Merry Christmas everyone and welcome to a Macklin's Take Yuletide special.Like last year, our top producer Darren Rees has put together a Festive Selection Box featuring some of the best bits from what has been a highly unusual year.Eddie Hearn, Frank Warren, Conor Benn and Dave Coldwell all feature as do Paul Ramsay, Shaun Cogan and Anthony Maynard who joined us for our This Boxing Life episode back at the start of the year.Obviously it's been an absolutely bizarre last 9 months. It's been beyo...
Dec 22, 2020•1 hr 25 min
In this episode me and Matt tackle one of our favourite subjects: Matchmaking. Good matchmaking is crucial not only to the development of individual fighters but to the overall health of the sport. It’s a genuine art and good matchmakers are worth their weight in gold. They know how to pick the right opponents at the right time, how to provide boxers with the in-ring education they need to develop and improve and also of course how and when to deliver to the paying public the fights we want to s...
Dec 17, 2020•1 hr 20 min•Season 1Ep. 101
This week we celebrate the 100th episode of Macklin's Take by inviting on to the podcast former European Welterweight champ, and old friend of Matt Macklin's, Mr Matthew Hatton.Matt went 12 rounds with Canelo back in the day for the WBC Super Welterweight title so we have a chat about that and the big fight at the weekend between the Mexican and our very own Callum Smith.We also talk to Matt about the new adventure he's embarking upon as trainer to his nephew and new Matchroom signing Campbell H...
Dec 15, 2020•1 hr 23 min
For this one we welcome Peter Fury back to Macklin's Take.And I ask Peter and Matt a question that's been hotly debated in British boxing over the last week or so.How much can we reasonably expect fighters to give in the ring?How far through the pain barrier can we really demand that they push themselves in pursuit of victory?It was fascinating to listen to their take on what is a complex issue.And we talked a bit of Joshua vs Pulev and of course Hughie Fury vs Mariusz Wach. Desire + CapitalRyan...
Dec 10, 2020•1 hr 7 min
This week on Macklin's Take me and Matt are joined by none other than Top Rank boss Bob Arum.Bob turned 89 this week and has now been promoting boxing for 54 years. During that time he really has been there and seen and done it all so it was great to sit down with him for an hour and get his thoughts on AJ vs Pulev, the current state of the boxing industry, the future for Top Rank and plenty else besides. We even had time to get his take on the assassination of JFK as back in the early 60s, befo...
Dec 08, 2020•1 hr 21 min
This week me & Matt Macklin are joined by esteemed boxing scribe and author Kevin Mitchell to look back at the two showdowns between Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis in 1999 that eventually saw Lewis crowned undisputed King of the Heavyweight division. The 90s was a mad decade in the top division; a 42/1 upset, Fan Man, a belt in the bin, the return of George Foreman, the Bite Fight, Andrew Golota. It was chaos. Luckily for us Kev was right in the thick of it and ringside at both Madison S...
Dec 07, 2020•1 hr 46 min
This week me & Matt Macklin are joined by Ashley Theophane. Ashley, and I mean this in the best possible way, is not the kind of man you meet every day, even by boxing’s unusual standards. He’s been a pro for the best part of 2 decades, winning a British title almost 10 years ago before leaving these shores to join Floyd Mayweather’s Money Team in Las Vegas, appearing on some huge Mayweather cards and boxing for a world title before emabarking on a world tour that has seen him take fights in...
Nov 30, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 96
This week me & Matt Macklin are joined by top boxing writer Ron Lewis as we take a deep dive into the March 2006 World Super Middleweight unification clash between WBO champ Joe Calzaghe and IBF ruler Jeff Lacy. It was a make or break fight for Calzaghe. After years of defending his WBO title finally he had the big fight he’d been waiting for but when he walked to the ring in the early hours in Manchester Joe found himself the betting underdog against the big punching “Left Hook” Lacy. What ...
Nov 23, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 95
This week me & Matt Macklin take a deep dive into the biggest upset in boxing history, James Buster Douglas’ stunning win against the unbeaten, undisputed Heavyweight champion of the world Iron Mike Tyson. Douglas 42/1 with the bookmakers when he walked to the ring in Tokyo in February 1990 and had been written off by everyone. Well, not quite everyone. Tim May was ringside covering the fight for the Columbus Dispatch, Douglas’ local paper in Ohio, had known Buster for years and was the only...
Nov 16, 2020•1 hr 41 min•Ep. 94
This week me & Matt Macklin take a deep dive into another big fight, this time in the company of our good friend Steve Bunce. For this one we turn the clock back 30 years to a Sunday night in November 1990 when Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank met in the ring for the first time. It was the greatest rivalry British boxing had ever seen and probably will ever see. The build-up was electric and the fight was a classic. Buncey was ringside that night and had followed both fighters from the beginning ...
Nov 09, 2020•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 93
This week me & Matt Macklin take a deep dive into another big fight, turning the clock back 13 years to December 2007 and the clash between Floyd Mayweather and Ricky Hatton. Two undefeated fighters, the build-up was like nothing we’d seen before involving a British fighter and fight week was the same as 1000s of Hatton fans invaded Las Vegas. Ringside that night calling the fight for the BBC was commentator Mike Costello and Mike joins us to give us his recollections of how the fight happen...
Nov 02, 2020•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 92
Ahead of Usyk vs Chisora at the weekend me and Matt talk to former WBC Cruiser champ Tony Bellew about what it was like to share the ring with the Ukrainian. And we also investigate the art of self-promotion, a key element in any boxer’s career and one that Tony was a master of. There was serious method behind his apparent madness and it was fascinating to have a look behind the curtain. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Marx, and occasionally Marx himself....List...
Oct 29, 2020•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 91
With Usyk vs Chisora coming up at the weekend me and Matt are joined by David Haye, former unified Cruiserweight champ and WBA Heavyweight champ, now Del Boy’s manager and a man who knows exactly how to sell a fight! He told us exactly how Chisora is going to take the Ukrainian down and afterwards we took him on a little trip down memory lane to the night he beat Mormeck in Paris to scoop those Cruiser belts and also back to a certain press conference in Munich… Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie ta...
Oct 28, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 90
People have been asking for a while if we could do an episode on all aspects of boxing training so we thought it was about time we did. Sparring, drills, S&C, recovery, making weight, rehydration, we get into it all in depth and detail. And who better to get chapter and verse from than our good mate, former WBO Cruiserweight champion and fittest 40-year-old on the planet Enzo Maccarinelli. Enzo’s 20 year career has seen a lot change in terms of attitudes to training and him and Matt had plen...
Oct 26, 2020•1 hr 45 min•Ep. 89
On this week’s bonus episode we look back at conversations we’ve had with world champions. There’s Carl Froch, the 3-time World Super Middleweight champion, Frankie Gavin, who is still the only Englishman to win a world amateur title and WBO Cruiserweight king Johnny Nelson. They’ve all achieved amazing things in boxing and it was fascinating to listen to what they had to say. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Marx, and occasionally Marx himself....Listen on: Appl...
Oct 22, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 88
This week on Macklin’s Take me and Matt take a deep dive into one of our favourite areas: International amateur boxing. And we do it in the company of Paul Walmsley, who’s just hung up his GB pads after 21 years as a top international coach, and Stephen Smith, a former protégé of Paul’s and a highly decorated amateur fighter back in the day. It was great fun, there’s nothing like tales from the amateur days. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Marx, and occasionally...
Oct 19, 2020•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 87
This week for our bonus episode me and Matt look back at conversations we’ve had with fighters from the Emerald Isle. Ireland has long been a hotbed of boxing talent and has produced some great champions, amateur and pro, and here we feature 2004 Olympian and WBO Middleweight champion now trainer Andy Lee, 2008 Beijing silver medallist Kenny Egan, his old international amateur team mate now campaigning as a pro Eric Donovan and, last but not least, 2-weight world champion Carl Frampton. They wer...
Oct 15, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 86
This week on Macklin’s Take myself, Matt Macklin and author Brian Doogan turn the clock back to 1987 and the Super Fight between Marvelous Marvin Hagler & Sugar Ray Leonard. It was a fight that will forever have a place in boxing folklore and for good reason. A fight that was years in the making between two men who pursued different career paths and who lived different lives. Hagler vs Leonard is an epic boxing drama of Shakespearean proportions. Controversy still reigns over the result to t...
Oct 12, 2020•1 hr 40 min•Ep. 85
This week’s bonus episode on Macklin’s Take sees us revisit conversations we’ve had in the past with trainers. We did a part one earlier in the year but we’ve had so many trainers on the podcast that there’s more than enough material to do ten of these probably! And trainers do love a chat, which is perfect for us. In this one we bring you excerpts from pods we’ve done with Stefy Bull, a man who’s seen and done it all in pro boxing, Jedi mind games master Joe Gallagher, the understated trainer o...
Oct 08, 2020•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 84
This week on Macklin’s Take we welcome our first Olympic gold medallist in Luke Campbell. As an amateur Luke did it all and as a pro he’s come perilously close to winning a world title against the very best opposition in Jorge Linares and Vasiliy Lomachenko. There’s still time to land that elusive belt though; the Hull Lightweight has been through a lot in his career and whilst there have been some amazing highs there have also been some extremely difficult lows. He’s not one to court the limeli...
Oct 05, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 83
After our chat with Al Bernstein earlier in the week, Macklin’s Take brings you a bonus episode where we revisit some earlier conversations we’ve had with similar luminaries of boxing journalism. We start with the inimitable Thomas Hauser, a man who’s long been one of the finest fight scribes in the business, then merge into a discussion with another Hall of Famer in Steve Farhood who’s achieved great longevity in the fields of both print and broadcast, and last of all, but certainly not least, ...
Oct 01, 2020•59 min•Ep. 82
This week on Macklin’s Take myself and Matt Macklin are joined by Hall of Fame broadcaster Al Bernstein. In boxing, and in all sports, the media is always changing but one of the constants of the last 4 decades for all boxing fans have been the dulcet tones and informed, insightful analysis of a certain Mr Bernstein. He’s called many of the biggest fights we’ve seen and has stayed true to his principles from day one. As Al says, “you’re never bigger than the event you’re covering” and it’s that ...
Sep 28, 2020•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 81
This week on Macklin’s Take myself and Matt Macklin are joined by Frank Warren Frank doesn’t really need any introduction. A Boxing Hall of Fame promoter, he’s been at the top of the sport for decades and the driving force behind some of the biggest fights and most successful careers in British boxing. There have been ups and downs along the way but never a dull moment and it was an absolute pleasure to have him on the podcast. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Ma...
Sep 21, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 80
Boxers have all sorts of journeys and Conor Benn's has been a pretty unique one so far. He’s not the first son of a famous father to follow his Dad into the squared circle and he very likely won’t be the last. And although there are advantages to bearing a well-known surname, there are drawbacks too. People often have the idea that it’s all sweetness and light but nobody can do the fighting for you, the pressure is intense, and the younger Benn is brutally honest in his appraisal of what his pug...
Sep 14, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 79
This week on Macklin’s Take we’re doing something a little bit different. Top trainer Dave Coldwell joins me and Matt Macklin for an in-depth philosophical discussion. That’s right, the key questions of the sporting universe are addressed. Such as: Does natural talent really exist? What does it take to be a winner? Does sporting success equal happiness? Over the course of 63 minutes we do our best to supply the definitive answers to all the above! It was ambitious admittedly but made for an inte...
Sep 07, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 78
This week on Macklin’s Take me and Matt are joined by Natasha Jonas. We saw Tasha in the ring recently, headlining week 2 of Fight Camp, where she challenged WBC Super Featherweight champion Terri Harper and fought her way to a thrilling draw. It was her biggest night in professional boxing and a performance to be proud of so it was great to catch up with her and get her thoughts on it and on what might come next now the dust has settled. But it’s only part of her story. Tash has been in boxing ...
Aug 30, 2020•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 77
This week on Macklin’s Take me and Matt are joined by Eddie Hearn to look back at what was an epic finale to Fight Camp and to discuss the very unique demands and pressures life as a boxing promoter places on a person. As he tells us, it’s not all private jets and ringside seats; success comes with a significant personal price tag in many, many ways. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Marx, and occasionally Marx himself....Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify The Noco...
Aug 24, 2020•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 76
This week on Macklin’s Take me and Matt are joined by top trainer Joe Gallagher to discuss the key role that psychological warfare or mind games can play in the build up to big fights. It’s something Joe pays a lot of attention to and he was happy to discuss what is a fine art, and one that can play a big part in elite level contests. Desire + CapitalRyan and Jamie talking about people talking about Marx, and occasionally Marx himself....Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify The Noco Moto Motorcycle...
Aug 17, 2020•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 75
This week me & Matt Macklin are joined by fighter and trainer duo Eric Donovan and Kenny Egan. Back in the day these two travelled the world together as amateurs boxing for Ireland and competing at European and World Championships and Olympic Games. You name it, one of them did it, and usually both. And after a few years apart the pair of them are back together. Eric’s 12-0 as a pro and on Friday faces the biggest fight of his career in Eddie Hearn’s back garden vs new Matchroom signing Zelf...
Aug 10, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 74
This week me & Matt Macklin are joined by Adam Harper who on Friday night fights Anthony Fowler at Matchroom Square Gardens. Adam’s got one of the best stories out there. 3 years ago me & Matt commentated on his Midlands Area title win. He followed it up by travelling to Australia to challenge for the Commonwealth title after chasing and getting the fight on Facebook. Then he came back home and won an English title. Then on the brink of a British title challenge failed a brain scan, reti...
Aug 03, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 73
