decline?

Rico Verhoeven came close to turning the boxing world upside down before Usyk finally found a way to win. @MattCBoxingNews is joined by Athletic & BBC boxing journalist @cmckennasport to break down the fight, the controversial ending, and what it could mean for Usyk's future.

Watch: https://t.co/56UfuZ45Oz

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Did Rico Verhoeven expose cracks in Oleksandr Usyk’s armour, or was it just an off night for the heavyweight great? @cmckennasport joins @MattCBoxingNews to break down the fight, the finish, and what it could mean for Usyk’s future.

🎧 Listen: https://t.co/ys8f0EWiBI

#UsykRico #TheOpeningBell

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Rico Verhoeven’s kickboxing pedigree means he may survive longer than people expect against Oleksandr Usyk. But that might make the fight even more uncomfortable to watch.

🎧 Listen to the full preview here: https://t.co/BeKBtXtpYo

#UsykRico | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Nobody expects Oleksandr Usyk to lose. But at 39, after a lifetime at the elite level, what happens if this is the night he suddenly looks… human?

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/9FAsPTbnrn

#UsykRico | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn on Sept. 12 in Las Vegas looks all but set – a huge and hugely controversial fight given both men’s drug-testing histories. The same night, Canelo faces Christian Mbilli in Saudi Arabia. Another Turki Alalshikh mega-weekend incoming? 🥊

https://t.co/ifQqk3aify

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Two hard fights. Two very different stoppages. Why are boxing’s standards so inconsistent when fighter safety is on the line?

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/VqkLQO297h

#TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Boxing is ultimately a balance between money and hardship. The question is: at what point does that balance become dangerous?

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/VqkLQO297h

#TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

Filip Hrgovic is a huge favourite against Dave Allen this weekend – and rightly so. But does the affable Brit have any real upset potential? 👀

We break down why Hrgovic might come unstuck, plus Steedo reveals his bet of the weekend after landing last week’s call 🎯

#AllenHrgovic

Watch here 👇
https://t.co/Y4yQxK113y

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ A perfect little story that sums up Dave Allen’s personality. Only in boxing.

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/6INvqP80uP

#AllenHrgovic | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Dave Allen always brings heart – but at what point does an underdog story become something harder to justify? A look at the uncomfortable reality behind boxing matchmaking.

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/fITTlDFHFW

#AllenHrgovic | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley was a generational thriller – but did the warfare go too far? Questions linger over the late stoppage as Wardley fought through a mask of blood. Dubois silenced critics again, rising twice from the canvas to reclaim heavyweight glory. 🥊

👀 🎥watch here: https://t.co/UqGwGGj2LQ

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ What began as a thrilling heavyweight war slowly became something much more uncomfortable.

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/wsmJveAr6y

#WardleyDubois | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

In a bonus pod, @MattCBoxingNews sits down with boxing journalism legend Jack Hirsch 🥊

From sparring with future world champions to witnessing Ali and Duran in New York, Jack shares incredible stories from decades covering the fight game – plus insights on writing his Michael Spinks book.

👀 Watch here: https://t.co/kHYzs7TuN4

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ When a fight becomes brutally one-sided, whose responsibility is it to stop it? The referee, the corner, the doctor – or all of them together?

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/wsmJveAr6y

#WardleyDubois | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ The final stoppage may have been correct – but should the fight have continued that long in the first place?

A difficult conversation after one of the most brutal heavyweight fights in recent memory.

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/2MakfIGUUi

#WardleyDubois | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

👀 Or watch the conversation here:

https://t.co/kdG9iAI6x5

[The Opening Bell Podcast @openingbellpod]

🎙️ Daniel Dubois stopped Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua in one incredible run.

So why are so many people suddenly writing him off against Fabio Wardley?

🎧 Listen to the full pod here: https://t.co/qu9wCMT3EJ

#WardleyDubois | #TheOpeningBell | @MattCBoxingNews | @alexsteedman