Ringside Rewind: Recent Episodes
Ringside Rewind
Join British boxing broadcasting legends Ian Darke and John Rawling as they look back on their storied careers, covering the biggest names, the biggest fights and some of the biggest controversies in sporting histories. Hosted by Tris Dixon.
Join Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon as they reflect on the undisputed heavyweight title fight that saw Oleksandr Usyk topple Tyson Fury for all of the heavyweight gold, as they assess the contest, the next moves, the rematch and the legacies of both fighters.
Join Ian Darke, Tris Dixon and John Rawling as they look ahead to the unified heavyweight title fight between WBC champion Tyson Fury and the WBA, IBF and WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk, as they explore who might win the fight, how they might do so, and assess the excitement surrounding the vent in Riyadh.
John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon reflect on Joshua's two-round demolition of MMA star Francis Ngannou, talking about the wider heavyweight picture and Mike Tyson's agreement to face Jake Paul
Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon put a contemporary spin on the podcast and look ahead to the biggest heavyweight fight of the year so far, when Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou meet in Saudi Arabia on Friday night.
Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon talk about some of the most memorable fights announcements they have witnessed, whether they were pre-fight, post-fight, they explore boxing's good, bad and its ugly!
Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon look at creating the ultimate fighting machine.
Who had the best jab, the most charisma? Who was the best stylist, possessed the most power and who was the best defensively?
Put it altogether and you have the greatest boxer in history... With name checks for many of the greats, from Larry Holmes to Roberto Duran, from Sugar Ray Leonard to Floyd Mayweather and Sugar Ray Robinson and perhaps with a few unexpected names thrown in along the way.
Using their vast amounts of experience in the sport, John Rawling and Ian Darke look back over the changes they have witnessed in boxing, from fight night, to the advent of social media and much more besides.
The team of John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon look at some of the more controversial outcomes of fights they have watched, and ponder if there's anything that can be done to eliminate poor officiating.
What makes a great trainers and who are some of the best the sport has seen?
Join Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon as they look back over their dealings with the likes of Angelo Dundee, Enzo Calzaghe, Eddie Dutch, George Francis and countless other great minds who were behind some of the great champions in boxing.
Ian Darke and John Rawling, two of the voices of boxing, discuss boxing in Saudi Arabia, the best superfight that can be made today, the biggest shocks they have witnessed, changes they would make to the sport, getting boxing back into the mainstream, biggest upsets featuring British fighters and, could it really happen? Could Darke v Rawling headline at the Copper Box?!
John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon look back on the lives, times and careers of some of the greats, and try to establish who were the best heavyweights of all-time, with names like Jack Johnson, Larry Holmes, Muhammad Ali, Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Joe Frazier, Rocky Marciano all under consideration.
The team returns and speculates about some all-time dream fights. You would win if Mike Tyson fought Joe Frazier, if Naseem Hamed and Barry McGuigan came to blows, or how about if Tyson Fury and Lennox Lewis met? What about Chris Eubank and Alan Minter and, of course, Carl Froch took on superb Welshman Joe Calzaghe?
Ian Darke and John Rawling are joined by host Tris Dixon looking back on their experiences in boxing, here reflecting on bloopers, funny things they have witnessed on their work travels, in the boxing ring, press conferences and on the peripheries of the sport.
Tris Dixon, Ian Darke and John Rawling talk about the Four Kings of Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns, Roberto Duran and Sugar Ray Leonard and reflect on a golden era for the sport.
They look back over some of the biggest fights of a generation, some of the controversies and Darke recalls a time when he interviewed a nude Marvin Hagler!
Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon look back on the careers of some fighters who have transcended the sport and ponder how they have done it, while exploring reasons why other fighters, whether notable, brilliant or exciting, have failed to build significant fanbases.
Among the names mentioned are Henry Cooper, Tyson Fury, Amir Khan, Naseem Hamed, Chris Eubank, Anthony Joshua, Ricky Hatton, Barry McGuigan and many more.
Ian Darke, John Rawling and Tris Dixon talk about fights not being made, PEDs, bad scorecards, a lack of federal oversight, protecting unbeaten records and drab live events. It might be grumpy old men stuff, but maybe things were better in the olden days!
Ian Darke, Tris Dixon and John Rawling look back over the weird and wonderful, the good, bad and downright ugly press conference moments they have reported on, and they also reflect upon the passing of their friend and colleague, Ron Lewis.
The team share their memories of Muhammad Ali and the impact he had on them, and Ian Darke and John Rawling talk about how Ali guided them towards their chosen career paths.
They talk about Ali's best fights, best quotes, the best Ali books, his legacy, how he might have coped with today's giants, dream fights and much more besides.
John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon provide their top five ringside experiences, counting down the best fights they have been at.
Strangely, they each picked different fights with no overlap, with fights featuring Marvin Hagler, Arturo Gatti, Mike Tyson, Marco Antonio Barrera, Nigel Benn, Evander Holyfield and Manny Pacquiao.
Ian Darke and John Rawling join Tris Dixon to talk about getting into the business of commentary and boxing journalism, learning the ropes, highs, lows, mistakes, pressure, travel and much more
Ian Darke and John Rawling have worked side by side with Barry McGuigan in the commentary booths, but they also covered his Hall of Fame career.
Here, Barry looks back over his career, reflects upon a different time and some marvellous and historic nights.
John Rawling and Ian Darke reflect on working, covering and watching some of the best trainers in the sport at work.
From Angelo Dundee and Terry Lawless through to Eddie Futch, Teddy Atlas and George Francis, they look at the coaches behind some of the finest fighters in boxing history. They also talk about the mavericks, including Brendan Ingle, Enzo Calzaghe and Billy Graham.
Ian Darke, Tris Dixon and John Rawling answer listener questions, about favourite fighters to cover, the guys who didn't quite make it, journalists who inspired them, most disappointing nights ringside, the current heavyweight scene, Naz, fights that never were and much more
John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon reflect on uncrowned champions, cult heroes and those who had fantastic careers but didn't quite crack the big time, from Chris Pyatt and Tony Sibson to Herol Graham and Kirkland Laing in this whistle-stop tour of fine fighters who gave these three journalists some incredible memories.
Ian Darke and John Rawling look back on occasions when boxers used mind games, and at the moments they worked and failed.
They discuss Ali, Mike Tyson, Tyson Fury, Bernard Hopkins, Steve Collins, Chris Eubank, George Groves and many more as they reflect on the art of war.
Between them, Ian Darke and John Rawling were ringside for Evander Holyfield's appearance in the 1984 Olympics, for his crowning as heavyweight champion against Buster Douglas, for his slugfest with Bert Cooper, the epics with Riddick Bowe – including the Fan Man – the upsets of Mike Tyson (including the Bite Fight), the controversy with Lennox Lewis and many more huge nights.
Join them as they reflect on the highs and lows of The Real Deal.
Ian Darke and John Rawling reflect on the life and times of a heavyweight British icon, Frank Bruno.
The looks at Bruno's highs and lows, share stories of working with the former WBC champion and assess his place in history.
They also look at the fights, with the likes of Bugner, Bonecrusher Smith, Witherspoon, Tyson, McCall, Lewis and many more.
John Rawling and Ian Darke are joined by another voice of boxing, Colonel Bob Sheridan, as they reflect on their time on the road together, covering big fights, and Bob looks back in particular on calling the Rumble in the Jungle from ringside back in 1974.
Ian, John and Tris look back over the good, the bad and ugly of life on the road, with best and worst places to stay, venues, training camps, inclement weather... oh, and some boxing nostalgia.
Join John Rawling and Ian Darke as they talk about the Benn-Eubank fallout, dream fights, nostalgic stories, favourite memories and venues, promoters and much more besides and Ian breaking the news to a British title holder that he was vacating his title!
Ian Darke and John Rawling look back on their storied careers working closely with the likes of Jim Watt and Glenn McCrory and Duke McKenzie, Richie Woodhall and Barry Jones.
They also share their tales of working the microphones with David Haye, Carl Frampton, Lennox Lewis, Frank Bruno, Henry Cooper and even promoter Mickey Duff as well as many others.
Ian and John look back on the career of Britain's greatest heavyweight, Lennox Lewis. They discuss the big fights with Bruno, Holyfield and Tyson, cracking America, the controversies, the huge domestic fights, their meetings with Lennox behind the scenes – including Rawling being flattened at chess – Lennox's legacy and his standing among the all-time greats.
John Rawling and Ian Darke look back at the fights and rivalry of one of British boxing's great double acts, reflecting on the battles and legacies of Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank.
Broadcasting legends Ian Darke and John Rawling reflect on the life and career of Ricky Hatton, painting an intimate and humorous portrait of 'The Hitman' through their own experiences working with a British boxing icon.
Ian and John reflect on their careers, their breaks into the industry, some of the most memorable moments and some of the most humorous occasions when the green light has been on.
Do not miss this hilarious episode.
British broadcasting greats Ian Darke and John Rawling look back on the career of brilliant Welshman Joe Calzaghe, who became one of Britain's finest fighters.
Trained by his enigmatic father Enzo, Calzaghe had a long reign as WBO super-middleweight champion and boxed the liked of Chris Eubank, Jeff Lacy, Mikkel Kessler, Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones.
Rawling and Darke share their memories of covering the Calzaghe's over the years, from the small Newbridge gym to the bright lights of Las Vegas and the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Join John Rawling, Ian Darke and Tris Dixon as they look back on their dealings with Mike Tyson over the years in their respective roles as TV broadcasters, on radio and in print.
They weigh up Tyson's legacy, shares stories and discuss the meteoric highs and crushing lows of the heavyweight icon.
Join Ian Darke and John Rawling as they look back over the life and times of Prince Naseem Hamed, the enigmatic Sheffield star who caught the attention of the boxing world.
With Boxing Life Stories host Tris Dixon, they reflect on Naz's big fights, the bouts he almost had, their own dealings with the Prince and they assess the Hall of Famer's legacy.
Join British boxing broadcasting legends Ian Darke and John Rawling as they look back over their storied careers, the big nights, the big fights, the controversies, the laughs, the travel stories and much more besides as they share their experiences and expertise with their host, former Boxing News editor and Boxing Life Stories podcast creator Tris Dixon.