WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.399 This shit ain't nothing to me, man. This is Boxing 00:00:03.399 --> 00:00:25.600 Before Dark. All right, let's fucking do this. 00:00:31.399 --> 00:00:36.840 Holy shit, it's Boxing Before Dark. 2026 continues 00:00:36.840 --> 00:00:42.759 to roll on. It is kicking my ass so far, man. 00:00:42.920 --> 00:00:48.299 Work sucks. And the year just began, too. I mean, 00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:51.299 it's got to get better later, right? When I'm 00:00:51.299 --> 00:00:56.240 unemployed. You'll have some downtime. Yeah. 00:00:57.479 --> 00:01:00.659 I have not seriously started work searching yet, 00:01:00.700 --> 00:01:04.799 and I need to. If anybody knows labs hiring immunologists, 00:01:05.459 --> 00:01:12.060 hook me up. That is our target demographic, so 00:01:12.060 --> 00:01:14.939 I'm sure we'll get plenty of replies. Yeah, yeah. 00:01:16.659 --> 00:01:22.159 Oh, man, it's light on news. One from just really 00:01:22.159 --> 00:01:25.900 quickly. Well, maybe not. So as we expected. 00:01:26.640 --> 00:01:29.500 Canelo rejected the offer to fight Iglesias for 00:01:29.500 --> 00:01:35.379 the IBF title. Right, obviously. He claimed that 00:01:35.379 --> 00:01:39.939 he was still recovering from surgery. Right. 00:01:40.980 --> 00:01:44.299 And Munguia was supposed to be next, and he also 00:01:44.299 --> 00:01:54.780 rejected the offer to fight the IBF. So... Yeah, 00:01:55.040 --> 00:02:00.099 kind of limits the options here. Let me pull 00:02:00.099 --> 00:02:07.959 up the rankings again. Super middleweight. So 00:02:07.959 --> 00:02:11.580 Hamza Shiraz is next in line. As we know, he's 00:02:11.580 --> 00:02:18.479 busy. Yep. Troy Williamson, he was above Callum 00:02:18.479 --> 00:02:20.840 Simpson. He beat Callum Simpson, but the rankings 00:02:20.840 --> 00:02:23.310 hadn't been updated. The last time we talked. 00:02:24.949 --> 00:02:28.050 Which one is Troy Williamson again? Yeah, good 00:02:28.050 --> 00:02:33.770 question. I think I've seen this man before, 00:02:33.969 --> 00:02:40.610 but he is not famous. Not that that really matters, 00:02:40.689 --> 00:02:48.169 but I don't remember this man. Seventh on the 00:02:48.169 --> 00:02:51.629 ranking list is Pavel Silyagin, I think it is. 00:02:54.219 --> 00:02:57.800 I don't know who that is either. No idea. We 00:02:57.800 --> 00:03:01.340 are getting down into like... We are in the trenches 00:03:01.340 --> 00:03:07.280 here. Scrubs. Eighth is Diego Pacheco. He's busy. 00:03:10.400 --> 00:03:16.819 Simon Zackenhuber. Who the fuck is Simon Zackenhuber? 00:03:17.460 --> 00:03:22.789 Yep. Let me box wreck this guy. And then tenth 00:03:22.789 --> 00:03:27.629 is William School. Nobody wants to see him. Nope. 00:03:27.770 --> 00:03:30.189 Well, I mean, I wouldn't mind seeing Iglesias 00:03:30.189 --> 00:03:34.870 put some hands on him. That's true. Iglesias 00:03:34.870 --> 00:03:42.229 would catch him, too. Simon Zackenhoover is German, 00:03:42.349 --> 00:03:45.009 and he is the most German -looking German that 00:03:45.009 --> 00:03:48.530 has ever Germaned. He looks like the bad guy 00:03:48.530 --> 00:03:55.500 from, like, a World War II film. But it looks 00:03:55.500 --> 00:03:57.840 like he's basically never fought outside Germany. 00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:08.860 Yikes. Well, he's ninth on the ranking list, 00:04:09.039 --> 00:04:14.280 so yeah. And there's not a lot of people actually 00:04:14.280 --> 00:04:17.819 in the way of Zack and Hoover getting a shot. 00:04:18.699 --> 00:04:25.399 I mean, why not, I guess? If we're just taking 00:04:25.399 --> 00:04:30.560 anybody off of this list, I would say Sajo at 00:04:30.560 --> 00:04:33.920 least turned in a spirited performance against 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:38.040 Pacheco. Yeah. Sajo looked pretty good, actually. 00:04:38.259 --> 00:04:44.879 Yeah, he did. And Bektimir Melikuziev. Why? Because 00:04:44.879 --> 00:04:48.579 why not? It'll be fun. He's a name. Yeah. And 00:04:48.579 --> 00:04:55.389 it'll be fun. I'd watch Beck. He'll get iced, 00:04:55.569 --> 00:05:02.470 but I'd watch it. Yep. But yeah, this played 00:05:02.470 --> 00:05:06.410 out as expected. Well, the Canelo part did. The 00:05:06.410 --> 00:05:09.050 Munguia part, I didn't see that coming. I thought 00:05:09.050 --> 00:05:14.470 he would have taken it. I think he still is getting 00:05:14.470 --> 00:05:18.509 a lot of shit for the Saras rematch Munguia. 00:05:19.009 --> 00:05:25.250 Yeah, and the questionable... PED test. Yeah. 00:05:28.129 --> 00:05:33.670 Gotta take heads to take a Frenchman to decision? 00:05:33.889 --> 00:05:39.310 Yep. Come on, man. That's how you... That's your 00:05:39.310 --> 00:05:44.930 rebirth coming out of the Reynoso gym. Yeah. 00:05:45.370 --> 00:05:49.920 Not a good look. Nope. Getting... fucked up by 00:05:49.920 --> 00:05:52.639 Iglesias would not help his image right now. 00:05:56.759 --> 00:05:59.740 Yeah, but we'll keep watching this and see how 00:05:59.740 --> 00:06:02.139 this one plays out. Iglesias is lined up for 00:06:02.139 --> 00:06:05.839 it and nobody wants to fucking tango with him. 00:06:06.560 --> 00:06:11.920 Yeah. He is one of those guys that seems to be 00:06:11.920 --> 00:06:16.889 getting ducked pretty hard right now. Yeah. He's 00:06:16.889 --> 00:06:24.009 nothing of a name, but he is a major danger in 00:06:24.009 --> 00:06:29.629 the ring. Yeah, yeah. The risk -reward is not 00:06:29.629 --> 00:06:32.069 there for people because the casuals don't know 00:06:32.069 --> 00:06:39.629 him. Yeah. Moving to... I think you're going 00:06:39.629 --> 00:06:42.569 to get your wish. Inoue Nakatani looks like it's 00:06:42.569 --> 00:06:45.910 going to be at the beginning of May. I'm super 00:06:45.910 --> 00:06:49.149 excited. Now I just have to bribe people to put 00:06:49.149 --> 00:06:57.750 my name down when they enter the lottery. What 00:06:57.750 --> 00:07:01.529 would the... Would the undercard for this be 00:07:01.529 --> 00:07:05.250 all Japanese? Or would they have... I think they'd 00:07:05.250 --> 00:07:11.990 have other... I'm sure they'll have like... It'll 00:07:11.990 --> 00:07:13.910 be like Night of the Samurai. I think there'll 00:07:13.910 --> 00:07:17.769 be a Japanese person in every fight. But I bet 00:07:17.769 --> 00:07:21.610 you they bring in some names. I imagine like 00:07:21.610 --> 00:07:24.930 Ola Squaga would be a good one to have. Yeah. 00:07:25.009 --> 00:07:27.649 I was just thinking him as well. And I wouldn't 00:07:27.649 --> 00:07:32.509 be surprised if they bring Bam. For this. Maybe. 00:07:35.230 --> 00:07:40.399 Bam's kind of pro - Co -promoted with Tekken, 00:07:40.459 --> 00:07:44.220 right? Yes. It's Tekken, yeah. This would be 00:07:44.220 --> 00:07:46.399 a card that they would probably bring him in 00:07:46.399 --> 00:07:52.480 for, I think. That'd be huge. Who does Bam fight 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:55.639 that's Japanese right now? I have no idea. He's 00:07:55.639 --> 00:07:59.399 just too good for everybody from any country. 00:08:01.300 --> 00:08:07.439 At his weight class, let's see, he's at... Junior 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:12.720 bantamweight? Superfly? Yeah, you can't call 00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:15.579 it junior bantamweight. Superfly is so much better. 00:08:18.899 --> 00:08:22.839 So Willie Baldo, we know, is the champion there 00:08:22.839 --> 00:08:27.720 in the IBF, I mean. They could have that fight 00:08:27.720 --> 00:08:30.579 in Japan. People would come. But I think Willie 00:08:30.579 --> 00:08:33.879 Baldo is probably going to try and fight before 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:37.000 that, isn't he? He has to fight as mandatory. 00:08:37.840 --> 00:08:46.639 Maloney's been waiting. Kenshiro Taraji? Man, 00:08:46.759 --> 00:08:49.080 I don't want to see Taraji get beat like that. 00:08:50.759 --> 00:08:54.379 Yeah, but he's a name. He's a pretty big name. 00:08:54.600 --> 00:09:00.279 Right. He's trying to file some motion with the 00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:03.639 IBF to have himself inserted as the mandatory. 00:09:05.340 --> 00:09:08.879 For Willy Waldo, but just because they were lined 00:09:08.879 --> 00:09:11.259 up to fight before, I think. But I think having 00:09:11.259 --> 00:09:15.879 a shot at three belts instead of one might be 00:09:15.879 --> 00:09:23.620 more appealing. Yeah, I can't see too many people 00:09:23.620 --> 00:09:27.340 turning down the BAM fight, really. Especially 00:09:27.340 --> 00:09:32.279 not if it's on a big card like that. But maybe 00:09:32.279 --> 00:09:36.110 I'm wrong. Yeah, well. We'll see. We'll see how 00:09:36.110 --> 00:09:39.570 this shapes out. There is a surprising lack of 00:09:39.570 --> 00:09:42.070 Japanese people at this weight class right now. 00:09:43.870 --> 00:09:50.830 At 115? Yeah. Like, there's Taraji. There's two 00:09:50.830 --> 00:09:54.330 guys I don't even know. Or I don't think I know. 00:09:55.169 --> 00:10:03.250 Rusei Kawaura? Kawaura? That's a... I haven't 00:10:03.250 --> 00:10:06.950 seen a name like that before. No, it's a little 00:10:06.950 --> 00:10:14.230 hard to pronounce. Ayumasano? Yeah, I don't know 00:10:14.230 --> 00:10:21.029 this man. I don't know who this Kawaura is. And 00:10:21.029 --> 00:10:26.149 there's a Henta something on here. Nakagawa. 00:10:27.029 --> 00:10:31.710 Yeah, I don't know him either. And then a couple 00:10:31.710 --> 00:10:37.049 of my new faces are making their way up the list. 00:10:37.269 --> 00:10:42.409 Like Aoi Yokoyama's on number 14 for the IBF. 00:10:42.549 --> 00:10:46.169 Nice. That has me excited because he's just a 00:10:46.169 --> 00:10:50.889 kid. And Tomoya Suboi is working his way up on 00:10:50.889 --> 00:10:58.419 all the other rankings. 7, 2, and 6. for the 00:10:58.419 --> 00:11:03.320 WBA, WBC, and WBO. They can maybe throw him in 00:11:03.320 --> 00:11:06.840 with Bam. I don't think he's very famous, though. 00:11:14.779 --> 00:11:19.179 There's lots of other fights I'd rather see than 00:11:19.179 --> 00:11:21.820 Bam with any of these Japanese guys, though. 00:11:24.539 --> 00:11:27.700 For my money, it would be... Willy Baldo, and 00:11:27.700 --> 00:11:31.700 that's really it. Yeah. Distance second would 00:11:31.700 --> 00:11:38.720 be Taraji. Taraji is starting to look old. Yeah. 00:11:40.500 --> 00:11:42.919 It would be kind of nice to see him get one last 00:11:42.919 --> 00:11:48.639 big payday, I think. Yeah, that's kind of what 00:11:48.639 --> 00:11:52.419 I'm thinking is, like, give the old Japanese 00:11:52.419 --> 00:11:56.250 warhorse, give him a big... A big profile fight. 00:11:57.850 --> 00:12:01.330 He's lined up for three belts, so he's getting 00:12:01.330 --> 00:12:06.669 a real shot at something serious. And yeah, big 00:12:06.669 --> 00:12:11.049 payday on a big card. Yeah, I could get behind 00:12:11.049 --> 00:12:17.950 that. But Taraji gets done dirty, I think. He 00:12:17.950 --> 00:12:20.769 will go out on his shield, though. He's not going 00:12:20.769 --> 00:12:28.649 to show up just to survive. Speaking of getting 00:12:28.649 --> 00:12:32.370 done dirty, Daniel Dubois is looking to fight 00:12:32.370 --> 00:12:37.370 Fabio Wardley. Excellent. I actually kind of 00:12:37.370 --> 00:12:42.409 like this matchup. Man, I think that Fabio Wardley 00:12:42.409 --> 00:12:46.110 takes it. You think so? I think he takes it pretty 00:12:46.110 --> 00:12:53.990 easily. I don't know. It's hard to judge where 00:12:53.990 --> 00:12:58.570 Dubois is, I think. Right. Because he looks good, 00:12:58.730 --> 00:13:00.929 and then he looks absolute shit, and then he 00:13:00.929 --> 00:13:05.330 looks good. Like, Dubois, I think, needs to figure 00:13:05.330 --> 00:13:11.889 out his outside the ring stuff first. Whatever 00:13:11.889 --> 00:13:16.669 that might be. Yeah. Well, what was the controversy 00:13:16.669 --> 00:13:21.110 last fight? He threw a party and was, like, late 00:13:21.110 --> 00:13:26.149 to the venue because he was... Hungover? No, 00:13:26.230 --> 00:13:28.919 like... He was late to the venue because they 00:13:28.919 --> 00:13:31.000 were partying at his house before the fight. 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:33.679 Like, Dubois wasn't drinking and stuff, but there 00:13:33.679 --> 00:13:39.899 was people there. That's dumb. It's super dumb. 00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:52.450 I don't know. People are higher on Wardley than 00:13:52.450 --> 00:13:55.769 I am, I guess, is my takeaway from all of this. 00:13:55.830 --> 00:13:58.370 I don't think Wardley's that good. He's not. 00:13:58.509 --> 00:14:03.490 It's just he has that one -punch power that turns. 00:14:03.590 --> 00:14:08.509 He could dig himself out of a 12 -round deficit 00:14:08.509 --> 00:14:12.350 with this power. It's pretty wild. That's true. 00:14:13.230 --> 00:14:16.669 That is true, but he's still got to land it. 00:14:17.929 --> 00:14:23.919 Dubois is not unhittable. Yeah. Yeah, you're 00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:27.120 not wrong. Like, you're not wrong. I just... 00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:30.659 I don't know. I don't have faith in Wardley landing 00:14:30.659 --> 00:14:35.159 that punch. Man, I thought Parker was gonna be 00:14:35.159 --> 00:14:38.580 able to... I still don't think that should have 00:14:38.580 --> 00:14:40.419 been stopped the way it was. I don't either. 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:44.480 I still disagree with fucking Howard Foster. 00:14:45.929 --> 00:14:49.169 Such a fucking Brit stoppage, and so inconsistent 00:14:49.169 --> 00:14:52.190 and stupid, but we already talked about that 00:14:52.190 --> 00:14:56.669 for like an hour. Yeah. Somebody was defending 00:14:56.669 --> 00:15:00.090 that stoppage online the other day, and I'm like, 00:15:00.250 --> 00:15:05.909 you're just, you're wrong. Yeah. Anyway. Yeah, 00:15:06.029 --> 00:15:10.529 but that's more on the rumor side than it is 00:15:10.529 --> 00:15:14.470 news, but Dubois is looking to fight Fabio Wardley, 00:15:14.590 --> 00:15:20.500 so. Be on the lookout for that. And last bit. 00:15:21.600 --> 00:15:25.559 Beeble will be fighting his IBF mandatory in 00:15:25.559 --> 00:15:33.220 April. And who is that? I'm checking. Michael 00:15:33.220 --> 00:15:40.580 Eifer. I don't... That didn't help me. Yeah, 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:50.480 I know. all right i assume well this is b -ball's 00:15:50.480 --> 00:15:53.440 first fight back after the surgery isn't it yes 00:15:53.440 --> 00:15:58.759 so i guess we'll we'll see how the surgery went 00:15:58.759 --> 00:16:02.240 see if he still has it let's see if he can move 00:16:02.240 --> 00:16:06.379 around just as good or better this is another 00:16:06.379 --> 00:16:09.200 german where are all these germans like suddenly 00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:15.100 popping up from They replaced, what, I think 00:16:15.100 --> 00:16:19.100 last year it was Frenchmen. Yeah. This year it's 00:16:19.100 --> 00:16:26.820 going to be Germans. Fair enough, I guess. Got 00:16:26.820 --> 00:16:29.700 to dig out the Euro bumps from somewhere. Yep. 00:16:31.559 --> 00:16:36.440 But that's all the news that I found. I heard 00:16:36.440 --> 00:16:40.639 something. What did I hear? Little Inoue. Takuma. 00:16:41.259 --> 00:16:44.639 got dropped by one of his sponsors. I couldn't 00:16:44.639 --> 00:16:55.019 find why. That's weird. Yeah. But... Well, dropped 00:16:55.019 --> 00:16:57.700 is... They didn't word it as dropped. They're, 00:16:57.840 --> 00:17:03.480 um... temporarily suspending their... whatever. 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:10.980 Support. So. I... It doesn't sound like they're 00:17:10.980 --> 00:17:18.279 mad at him or he did anything wrong. AJ's uncle 00:17:18.279 --> 00:17:26.700 said that AJ is retired. Oh, I saw something 00:17:26.700 --> 00:17:29.099 that I thought was absolutely fucking horrible. 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:33.220 So AJ was FaceTiming somebody, like somebody 00:17:33.220 --> 00:17:36.180 he knew well enough to FaceTime and was talking 00:17:36.180 --> 00:17:40.819 about the accident and stuff. So the guy who's 00:17:40.819 --> 00:17:42.980 talking to him has the phone pointed at him, 00:17:43.039 --> 00:17:47.039 but someone off to the side was recording him 00:17:47.039 --> 00:17:51.140 talking to AJ. And it's really clear that AJ 00:17:51.140 --> 00:17:53.700 doesn't know this is going on, and he's talking 00:17:53.700 --> 00:17:56.339 about the accident and his feelings and stuff. 00:17:57.079 --> 00:17:59.599 I thought it was the shittiest thing I've seen 00:17:59.599 --> 00:18:03.519 anyone do. Yeah, I saw that. It was Kamaru Usman 00:18:03.519 --> 00:18:07.519 from the UFC. Is that who it was? I didn't recognize 00:18:07.519 --> 00:18:09.700 the person and I forgot his name, but I just 00:18:09.700 --> 00:18:13.539 thought that was the shittiest thing. Usman claims 00:18:13.539 --> 00:18:19.119 he didn't know that he was being recorded. That 00:18:19.119 --> 00:18:25.799 is possible. It doesn't seem like he was trying 00:18:25.799 --> 00:18:30.039 to get information or lead the conversation or 00:18:30.039 --> 00:18:33.160 anything. Just talking to him. Whoever recorded 00:18:33.160 --> 00:18:35.519 it and put it on the internet is an asshole. 00:18:35.839 --> 00:18:40.900 For real. Very private conversation. Like... 00:18:40.900 --> 00:18:46.480 I... I fucking hate that that has become, like, 00:18:46.559 --> 00:18:50.380 a relatively normal thing to do. To, like, record 00:18:50.380 --> 00:18:55.559 people everywhere all the time. No, yeah, there's 00:18:55.559 --> 00:18:58.279 no reasonable expectation of privacy anywhere. 00:18:59.950 --> 00:19:02.109 Well, I mean, it feels like there still should 00:19:02.109 --> 00:19:04.670 be. Like, it looked like they were in a house. 00:19:05.009 --> 00:19:09.930 Yeah. Who the fuck just randomly records your 00:19:09.930 --> 00:19:15.069 friends' conversations? Pieces of shit. That's 00:19:15.069 --> 00:19:20.809 who. So AJ's uncle says he's retired. Eddie Hearn 00:19:20.809 --> 00:19:24.549 says if you don't hear from AJ, it's not true. 00:19:26.170 --> 00:19:31.799 I think it's too soon to... Yeah. To expect AJ 00:19:31.799 --> 00:19:34.960 to have decided anything. Right. He needs time 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:40.059 to grieve and process all of this horrible situation. 00:19:40.660 --> 00:19:44.299 And if he wants to retire, that's... It's his 00:19:44.299 --> 00:19:49.559 prerogative. Yeah. He's made so much money, and 00:19:49.559 --> 00:19:52.440 AJ doesn't seem like one of those guys who blows 00:19:52.440 --> 00:19:55.619 it all. Like, I don't think he needs to fight 00:19:55.619 --> 00:19:59.819 anymore. especially after that jake paul payday 00:19:59.819 --> 00:20:02.880 which yeah between the two of them that's a massive 00:20:02.880 --> 00:20:09.240 massive check to cash yeah i just if aj doesn't 00:20:09.240 --> 00:20:11.200 want to fight anymore i don't see any reason 00:20:11.200 --> 00:20:18.480 why people should expect them to tyson fury has 00:20:18.480 --> 00:20:23.809 he's officially unretired um as we expected The, 00:20:23.829 --> 00:20:27.470 like, eighth time. His comeback opponents are 00:20:27.470 --> 00:20:32.430 possibly Efe Ajagba, Tony Yoka, and Arslanbek 00:20:32.430 --> 00:20:37.670 Makhmudov. With Makhmudov being the likely frontrunner. 00:20:40.150 --> 00:20:43.109 I mean, out of those three, he's the one that 00:20:43.109 --> 00:20:46.369 I would want to see the most, but I don't really 00:20:46.369 --> 00:20:49.089 give a shit about Tyson Fury. Yeah, I don't really 00:20:49.089 --> 00:20:53.069 either. I would have been perfectly happy for 00:20:53.069 --> 00:20:57.349 him to stay retired. If he's not fighting AJ 00:20:57.349 --> 00:21:00.230 and that's not going to happen anytime soon, 00:21:00.410 --> 00:21:09.769 I don't give a shit. Richardson Hitchens has 00:21:09.769 --> 00:21:13.549 his mandatory called versus Lindolfo Delgado. 00:21:14.829 --> 00:21:21.940 So that's fun. was trying to get somebody to 00:21:21.940 --> 00:21:27.460 step aside and they wouldn't. Or something. Yeah, 00:21:27.460 --> 00:21:34.259 I remember what you're talking about. What weight 00:21:34.259 --> 00:21:38.460 class is Liam Parrow? 140. No, Liam Parrow moved 00:21:38.460 --> 00:21:45.740 up. He's 147 now. It's Lewis Crocker wanted to 00:21:45.740 --> 00:21:49.279 have a voluntary and they said no. So he's fighting 00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:57.180 Liam Pero. Yep. Frank Sanchez versus Richard 00:21:57.180 --> 00:22:01.359 Torres are going to... Well, their purse bid 00:22:01.359 --> 00:22:07.000 is delayed. This is an IBF eliminator. I'm... 00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:10.980 I don't watch that many heavyweights, but I'm 00:22:10.980 --> 00:22:14.339 kind of interested to see that one. Because I 00:22:14.339 --> 00:22:18.559 like Richard Torres' personality. He's been in 00:22:18.559 --> 00:22:24.759 Japan recently, just on vacation. And his Instagram 00:22:24.759 --> 00:22:28.039 has been really fun. He's doing like a whole 00:22:28.039 --> 00:22:31.619 Japan tour. And he was super excited about it. 00:22:31.660 --> 00:22:33.440 He's like, I came here for the Olympics, but 00:22:33.440 --> 00:22:38.460 I didn't get to do anything. So he's just touristing 00:22:38.460 --> 00:22:41.920 right now. Didn't get to do anything. I don't 00:22:41.920 --> 00:22:44.740 know about that. Because from what I hear about 00:22:44.740 --> 00:22:48.819 Olympic Village. Where the athletes stay, it's 00:22:48.819 --> 00:22:54.059 just a giant mess of people doing stuff. I should 00:22:54.059 --> 00:22:57.059 have worded it differently. He didn't get to 00:22:57.059 --> 00:23:01.920 see very much of Japan. Oh, he got to do plenty. 00:23:05.299 --> 00:23:08.640 Yeah, Olympic Village sounds like fucking... 00:23:08.640 --> 00:23:17.500 Which was the goddess in Egypt? Anyways. I know 00:23:17.500 --> 00:23:22.200 what you mean. Yeah. But yeah, there we go. That's 00:23:22.200 --> 00:23:25.519 all the news. We got to keep rolling because 00:23:25.519 --> 00:23:30.259 we still got our 2025 picks to do. Going to skip 00:23:30.259 --> 00:23:35.579 the notes for now. So recapping. Wednesday, December 00:23:35.579 --> 00:23:40.019 31st. Shisei Promotions at the Ota City Gym. 00:23:41.819 --> 00:23:45.259 There is. There are quite a few fights on here. 00:23:45.799 --> 00:23:49.420 And. The only one I really care about. Kazuto 00:23:49.420 --> 00:23:55.460 Ioka. Gets a stoppage in four. Over Michael Ordosquady. 00:23:56.900 --> 00:24:02.140 Ordosquady? I have no idea. I don't either. It's 00:24:02.140 --> 00:24:06.200 a really weird name. For a Venezuelan. I think. 00:24:07.960 --> 00:24:13.609 But. Yeah I. I went out for New Year's and I 00:24:13.609 --> 00:24:17.150 didn't get to the bar in time to see this. I 00:24:17.150 --> 00:24:22.970 was too busy having fun. So I saw the replay 00:24:22.970 --> 00:24:28.069 of just the stoppage. He didn't ice him or anything, 00:24:28.349 --> 00:24:32.650 but I mean, Ioka doesn't really do that anymore. 00:24:35.470 --> 00:24:38.730 I'm just glad he won. I'm excited to see him 00:24:38.730 --> 00:24:41.740 and Takuma. Because that's supposed to be the 00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:48.779 next fight. Not a bad defense for Takuma. Not 00:24:48.779 --> 00:24:51.940 a bad defense. Ioka's getting old. One of these 00:24:51.940 --> 00:24:53.720 days he's going to show up and he's just going 00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:58.299 to be old. And I'm a little worried it might 00:24:58.299 --> 00:25:02.039 be that Takuma fight. But if it's not, it should 00:25:02.039 --> 00:25:06.220 be fun. Because Ioka does pressure and have enough 00:25:06.220 --> 00:25:09.299 power. He might be able to... pull off the upset 00:25:09.299 --> 00:25:14.359 like Tsutsumi did. Takuma did struggle with the 00:25:14.359 --> 00:25:19.160 pressure against Tsutsumi. Yeah, but I mean, 00:25:19.200 --> 00:25:23.000 Ioka doesn't have that same output either. Honestly, 00:25:23.200 --> 00:25:26.180 Ioka's gonna be a big underdog, and he should 00:25:26.180 --> 00:25:33.039 be, but I'm still excited to see it. And Saturday, 00:25:33.119 --> 00:25:40.579 January 3rd, MVP In Puerto Rico. Oh man, this 00:25:40.579 --> 00:25:45.299 card had a lot of fights on it. Don't really 00:25:45.299 --> 00:25:48.140 care about too many of them, to be honest with 00:25:48.140 --> 00:25:56.119 you. Ebony Bridges got beaten by Alexis Ariza. 00:25:56.880 --> 00:26:00.059 That was kind of a surprise, right? It was. It 00:26:00.059 --> 00:26:05.900 was a shock. So that was cool. Jonathan Gonzalez 00:26:05.900 --> 00:26:13.660 beats the MVP fighter, Jankel Rivera. So that's 00:26:13.660 --> 00:26:21.359 fun. Fucking Holly Holm gets beat on the cards. 00:26:21.539 --> 00:26:25.940 Stephanie Hahn suffered a... It didn't look like 00:26:25.940 --> 00:26:28.440 it was that bad of a cut, just in my opinion. 00:26:28.920 --> 00:26:34.299 Yeah, she also... Kinda afterwards, I was a little 00:26:34.299 --> 00:26:36.940 surprised they stopped it. Yeah, it didn't look 00:26:36.940 --> 00:26:39.599 that bad. So they went to the cards, and there's 00:26:39.599 --> 00:26:43.299 a UD for Stephanie Hahn. Retains her WBA title. 00:26:44.579 --> 00:26:49.259 I wonder a little bit if that wasn't them trying 00:26:49.259 --> 00:26:54.480 to save Holly Holmes some damage. Holly Holmes 00:26:54.480 --> 00:26:57.480 definitely looked her age, unfortunately. Yeah. 00:26:57.859 --> 00:27:02.680 That was pretty rough. Yeah, I don't know how 00:27:02.680 --> 00:27:05.220 to say it. But it didn't look like that was going 00:27:05.220 --> 00:27:07.680 to go any other way. Maybe they used the cut 00:27:07.680 --> 00:27:11.920 as an excuse. I think you're right. I could see 00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:15.819 that happening. I don't particularly have a problem 00:27:15.819 --> 00:27:19.940 with that. Like, home was getting her ass kicked. 00:27:23.960 --> 00:27:30.400 And Amanda Serrano beats Reina Tellez. I think 00:27:30.400 --> 00:27:37.700 they did 12 by 3. If I'm not mistaken. Yeah, 00:27:37.799 --> 00:27:43.619 I didn't watch this whole fight either. I know 00:27:43.619 --> 00:27:46.740 Taya's was a bit of a late replacement. Like, 00:27:46.740 --> 00:27:49.279 she only had two weeks or whatever. And she missed 00:27:49.279 --> 00:27:53.700 weight by a bit. I think half a pound. For short 00:27:53.700 --> 00:27:57.660 notice, though, that's not terrible. Yeah, I... 00:27:57.950 --> 00:28:00.710 For short notice, I can... How do you put it? 00:28:00.769 --> 00:28:03.150 I can overlook that. It was pretty clear she 00:28:03.150 --> 00:28:10.289 tried to make weight. But Serrano was really 00:28:10.289 --> 00:28:14.890 looking for the knockout. I think somebody said... 00:28:14.890 --> 00:28:19.029 Somebody was talking about she's one away from 00:28:19.029 --> 00:28:23.009 the knockout record for women or something. That's 00:28:23.009 --> 00:28:26.910 cool. And so she's really trying to get that... 00:28:27.900 --> 00:28:30.519 She wants two more knockouts so she has the record. 00:28:30.519 --> 00:28:35.640 She beats it. Yeah. But I don't know if it's 00:28:35.640 --> 00:28:38.539 going to happen. Especially not if she does these 00:28:38.539 --> 00:28:41.400 three minute rounds. I know she's been pushing 00:28:41.400 --> 00:28:44.180 for it forever. And everybody always says it's 00:28:44.180 --> 00:28:46.880 going to lead to more knockouts in women's boxing. 00:28:46.940 --> 00:28:51.500 And it might. But Serrano really still only fights 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:54.390 for the first minute and a half. Or not the first, 00:28:54.450 --> 00:28:56.569 but, like, she has to pick a minute and a half 00:28:56.569 --> 00:28:59.349 in a round to really sprint. Right. I see what 00:28:59.349 --> 00:29:05.609 you mean. Yeah. And I don't think it's a conditioning 00:29:05.609 --> 00:29:10.130 thing. I think it's more of a mental, like... 00:29:10.130 --> 00:29:16.289 Strategy? Or her strategy? It's the way she's 00:29:16.289 --> 00:29:20.470 fought her entire career. Right? I really think 00:29:20.470 --> 00:29:23.750 it's hard to switch. Everybody is like, well, 00:29:23.769 --> 00:29:27.789 it's just, you know, fight for a minute longer. 00:29:28.150 --> 00:29:32.849 But I don't think it's that simple. I really 00:29:32.849 --> 00:29:34.509 think they need to change it in the amateurs 00:29:34.509 --> 00:29:43.490 before they change it in the pros. Yeah. Not 00:29:43.490 --> 00:29:48.849 a whole lot more to say on this card. Not the 00:29:48.849 --> 00:29:53.970 best kickoff of the year. I mean, it's not the 00:29:53.970 --> 00:29:58.589 worst. No, but it wasn't terrible, I guess. Also, 00:29:58.670 --> 00:30:02.029 how often do you really get fights in the first 00:30:02.029 --> 00:30:09.269 week of January? I remember Luis Ortiz had, I 00:30:09.269 --> 00:30:12.369 think he fought Charles Martin on January 1st 00:30:12.369 --> 00:30:16.349 a few years ago. Honestly, I think January 1st 00:30:16.349 --> 00:30:19.990 would be a good day for hungover watching of 00:30:19.990 --> 00:30:28.549 boxing at home. Yeah. But moving on to the fucking 00:30:28.549 --> 00:30:34.970 previews. It's a light weekend. Friday, January 00:30:34.970 --> 00:30:41.410 16th. Got two cards. No limit in Australia. If 00:30:41.410 --> 00:30:46.069 you find a way to watch this, let me know. But 00:30:46.069 --> 00:30:51.130 this one's in Boondall in Queensland. That's 00:30:51.130 --> 00:30:57.740 fun. Let me see here. Only two I know, Liam Paro 00:30:57.740 --> 00:31:01.940 versus Patty Donovan in the co -main, and Nikita 00:31:01.940 --> 00:31:08.200 Zu fighting Michael Zaroffa in the main. Which 00:31:08.200 --> 00:31:13.380 one is Zaroffa? Oh, I've seen him before. Yeah, 00:31:13.420 --> 00:31:16.599 I mean, these Aussie cards are usually really 00:31:16.599 --> 00:31:19.740 one -sided. I don't know. I never get too excited 00:31:19.740 --> 00:31:23.160 for them. Paro versus Patty Donovan might be 00:31:23.160 --> 00:31:25.109 pretty fun, though. Yeah, that should be okay. 00:31:26.049 --> 00:31:32.549 I kinda imagine Paro just boxing him. He should 00:31:32.549 --> 00:31:36.950 just box him. Like, stay on the outside, but... 00:31:36.950 --> 00:31:43.990 Oof, and Goldenboy at the Acreshore Arena in 00:31:43.990 --> 00:31:50.269 Palm Desert, California. I don't recognize a 00:31:50.269 --> 00:31:54.750 lot of these names. It's an all golden boy fucking 00:31:54.750 --> 00:31:59.369 prospect extravaganza. Which sometimes are really 00:31:59.369 --> 00:32:03.609 fun. Yes, they can be. Sometimes they are not. 00:32:07.170 --> 00:32:14.930 Let me see. Ruslan Abdullayev, I guess, is I 00:32:14.930 --> 00:32:25.109 think supposed to be an amateur standout. Alexis 00:32:25.109 --> 00:32:28.069 Rocha versus Raul Cariel rematch is the main 00:32:28.069 --> 00:32:32.809 event. That should be fun, right? I think. Yeah, 00:32:32.990 --> 00:32:37.250 I think it'll be okay. Not a whole lot else going 00:32:37.250 --> 00:32:42.809 on, so. It might be a good weekend to go touch 00:32:42.809 --> 00:32:49.150 grass. Yes, I would say so. I'm just going to 00:32:49.150 --> 00:32:51.809 double check, make sure I didn't miss anything 00:32:51.809 --> 00:33:06.980 on the 17th. No. I didn't miss anything. I really 00:33:06.980 --> 00:33:09.420 don't remember there ever being boxing in the 00:33:09.420 --> 00:33:12.420 first half of January. Like, this is more than 00:33:12.420 --> 00:33:17.799 we usually get. I swear. Yeah, I think you're 00:33:17.799 --> 00:33:24.500 right. But yeah, that's it for the previews. 00:33:26.220 --> 00:33:32.970 Alright. So I'll put in some notes here. 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And I wanted 00:36:59.280 --> 00:37:02.219 to try and think of ones that might have beat 00:37:02.219 --> 00:37:04.820 it. And all I could come up with was Cardenas. 00:37:05.179 --> 00:37:11.960 His last fight against Ayala. That was a pretty 00:37:11.960 --> 00:37:17.679 good knockout. But I think Norman still wins 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:24.429 for the year. Yeah, my mid -year pick was Norman 00:37:24.429 --> 00:37:28.010 Sasaki as well. For the second half of the year, 00:37:28.190 --> 00:37:34.590 I was torn between Ennis versus Uesma Lima. Okay, 00:37:34.829 --> 00:37:36.949 that's one that I should have thought of, yeah. 00:37:37.210 --> 00:37:43.429 And Usyk KOing Dubois in the rematch. I didn't 00:37:43.429 --> 00:37:47.670 think the Usyk one was flashy enough for stoppage 00:37:47.670 --> 00:37:52.679 of the year for me. And I wasn't able to decide 00:37:52.679 --> 00:37:57.500 which one was the final pick. It's not Ennis 00:37:57.500 --> 00:38:00.619 and Lima. Just because that doesn't have as much 00:38:00.619 --> 00:38:11.019 gravity to it. Fuck it. Norman Sasaki. I just 00:38:11.019 --> 00:38:15.900 think it's KO of the year. Yeah. There were some 00:38:15.900 --> 00:38:19.420 other really good ones, but that one was just... 00:38:20.039 --> 00:38:25.840 He hit him so perfectly. Slumped him. Absolutely 00:38:25.840 --> 00:38:32.199 slumped him. Another honorable mention, who did 00:38:32.199 --> 00:38:39.780 Opataya knock out recently? Kinkara? Yeah. That 00:38:39.780 --> 00:38:42.800 was a pretty bad knockout. It was a nice knockout, 00:38:42.920 --> 00:38:47.230 but... Opataya needs to be fighting better people. 00:38:47.369 --> 00:38:49.369 Exactly. I don't want to give him knockout of 00:38:49.369 --> 00:38:51.829 the year for knocking over cans. That's why I 00:38:51.829 --> 00:38:58.909 didn't pick Ennis Lima for the final. Yeah. All 00:38:58.909 --> 00:39:02.690 right. Masterclass of the year. For the first 00:39:02.690 --> 00:39:06.590 half, I had Benavidez beating Morel. The second 00:39:06.590 --> 00:39:11.210 half was Bud over Canelo. And the final was Bud 00:39:11.210 --> 00:39:15.030 Canelo for the... There was a lot more at stake 00:39:15.030 --> 00:39:21.429 for that one. Yeah. Yeah, I had kind of three 00:39:21.429 --> 00:39:27.829 second half ones. I thought Inoue really masterclassed 00:39:27.829 --> 00:39:32.329 MJ. Yeah, that's a good one. He just outboxed 00:39:32.329 --> 00:39:39.210 him the entire 12 rounds. Bam just beat the shit 00:39:39.210 --> 00:39:44.360 out of Puma. That was a really good performance, 00:39:44.719 --> 00:39:48.059 I thought. I expected Puma to put up a fight, 00:39:48.260 --> 00:39:51.340 and he just couldn't. He tried, he just couldn't. 00:39:51.599 --> 00:39:55.659 But I agree, but Bud beating Canelo is the masterclass 00:39:55.659 --> 00:39:58.019 of the year. I don't think there's much debate 00:39:58.019 --> 00:40:06.940 on that one. Do you have a villain? Yes, and 00:40:06.940 --> 00:40:09.239 I think there's no fucking debate on this one. 00:40:09.639 --> 00:40:12.619 It's Tank. Hank is villain of the year. He has 00:40:12.619 --> 00:40:19.380 to be. Like, the two, well, the fucking crash 00:40:19.380 --> 00:40:22.920 out about his son playing with dolls or wearing 00:40:22.920 --> 00:40:25.960 pink or whatever the fuck it was. The whole thing 00:40:25.960 --> 00:40:30.250 with the waitress at the strip club. The fucking 00:40:30.250 --> 00:40:33.090 taking a knee and getting it covered up, the 00:40:33.090 --> 00:40:37.090 refusing the rematch, the taking a fucking Jake 00:40:37.090 --> 00:40:40.070 Paul fight instead of the rematch, like, it's 00:40:40.070 --> 00:40:43.969 all just villainous, villainous behavior. Tank 00:40:43.969 --> 00:40:47.789 is my villain of the year. Yeah, I have him as 00:40:47.789 --> 00:40:50.809 my first half. For the second half, I picked 00:40:50.809 --> 00:40:55.610 Howard Foster for his, the goddamn stoppage. 00:40:56.070 --> 00:41:00.230 Yeah. But the... I thought about Howard Foster, 00:41:00.369 --> 00:41:03.369 but Tank is just... Tank is the final pick, for 00:41:03.369 --> 00:41:08.670 sure. Without question. I mean, another honorable 00:41:08.670 --> 00:41:12.289 mention to Zufa boxing and the whole changing 00:41:12.289 --> 00:41:15.510 the Ali Act and all that bullshit. Yes. That's 00:41:15.510 --> 00:41:18.130 pretty villainous, too. To get Congress involved 00:41:18.130 --> 00:41:22.389 is very villainous. Killing legislators in the 00:41:22.389 --> 00:41:28.030 picture. Yeah. But individual, who is the villain? 00:41:28.130 --> 00:41:36.190 It's Tank. Definitely. Prospect or new face of 00:41:36.190 --> 00:41:40.309 the year. My first half was Terra Moana. Second 00:41:40.309 --> 00:41:47.389 half, Tomoya Suboi. That's a good one. I landed 00:41:47.389 --> 00:41:51.010 on Terra Moana for the final pick. Another year 00:41:51.010 --> 00:41:57.300 of four knockouts. So, staying busy. I kind of 00:41:57.300 --> 00:42:00.000 struggled with this one. I think I had Lover 00:42:00.000 --> 00:42:06.880 for the first half. Kenneth Lover. Yeah, I was 00:42:06.880 --> 00:42:08.920 really struggling. I like Suboy, but I think 00:42:08.920 --> 00:42:13.019 I mentioned him last year, maybe. I don't remember. 00:42:13.500 --> 00:42:17.840 Yeah. I kind of wanted to put Cardenas, because 00:42:17.840 --> 00:42:19.960 I didn't know who the fuck Cardenas was until 00:42:19.960 --> 00:42:24.449 this year. But he's not a prospect. He's just... 00:42:24.449 --> 00:42:28.449 He really kind of burst onto the scene with the 00:42:28.449 --> 00:42:32.409 Inouye performance. Yeah, that's where a lot 00:42:32.409 --> 00:42:37.969 of people first heard who he was. Yeah. But I'm 00:42:37.969 --> 00:42:40.130 going to stick with Kenneth Lover. I really like 00:42:40.130 --> 00:42:42.849 him. I think he's going to be really good. If 00:42:42.849 --> 00:42:46.210 the fucking Kamedas don't ruin his career somehow. 00:42:51.469 --> 00:42:54.550 All right. Fighter of the Year. In the first 00:42:54.550 --> 00:42:59.110 half, I had two picks. Brian Norman and Abdullah 00:42:59.110 --> 00:43:04.670 Mason. The Brian Norman one aged like milk. Yeah. 00:43:06.349 --> 00:43:10.929 In the second half, I had Inouye and Bam. And 00:43:10.929 --> 00:43:14.570 ultimately, I landed with Bam being my pick for 00:43:14.570 --> 00:43:18.780 Fighter of the Year. I think first half I had 00:43:18.780 --> 00:43:25.719 Seiya Tsutsumi just because I can, mostly. Now 00:43:25.719 --> 00:43:29.960 that the year is almost over, I had kind of three 00:43:29.960 --> 00:43:33.320 I was thinking of. Inoue and Bam, same as you. 00:43:33.440 --> 00:43:36.960 But Oscar Collazo has had a really good year 00:43:36.960 --> 00:43:41.599 as well in the minimum weight category. Yeah, 00:43:41.599 --> 00:43:45.989 he has. Which I know nobody watches but me. But 00:43:45.989 --> 00:43:50.369 he had a couple really good fights this year. 00:43:50.550 --> 00:43:54.730 But I also ended up with Bam. Bam's just running 00:43:54.730 --> 00:44:00.570 shit at his weight class. He had the two fights 00:44:00.570 --> 00:44:03.150 that I thought were going to be like, oh, we'll 00:44:03.150 --> 00:44:07.619 see. Like, if Bam really is as good as we think 00:44:07.619 --> 00:44:10.079 he is. Well, I knew he was legit, but is he as 00:44:10.079 --> 00:44:13.420 good as we think he is? And he made Caffu and 00:44:13.420 --> 00:44:16.699 Puma look like trash, and they are not. Like, 00:44:16.699 --> 00:44:19.139 those are two good fighters, and he just made 00:44:19.139 --> 00:44:24.500 them look stupid. So, I think you gotta give 00:44:24.500 --> 00:44:29.719 it to Bam. I landed, yeah, I landed about the 00:44:29.719 --> 00:44:36.360 same. Obviously. Moving to ass -whooping of the 00:44:36.360 --> 00:44:39.900 year. In the first half, I had Boots beating 00:44:39.900 --> 00:44:45.579 Stanionis. In the second half, I had Usyk Dubois 00:44:45.579 --> 00:44:51.599 2 and Bam beating Puma. And landed final pick 00:44:51.599 --> 00:44:56.840 Usyk Dubois. This is one I was struggling to 00:44:56.840 --> 00:45:02.599 remember just in general. So my pick from the 00:45:02.599 --> 00:45:06.239 first half was Espinoza over Vasquez. I thought 00:45:06.239 --> 00:45:10.420 that was an ass whooping and a half. The only 00:45:10.420 --> 00:45:12.199 one I could come up with, and it's definitely 00:45:12.199 --> 00:45:16.260 recency bias, Ola Squaga just beat the shit out 00:45:16.260 --> 00:45:19.699 of Kuwahara a couple weeks ago. That was on that 00:45:19.699 --> 00:45:24.019 December card I went to. Yeah. And it was just 00:45:24.019 --> 00:45:28.880 like... It only lasted, I think, four rounds, 00:45:28.960 --> 00:45:31.260 but he just beat the piss out of the poor guy. 00:45:32.019 --> 00:45:35.880 And you could hear them so loudly in the arena. 00:45:37.800 --> 00:45:41.239 And he did it dressed as a Grinch, which I thought 00:45:41.239 --> 00:45:45.579 was pretty funny. But I think Espinoza still 00:45:45.579 --> 00:45:49.659 was a longer ass whooping. So I'm going to stick 00:45:49.659 --> 00:45:56.099 with my first half pick. All right. Comeback 00:45:56.099 --> 00:45:58.820 of the year. Do you have one for career or mid 00:45:58.820 --> 00:46:03.579 -fight? Both if you got them. This is the one 00:46:03.579 --> 00:46:07.380 where mine aged so poorly because my first half 00:46:07.380 --> 00:46:16.320 pick was David Allen. I wanted to believe. I 00:46:16.320 --> 00:46:19.659 kind of struggled with this one and I had to 00:46:19.659 --> 00:46:25.159 land on Devin Haney. I was surprised how good 00:46:25.159 --> 00:46:31.079 he looked in his last fight. Especially, like... 00:46:31.079 --> 00:46:34.500 So he got his ass kicked by Ryan Garcia. That 00:46:34.500 --> 00:46:37.780 was last year, right? Or, like, the year before, 00:46:37.860 --> 00:46:42.139 2024. And then he looked so scared and timid 00:46:42.139 --> 00:46:48.019 against Ramirez. Yes, he did. And so then to 00:46:48.019 --> 00:46:51.469 come out and win the way he did... Who did he 00:46:51.469 --> 00:46:54.510 fight? I can't think of the name. Brian Norman? 00:46:55.329 --> 00:46:59.710 Yeah, thank you. Fuck. To come out and beat Brian 00:46:59.710 --> 00:47:03.650 Norman the way he did, that was a career turnaround, 00:47:03.869 --> 00:47:08.250 I think. I had been kind of writing Devin Haney 00:47:08.250 --> 00:47:15.190 off as mentally not with it anymore after the 00:47:15.190 --> 00:47:21.550 Ryan and Ramirez performances. So Devin Haney 00:47:21.550 --> 00:47:26.510 is your final? Yeah. Oh, shit. In the first half, 00:47:26.590 --> 00:47:30.750 I had Jesus Ramos. He had two stoppages to start 00:47:30.750 --> 00:47:35.110 the year. That was coming off of the Erickson 00:47:35.110 --> 00:47:41.630 -Lubin robbery. And in the second half, I had 00:47:41.630 --> 00:47:46.789 Jack Catterall. Interesting. He came in nicely 00:47:46.789 --> 00:47:51.800 with a new Bozianis. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He came 00:47:51.800 --> 00:47:55.000 in like a Philly fighter. It was fucking phenomenal 00:47:55.000 --> 00:48:00.900 to watch. Final pick for the career resurgence 00:48:00.900 --> 00:48:04.519 was Jesus Ramos, for sure. Because he only had 00:48:04.519 --> 00:48:07.019 one fight in the second half, but still, it was... 00:48:07.019 --> 00:48:12.980 He still had a good outing. Yeah. And in fight 00:48:12.980 --> 00:48:16.280 comeback, Fabio Wardley versus Justice Hooney. 00:48:18.360 --> 00:48:21.679 Oh, yeah. I should have remembered that one. 00:48:21.760 --> 00:48:25.320 That was 100 % the in -fight comeback of the 00:48:25.320 --> 00:48:33.599 year. Definitely. No question. For Upset, in 00:48:33.599 --> 00:48:37.179 the first half, I had Lamont Roach beating Tank. 00:48:38.760 --> 00:48:43.199 I don't care what the hell the cards say. In 00:48:43.199 --> 00:48:46.679 the second half, I had Abbas Barou beating Ioannis 00:48:46.679 --> 00:48:52.710 Teyes. Okay, yeah. It was pretty funny. That's 00:48:52.710 --> 00:48:56.010 a big upset. This no -name German shows up and 00:48:56.010 --> 00:49:00.710 beats the home fighter. This no -name German 00:49:00.710 --> 00:49:04.130 just harassed the hell out of him? Yep. But the 00:49:04.130 --> 00:49:07.570 final roach -beating tank, that was... Yeah. 00:49:09.550 --> 00:49:13.670 So, my first half one was Roly beating Ryan, 00:49:13.929 --> 00:49:17.190 just because I love it. And nobody was really 00:49:17.190 --> 00:49:23.400 expecting it. Second half, the Kameda beating 00:49:23.400 --> 00:49:26.659 Casamero, one, I love it. Fucking hilarious. 00:49:27.059 --> 00:49:31.440 Two, I was so sure that they had put their cousin 00:49:31.440 --> 00:49:34.619 up against Casamero so they could rob him. Rob 00:49:34.619 --> 00:49:39.260 the cousin. I thought that was the setup. So 00:49:39.260 --> 00:49:43.780 I was surprised. And then, this is a bit of a 00:49:43.780 --> 00:49:47.539 reach, but Ben beating Eubank in the rematch. 00:49:48.110 --> 00:49:51.369 I thought was a pretty big upset. But beating 00:49:51.369 --> 00:49:54.769 him the way he did, I guess. Yeah, I can see 00:49:54.769 --> 00:49:59.010 that. But yeah, my pick for the year is still 00:49:59.010 --> 00:50:11.469 Rolly beating Ryan. Oh, hero of the year. I am. 00:50:12.690 --> 00:50:17.840 So this is out of ring stuff. Yes. I decided 00:50:17.840 --> 00:50:22.719 Yudai Shigeoka is my hero of the year. So he's 00:50:22.719 --> 00:50:27.079 Jinjiro's brother. He retired from boxing and 00:50:27.079 --> 00:50:29.539 opened up his cafe so he could take care of his 00:50:29.539 --> 00:50:32.940 brother after he suffered the brain damage in 00:50:32.940 --> 00:50:37.440 his fight. I just think that's really wholesome. 00:50:37.699 --> 00:50:43.420 Yeah, definitely. Yeah. So he's my hero of the 00:50:43.420 --> 00:50:48.460 year. Oh, man, mine sucks by comparison. So in 00:50:48.460 --> 00:50:51.320 the first half, I had Al Heyman for the Taking 00:50:51.320 --> 00:50:53.420 Care of Pritchard cologne. Turns out that came 00:50:53.420 --> 00:50:57.780 out just at the end of 2024. So it doesn't count. 00:50:59.420 --> 00:51:04.599 Still very cool of him to do that. I mean, he 00:51:04.599 --> 00:51:06.619 can still be the hero because I think he's still 00:51:06.619 --> 00:51:11.239 paying for it. Yeah, I suppose. Why mine sucks? 00:51:11.420 --> 00:51:13.840 Because I picked Terrence Crawford for not. holding 00:51:13.840 --> 00:51:18.119 up the belts not holding up the the boxing world 00:51:18.119 --> 00:51:21.400 and just retiring and saying no i'm done yeah 00:51:21.400 --> 00:51:26.019 dropping the belts yep and yeah that's not a 00:51:26.019 --> 00:51:29.599 bad pick letting everybody have their have their 00:51:29.599 --> 00:51:36.039 glory yeah oh fight of the year what do you got 00:51:36.039 --> 00:51:42.460 okay uh So my first half was Eubank -Ben won. 00:51:44.460 --> 00:51:48.079 But second half, man, there were so many good 00:51:48.079 --> 00:51:51.420 fights recently. Yes. Like, so many good fights. 00:51:52.360 --> 00:51:56.179 I forgot to write it down, but I just thought 00:51:56.179 --> 00:52:02.019 of it. Mbili... Martinez? Martinez. Thank you. 00:52:02.159 --> 00:52:05.119 I was going to say the wrong Spanish last name. 00:52:06.860 --> 00:52:12.059 Mbili Martinez. I had, honestly, Nakatani Hernandez 00:52:12.059 --> 00:52:17.820 was a fucking banger. And that same night, one 00:52:17.820 --> 00:52:21.139 that probably none of the listeners watched was 00:52:21.139 --> 00:52:26.699 Yabuki Alvarado. Yabuki versus Alvarado. That 00:52:26.699 --> 00:52:29.619 was a banger, too. But, I mean, I think I have 00:52:29.619 --> 00:52:36.039 to land on Mbili Martinez. Yeah, that was just, 00:52:36.199 --> 00:52:43.050 that was... Just all -out action the entire time. 00:52:45.369 --> 00:52:48.449 And I want to see that rematch. I really do. 00:52:50.730 --> 00:52:55.590 My first half, I had Bivo better be of two. In 00:52:55.590 --> 00:52:58.789 the second half, I had Martinez and Beely like 00:52:58.789 --> 00:53:02.590 you did. I also had Superreal Matias versus Alberto 00:53:02.590 --> 00:53:07.670 Pueyo. Oh yeah, that was also a banger. There 00:53:07.670 --> 00:53:13.030 were so many good fights this year. I kept Beevil 00:53:13.030 --> 00:53:15.670 Better Beev as my final pick just because it 00:53:15.670 --> 00:53:21.489 was an undisputed fight, so it has some gravity. 00:53:21.869 --> 00:53:28.389 I think that's a poor choice. Yeah, I didn't 00:53:28.389 --> 00:53:36.300 arrive at that conclusion easily. But that's 00:53:36.300 --> 00:53:40.659 all we got. That's all the picks. What event 00:53:40.659 --> 00:53:48.280 stood out to you? Well, so mine is basically 00:53:48.280 --> 00:53:51.860 just nostalgia. But me and my brother went to 00:53:51.860 --> 00:53:56.380 the fights in February there. And that's when 00:53:56.380 --> 00:54:01.659 Tsutsumi beat Takuma in a way. Or no, that's 00:54:01.659 --> 00:54:08.030 not that one. I went to so many fights. I actually 00:54:08.030 --> 00:54:10.110 can't remember which ones were on which card. 00:54:12.869 --> 00:54:18.690 That was the Daigo Higa fight, wasn't it? Yeah. 00:54:19.210 --> 00:54:23.429 That card is my favorite because I went with 00:54:23.429 --> 00:54:25.769 my brother. It was his first time at the boxing. 00:54:25.889 --> 00:54:31.730 The fights were fucking awesome. That was when... 00:54:32.119 --> 00:54:36.440 Tenshin fought Maloney. Seiya Sutsumi fought 00:54:36.440 --> 00:54:41.840 Higa. And then Nakatani knocked out Contreras. 00:54:42.539 --> 00:54:46.280 That's a nice card. Yeah, I got to watch it all 00:54:46.280 --> 00:54:53.599 with my brother. My event was Eubank Ben 2, just 00:54:53.599 --> 00:54:57.019 because I was there. Got to experience British 00:54:57.019 --> 00:55:01.809 fucking boxing culture. Got to sing Sweet Caroline? 00:55:02.110 --> 00:55:08.409 I did. Got to get four beers at once. Did they 00:55:08.409 --> 00:55:10.829 give you the little holders there? They did give 00:55:10.829 --> 00:55:15.409 me the holders. It was fucking glorious. So the 00:55:15.409 --> 00:55:20.230 events I went to, they don't always do this, 00:55:20.309 --> 00:55:22.849 but that one did have the beer girls with the 00:55:22.849 --> 00:55:26.849 little keg backpacks walking around. So my brother 00:55:26.849 --> 00:55:29.289 thought that was the fucking greatest thing ever. 00:55:30.730 --> 00:55:41.110 I can see why. I would enjoy that too. But yeah, 00:55:41.170 --> 00:55:45.769 that's it for the year 2025. Holy shit. It was 00:55:45.769 --> 00:55:51.230 a good year. It was. Brian Norman with a huge 00:55:51.230 --> 00:55:54.570 stoppage only to fucking flop in the second half. 00:55:55.840 --> 00:55:59.300 yeah still stoppage of the year though yeah for 00:55:59.300 --> 00:56:10.960 sure ah well now that we're wrapping up fucking 00:56:10.960 --> 00:56:14.119 do we have do you have parting words you have 00:56:14.119 --> 00:56:19.980 anything left um honestly no i am so fucking 00:56:19.980 --> 00:56:24.579 tired all right That's it. 2026 has started terribly 00:56:24.579 --> 00:56:26.920 and it could only get better. That's my parting 00:56:26.920 --> 00:56:32.079 words. I really truly believe by next December 00:56:32.079 --> 00:56:34.440 the world will either be over or things will 00:56:34.440 --> 00:56:39.920 be better. The world will be over? Yeah. I wouldn't 00:56:39.920 --> 00:56:41.920 be surprised if somebody fucking nukes somebody 00:56:41.920 --> 00:56:48.840 this year. Parting words. Yeah, I think I would 00:56:48.840 --> 00:56:54.429 echo yours. It's only been a few weeks in 2026. 00:56:55.309 --> 00:56:57.530 It's only been a week and a half and everything 00:56:57.530 --> 00:57:03.250 sucks. Well, the boxing will be good at least. 00:57:04.050 --> 00:57:09.070 Yeah, I am super excited. Some of the fights 00:57:09.070 --> 00:57:11.250 that have already been announced are going to 00:57:11.250 --> 00:57:14.949 be great. And Inoue Nakatani has to happen in 00:57:14.949 --> 00:57:17.409 May because that's the only reason I stayed in 00:57:17.409 --> 00:57:23.539 Japan. Well, we'll leave it there. That's it 00:57:23.539 --> 00:57:27.400 for this edition of Boxing Before Dark. Fucking 00:57:27.400 --> 00:57:30.119 haven't said it in a minute. My battery's getting 00:57:30.119 --> 00:57:34.639 low. And it is getting dark. Peace.