TheBoxingBar.com's podcast: Recent Episodes
Albert C
TheBoxingBar.com is a boxing interview show where we get to meet fighters and people in the fight game and discuss their start in the sport. I like to think of my interviews like an audio Wikipedia page about my guests that comes from them and not from an outsider. Please visit TheBoxingBar.com for more random guests and questions we throw at them! - Albert
If you don't recognize his face, you probably don't watch boxing too much. Jacob "Stitch" Duran is one of the most respected and popular cutmen in decades. He's even been on many films like all the Creed movies working Michael B. Jordan's corner in those films. Duran is from a small town in the Central Valley in California, Planada. Recently, he was inducted into the National Boxing Hall of Fame class of 2025. Check out his books and upcoming documentary. Cheers to "Stitch" Duran!
Many years ago, I had a boxing page called Oxnard IsBoxing in tribute to my local boxing community. At that time a Facebook friend stood out by the name of John Bray of Van Nuys, CA. In time, we got to talk one-on-one about boxing and he would share his story in the sport. It was pretty amazing! At one time he was supposed to be the face of the sport. He was a young good looking “White-Latino” from Southern California that was supposed to be the prospect to take the heavyweight division by storm first in the amateurs and hopefully in the professional ranks thereafter. But it didn’t happen as planned. Through his admission in this interview, life and bad decisions got in the way. In his time, he got to work with some of the best of the best including the likes of Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, and Tommy Morrison just to name a few. Due to some injuries related to boxing he can no longer participate physically in the sport that he loves. But his love for the sport is still there and the people that remember him, love him. On June 22 of this year, he will be inducted into the WBC’s “Legends of Boxing Museum”. Congratulations, John! Well deserved. Check out our interview with Mr. John Bray!
It was a real honor to have legendary comedian/actor Paul Rodriguez on TheBoxingBar podcast recently for an "Outside the Ropes" episode. Paul is in the movie "Holy Cash" which was released in October featuring many familiar faces. You can watch it on "Must See Movies with Mario" (Lopez). We talked about his career, shows he did visiting prison, and his movies like D.C. Cab and Ali. Listen to what he is up to, and the new projects he is working on. Check this interview out!
Here is our new episode of TheBoxingBar podcast with ring announcer, Christian Schmidt. In this interview, Schmidt talks about all the announcing experience he has which includes pro wrestling, MMA, bare-knuckle fighting, and boxing shows. He is a real professional, and a great guy. If you don’t know who he is, get to know him as my cousin Ricky and I did during this interview. Thank you, Christian! Click the link below …
“Dangerous” David Rodela was a tough fighter from the Oxnard P.A.L.. Rodela was originally born in East Los Angeles but moved to Oxnard when he was about nine years old. Right before making his pro debut, Rodela walked into the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood to get some sparring. Trainer Freddie Roach asked David what his height and weight was. David said he was close to 6 foot tall. Roach thought it would be good to put him with Manny Pacquiao who was there training for an upcoming fight with “El Terrible” Erik Morales. After the session Pacquiao asked David how many pro fights he had on his record. Rodela responded that he wasn’t a pro yet. The two became close friends and many years later Pacquiao help him pay for his current home in Oxnard as a gift. The two worked together in the gym for over thirteen years. Rodela fought many terrific fighters during his career including names like Kevin Kelley, Terence Crawford, Jorge Linares and Ronny Rios. David came on to say “Hi” to the fans of TheBoxingBar … Check it out!
Dr. Roger Anderson is the most popular chiropractor in Ventura County. His office on First Street in Oxnard neighbors the popular La Colonia Boxing Club and for decades he has helped the people in that area which is pretty much an all-Mexican community in the Eastside of town. In time, he started helping many of the fighters that were making some noise in the boxing community starting with Oxnard’s first world champion, Robert Garcia. Not only has he worked with local boxers, but many fighters from out of town that were here to train like Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez and Marcos “Chino” Maidana. Today, you can still see him walking out with fighters during fight cards on TV to work their corner. Prior to this interview, I got a few short comments from both Robert Garcia and Fernando Vargas on what they think of the “Doc” which I read to him during this chat. Check out this interview to see why is a respected member of the local community, the local Mexican community, and the boxing community. Cheers to you Dr. Anderson!
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Sindy “La Alacrana” Amador was a very tough fighter during her career. She made her pro debut on October 28, 2010. In her twelfth professional fight, she won the vacant IBA World Light Flyweight title against Amaris Quintana in 2013. Only two fights later, she was forced to retire due to a detached retina in 2014. Today, it would not be a surprise to see a female match on a televised boxing card but during her career it was rare. Amador was inducted into the International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame (IWBHF) in Las Vegas earlier this year. The former still hits the gym as hard as ever to stay physically and mentally strong. A few months back, she came on TheBoxingBar podcast to tell her story about her journey in boxing. I also want to thank her husband, Paco Perez, for joining us during this conversation to share his point of view on his wife’s life and career of a fighter. Check out this interview!
“El Magnifico” Israel Vazquez recently passed away. Vazquez was an action-packed type fighter who never disappointed when it came to fight time. He had come on our podcast several months back. During the interview we discussed his life and career as usual. In this interview, he also explains his illness and all the symptoms leading up to the diagnosis in detail. In closing the interview, I asked him how he wants to be remembered to his fans. It was emotional hearing his response at the time, and listening to it today. Rest in peace, Israel. This interview was done in Spanish.
Dr. Randy Roberts is a very well-respected historian on many subjects including boxing. You might remember him from documentaries like “Unforgiveable Blackness: The Rise & Fall of Jack Johnson”, “Joe Louis: America’s Hero … Betrayed”, or different episodes of ESPN’s Sports Century. He is a distinguished Professor at Purdue University, who at times, teaches a class on boxing history. He has written almost a hundred books in his career on a variety of historical topics and has received many awards for all his achievements. A few minutes after the interview, Dr. Roberts sent me an e-mail to tell me he had a great time and he would always be happy to come back on. It was a great honor to have him on. Check out this interview!
“The Pittsburgh Kid” Paul Spadafora was a very slick boxer. “Spaddy” came on TheBoxingBar podcast to say, “hello” to the boxing fans and to talk about his life as a boxer. He discusses the ups and down in his colorful life and career in a brutally honest way. Just like when he was in the ring, Paul didn’t hold back. It was a great honor to have him on the podcast. I’d like to thank his wife, Nadine, for making this interview possible. Check it out...
It was great chatting it up with Buffalo’s “Baby” Joe Mesi recently on TheBoxingBar podcast. The former top heavyweight contender came on to talk about his boxing career. He had a great run as an amateur almost making the 1996 USA Olympic team. As a pro, “Baby Joe” got so popular that people thought of him as Buffalo’s third franchise after their two professional sports teams. Mesi left the sport as an undefeated fighter with a record of 36-0. I never quite knew exactly why he had left the sport. He came on to explain it in detail! Since his retirement, Mesi became a politician in New York and is an award-winning salesman of medical implants spending a lot of time in operating rooms with neurosurgeons. It was a real pleasure for Ricky and I having Joe Mesi on to interview. Check it out!
Joel Diaz has been one of the best boxing trainers for many years. Joel is the older brother of Julio “The Kidd” Diaz and Antonio “Tono”, both had stellar boxing careers. In the early 90’s, Joel had a tremendous amateur resume but was not able to represent the United States since he was not a citizen. His professional career was cut short due to a detached retina. After a few years of struggling to find out what he was going to do with his life, he took his mom’s advice to help guide his brothers in their path in boxing. Diaz has guided a couple of his fighters to defeat two of the biggest name fighters in this era, Manny Pacquiao and “Canelo” Alvarez. Due to a late start for this interview, we were only able to cover his childhood through his boxing career. He agreed to do a “Part 2” anytime to cover his training career. I can’t wait for it! This story of his upbringing will explain to you exactly who and why he is, who he is. Cheers to “The Coach from Coachella” Joel Diaz!
“The Bulldog” Scotty Olsen was a very tough boxer during his era. The Canadian boxer represented his country in the ’88 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea in which he defeated “The Pocket Rocket” Wayne McCullough, but lost to American silver medalist Michael Carbajal. He fought many of the best fighters during his career. It was a pleasure having him on to interview on TheBoxingBar podcast! Listen to him talk about his career …
Clarence “Bones” Adams was one tough guy! Whether he won or lost he always proved that he was a game fighter. Many remember him in his bouts with guys like Orlando Canizales, Paulie Ayala, Nestor Garza, and Kevin Kelley. Today, “Bones" trains pro and amateur fighters. It was a true honor to have him come visit us on TheBoxingBar podcast.
Junior “Poison” Jones was on TheBoxingBar podcast recently. Jones fought many of the top fighters during his time like Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Orlando Canizales, Kennedy McKinney, Tom “Boom Boom” Johnson, and Tracy Harris Patterson to name some. He was a tremendous puncher that was very fun to watch. Thank you, Mr. Jones, for coming on to talk to us!
Augie “Kid Vegas” Sanchez came on TheBoxingBar podcast. As a pro, he had a fan friendly style with teriffic punching power and he had a stellar amateur career. Sanchez is also remembered as the last guy to beat Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the amateurs, not counting his controversial loss in the 1996 Olympics. Today, Sanchez still trains pro and amateur fighters in the Las Vegas area. Check out this interview with “Kid Vegas”!
Most of my all-time favorite boxers were punchers. Many weeks back, we had “The Knock-Out King” Randall Bailey on TheBoxingBar podcast to talk about his life and career. Ricky and I had a blast talking to him about all of his top fights and listening to his stories. Check out our in interview with Randall Bailey!
For many years I followed Stephen DeBro online to read updates of a project he was working on. The project was a documentary called “18 & Grand: The Olympic Auditorium Story” about the historic venue in Los Angeles. “The Olympic” was the Madison Square Garden of the West Coast. It was built in 1925, and held some of the biggest and most memorable events in the city’s history during its heyday. The film was released in 2021. DeBro came on TheBoxingBar podcast to talk about this film and the exhibition that ends this Sunday May 19th at La Cultura de Artes in Los Angeles. Check out the interview, and go check out the exhibition before it is over. Links to all information including the film and related events is on TheBoxingBar.com!
All interviews on TheBoxingBar podcast : https://www.theboxingbar.com/interview-page.html
In January, I had Houston’s “Sweet” Reggie Johnson on TheBoxingBar podcast. The former Middleweight and Light-heavyweight champion had a stellar career and faced many of the best fighters in those weight classes that included James Toney, Roy Jones Jr., Steve Collins, William Guthrie, Julio Gonzalez, and Antonio Tarver to name a few. As an amateur, Johnson was eliminated in the Olympic trials by the eventual 1984 gold medalist Frank Tate of Detroit. Congratulations Mr. Reggie Johnson on this achievement! Check out our interview …
Adam “Bomb” Flores was a Ventura County heavyweight prospect back in the 1990’s. It was rare but exciting to see a Latino heavyweight when the city of Oxnard had just started to make some noise in the boxing world. I first saw Flores on an undercard fight in Oxnard which featured the debut of the city’s 1996 Olympian “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas that was televised on the popular “Tuesday Night Fights” series on March 25, 1997 on the USA channel. Since ending his career in 2000, Flores has managed, coached, and mentored local fighters in Ventura County. He has also done some acting appearing in the 1998 film “Snake Eyes” starring Nicholas Cage and Gary Sinise. We talk about all this and more. Check this interview out!
Frank Garza is a long time and very respected boxing referee because of his work and professionalism. He has been a referee for matches with some of the biggest names like Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather Jr., “Winky” Wright, Deontay Wilder, Adrien Broner, Arthur Abraham, ect. He was the third man in the ring in the big fight between Mike Tyson – Andrew Golota in June 2000. A few weeks ago, he came on TheBoxingBar.com to interview to talk about his life and career. He’s a great guy! Check it out …
Interview Date : 1/28/2023
You might remember Jack O’Halloran playing the villain Non in the first two Superman movies starring Christopher Reeve. But did you know he was a professional heavyweight boxer that fought some of the best fighters of his time? He fought George Foreman, Ken Norton, Mac Foster, Ron Lyle, Cleveland Williams, and many more during his career. Many years back, he authored a book called “Family Legacy” in which he wrote about his upbringing and finding out about his real father, mobster Albert Anastasia. We talked about all this and more in my recent interview with him. It was an honor to have Mr. O’Halloran on as a guest on TheBoxingBar.com podcast!
If you've watched the Netflix docu-series "The Night Stalker" or know the story of Richard Ramirez, I'm sure you'll know the name Gil Carrillo. Carrillo and his partner Frank Salerno (from the Hillside Strangler case) were the investigators put on to solve that case. Today, Gil is the co-pilot on George Lopez's podcast "OMG Hi". Just a bit ago, Gil came on to chat with me on TheBoxingBar.com. It was an honor to have him on to talk about these subjects and more. I will be posting the interview on TheBoxingBar.com's "Outside the Ropes" page.
Former professional boxer , Joey Medina of The Bronx, came on TheBoxingBar.com podcast. The ex-fighter took on Nicky Perez for the vacant NABF Super Featherweight title in their second fight together in 1987. We'll be talking about his career and how he got into comedy during the show. You might remember Joey as the opener in one of the biggest Latino comedy DVD's of all time starring George Lopez, Paul Rodriguez, and Cheech Marin called, "The Original Latin Kings of Comedy". Today, Joey still performs doing standup comedy and wears all hats working on films.
Former IBF World Lightweight champion, Rafael Ruelas, came on TheBoxingBar.com’s podcast last night to talk about his career in boxing. Ruelas defeated Freddie Pendleton on February 19, 1994 at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood to win the title. Rafael faced many of the top fighters of his time including Jorge “El Maromero” Paez, Rocky Lockridge, Livingstone Bramble, Kostya Tszyu, and Oscar De La Hoya. A few weeks ago I got to see and speak to him and his brother Gabriel and they still look sharp. Last night Rafael stated that he has passed physicals to make a comeback fight and would be willing to. Thanks for coming on Rafa!
Saturday morning "Mighty" Mike Anchondo came on TheBoxingBar.com for an interview. The former popular slugger from Los Angeles won the WBO Super Featherweight title on July 15, 2004 from Julio Pablo Chacon on in Dallas, TX. He retired in 2010 leaving the sport with a record of 30-3. Today, Anchondo still helps young boxers when he can. Thanks my "Mighty" friend!
I had the pleasure to have Ventura County boxing trainer Ruben Juarez on our podcast for TheBoxingBar.com. Juarez grew up in Ventura, CA and got into boxing to get away from hanging out in the streets. Juarez won many big amateur tournaments almost making the 1992 Olympic team, but was eliminated by the eventual 1992 Olympic gold medalist Oscar De La Hoya in the qualifiers. Ruben worked as the coach for the boxing program at Ventura’s Westpark Recreation Center. In July 1993, he was shot in the stomach area by an Oxnard gang member. “They removed six feet of intestine from me”, said Juarez during our interview yesterday. In time Juarez, would be working with all the talent from the famed La Colonia Boxing Club which is in the neighborhood of the gang he was shot by. “There were never any issues there, because I was working with the youth”, explained Juarez. He has worked with Robert Garcia, Fernando Vargas, Rolando Reyes, Jose & Mario Aguiniga, Carlos “El Terror” Madrigal, ect.
Today, Juarez works full-time for the County of Ventura, owns K.O. Tacos catering service, and still works with boxers. Cheers to a real Ventura County legend “K.O.” Ruben Juarez!
“King” Carlos Palomino came on TheBoxingBar.com to interview a few weeks ago for our podcast. The International Boxing Hall of Famer talked about his start in boxing and his biggest bouts. On June 22, 1976 Palomino became the World Welterweight champion defeating Englishman John Stracey in Wembley. After seven successful title defenses, Palomino lost the title via split decision to Wilfred Benitez in Puerto Rico. In his next fight, he took on the Latino boxing icon “The Hands of Stone” Roberto Duran but lost by decision and announced his retirement in 1979.
During his career, Palomino was attending college to get a degree which included an acting class. In 1977, he was offered to come out in one of the first episodes of a new show that would become popular called “Taxi” that starred ex-boxer Tony Danza. In the 80’s and 90’s, he would come out in many shows like Buck Rogers, Highway to Heaven, Knight Rider, Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, and several movies and commercials as well. Almost eighteen years later, Palomino made a comeback to the sport for five pro fights in 1997. Today, Carlos still works out every day and says he is working on several projects including a movie about his life titled “Palomino”. Please check out this interview and get to know “King” Carlos Palomino!
In 2013, Sulem Urbina and younger brother, Alexis, were competing in amateur boxing hoping to make the 2016 Olympic team. Sulem was hoping to represent Mexico, and Alexis for the United States. In September of that year, Alexis was beaten inside his home by some intruders and died a few days later due to the injuries. She went on and did well in the tournaments but did not make the 2016 Olympic team. She made her pro debut in late 2016. Today, she is one of the most popular women boxers around. Get to know one of women's boxing more popular action-packed fighters, Sulem Urbina of Phoenix, AZ.
Former IBA World super lightweight champion Antonio "Tono" Diaz took on many great fighters during his career. Antonio is the brother of Julio "The Kidd" & top trainer Joel Diaz. In this interview we talk about his life and career.
Interview Date : 3/20/2017
Marlon Starling should be in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in my opinion. He fought many terrific fighters during his time and beat many of them. He talks about those fights in this interview and some things he did not like that happen in his career.
Interview Date : 4/8/2015
Last year I took a few online college classes for the first time in my life. Chicano Studies being one of those classes. One of the homework assignments we were given was to watch a documentary called “Stolen Education” a 2013 film about Chicano children in South Texas having to remain in the first grade for three years prior to the mid 1950’s for being bilingual. The mother of Dr. Enrique Aleman, who passed away in 2002, was one of those children. He did not know anything about what she went through until shortly after her death. In 2010, Aleman and Rudy Luna go back to the small town of Driscoll, TX to talk to many of the residents who were around at that time to get some answers in making this film. On September 1st there will be a new law passed in Texas, preventing these types of subjects from being taught in their schools. Dr. Enrique Aleman came onto TheBoxingBar.com this week to talk about this for our “Outside of the Ropes” page. It was my first interview on a topic like this, so check it out!
Actor Enrique Castillo came on TheBoxingBar.com this morning for our "Outside the Ropes" page. Castillo is remembered for playing the lead role of Henry Leyva in the hit play Zoot Suit in the 70's, and the prison gang leader, Montana, in the 1993 Chicano cult classic film "Blood In, Blood Out". It was an honor to have Enrique on and hear his great stories. I will post the interview by Friday morning.
Yesterday afternoon Seniesa “Superbad” Estrada came on TheBoxingBar.com podcast to talk about her upcoming fight this Friday night against Tenkai Tsunami for the WBO World Light Fly-weight title which will be televised on DAZN. The undefeated Estrada (20-0, 8 KO’s), of East Los Angeles, is one of the most popular and entertaining female fighters today. The fight will take place at the Banc of California Stadium in L.A. and the televised portion of the card will start at 6:00pm PT on DAZN. - TheBoxingBar.com
I had the privilege to bring on my hometown of Oxnard's most popular athlete ever, former world champion "Ferocious" Fernando Vargas on the podcast for the first time. This will be the first of two sessions. The 1996 USA Olympian didn't hold back as expected and kept it as real as can be. A special thanks to "The Aztec Warrior"!
Interview Date : 5/16/2021
I had the pleasure of having former top super middleweight & light heavyweight contender "Iceman" John Scully on TheBoxingBar.com. Scully is a real fountain of information in the sport of boxing. He is the go-to-guy to many people in boxing for answers. In this interview we talk about his time as a fighter and many topics in boxing today. This is broken in two parts. Enjoy this interview!
DAZN spanish commentator Ricardo Celis was on TheBoxingBar.com last night for our podcast. Celis is largely remembered in the boxing world for his commentary on the hit show "Solo Boxeo" alongside partner Bernardo Osuna. At the moment he is in Dallas ready to work tomorrow's big rematch between "Chocolatito" Gonzalez and "El Gallo" Estrada. We talked about all these things including his thoughts on "Canelo" Alvarez's last fight which he worked, and his place in Mexican boxing history. It was very interesting. The interview was in English.
I had the pleasure of having former top super middleweight & light heavyweight contender "Iceman" John Scully on TheBoxingBar.com. Scully is a real fountain of information in the sport of boxing. He is the go-to-guy to many people in boxing for answers. In this interview we talk about his time as a fighter and many topics in boxing today. This is broken in two parts. Enjoy this interview!
Oxnard's Hugo "The Boss" Centeno was on TheBoxingBar.com last night. It had been since 2014 that I had him on, so we had a lot to talk about. He is hoping 2021 will be a big year for him in boxing. Interview Date : 2/2/2021
Ricardo Maldonado was asked by his dear friend/compadre Ruben “El Puas” Olivares to take over as manager of his career. Without any prior experience as a manager, Maldonado reluctantly agreed to manage the already popular Mexican fighter. Since then, Mr. Maldonado has helped 26 world champions including Rafael “Bazooka” Limon, Marco Antonio Barrera, Acelino “Popo” Freitas, Alex “Nene” Sanchez, Agapito Sanchez, Ruben Castillo, ect… Last night I had the pleasure of having him on TheBoxingBar.com. I will post the interview in spanish. Interview date : 1/20/2021
“Sweet” Jose Aguiñiga reached a record of 33-0, then his career just stopped. Why would he end his boxing career with a record like that? Living in Oxnard, at that time, I had heard almost every rumor you can think of as to why he stopped fighting. It wasn’t until yesterday that I finally got a chance to ask him directly on my podcast. Shortly after, in a heartbroken way, he said he was finally able to say out loud for the first time, “I’m retired.” I will be posting the interview sometime this weekend. Keep checking the site.
Last night Oxnard fighter Rolando "El Pochito" Reyes was on TheBoxingBar.com to talk about his career. Reyes debuted as a pro during the biggest surge of Oxnard fighters, along with Robert Garcia and Fernando Vargas, coming out of La Colonia Boxing Club in the late 90's and early 2000's. His last match was a TKO victory over Julio "The Kidd" Diaz in 2009.
Tuesday night Herman “Kid” Montes, of East Los Angeles, was on TheBoxingBar.com to talk about his boxing career. Although Montes never became a world champion, he was well known and respected during his time fighting the majority of his fights at the historic Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. We talked about several of his fights including his victory over the popular “Pipino” Cuevas of Mexico. In 2014, Montes was pictured on the cover of Gene Aguilera’s hit book “Mexican-American Boxing in Los Angeles.” Check it out!
This week El Salvador’s first world champion, Carlos “Famoso” Hernandez, was on TheBoxingBar.com to talk about his colorful career in boxing. In his life he has become a world champion, has got an official knockdown over Floyd Mayweather Jr., and has an arena named after him in El Salvador. Not bad for a tough kid from Los Angeles. The humble ex-world champion came on to talk about his experiences in and out of the ring. Thank you Carlos! - Albert
About a week ago, Richie Sandoval was on TheBoxingBar.com to interview. In 1980 Sandoval was getting ready to be a USA Olympian for the games later that year. Being one of the best of that team, he was offered to choose between going to Germany or Poland to compete in a pre-Olympics tournament. He thought going to Germany would better prepare him for the games. The rest of the team got ready to go to Poland. Fourteen top fighters along with eight staff members of USA Boxing boarded the Polish LOT Flight 7 airliner on March 14, 1980. The flight crashed a few miles from Warsaw killing all 87 passengers on board. A total of twenty-two were from USA Boxing. This story makes you think of another Mexican-American Richie, Ritchie Valens. Then shortly after, Sandoval finds out that there will be no 1980 Summer Olympic games in Moscow due to the boycott after the soviets invaded Afghanistan. He would go ahead and turn pro at the end of 1980, and would win the WBA World Bantamweight title against Jeff Chandler in April 1984. After a few title defenses, Sandoval could no longer make weight and pleaded with his people to move up in weight and had to fight four non-title bouts for this reason. On March 10, 1986 he took on the tough Gaby Canizales of Laredo, Texas. Just five weeks before, Sandoval had fought a pro fight in his hometown of Pomona weighing almost ten pounds heavier. Canizales would win by seventh round knockout in brutal fashion with Sandoval being unconscious for several minutes straight and being carried out by stretcher and rushed to the hospital. Most fighters that go out in a similar way, don’t live to talk about their experience. Sandoval was just hospitalized for four days for observation and walked out. While in the hospital he was visited by Bob Arum who offered him a job at Top Rank as long as he promised to not fight again. Today, Richie Sandoval is still working at Top Rank. In 1988 Richie brought Michael Carbajal to Bob Arum who reluctantly wanted to sign a guy that small, but signed him. In March of 1993, Carbajal fought “Chiquita” Gonzalez in the first million dollar fight ever in that weight class. In this interview Sandoval openly talks about all this in detail. Amazing life!
Jackie Kallen was a real pioneer being one of the first women in professional boxing. Although she was not a fighter, she played many roles and got a lot of respect in the boxing world. She was most remembered as the manager of James “Lights Out” Toney. Meg Ryan played a character based on her in the 2004 film “Against the Ropes.” She also played a role in the hit boxing reality show “The Contender.” It was a real pleasure and an honor to have her on TheBoxingBar.com. So please listen …
In 2013 Librado Andrade retired from the boxing ring. He didn’t have another choice but to go back to work at a popular burger place, as he had for many years before turning pro. It was while working there that he got a call from a representative of his former boxing manager, Al Haymon. He was offered a job to work at his newly formed Premier Boxing Champions. Today, Librado is doing great! He is a real success story in life, and Thursday night he came on TheBoxingBar.com to tell us his story from his early life in Mexico to working for Mr. Haymon. I’d like to thank Librado Andrade for always being a real gentleman and for coming on to chat.
Interview Date : 5/28/2020
I had former Middleweight champion of the world Kelly "The Ghost" Pavlik on TheBoxingBar.com. We discussed his career, what he has been up to, and a recent rumor that was going around about an exhibition match up against Mike Tyson. It was great to finally get a chance to bring Kelly on to interview.
Interview Date : 5/21/2020
This past Monday night one of the best trainers in the world, Robert Garcia, came on TheBoxingBar.com. In our first interview in 2013, he had just been named “Trainer of the Year” and we covered his start as a trainer. On this day we discussed his upbringing in Oxnard, his career as a boxer, and how he has grown as a trainer. His loyalty has always gone to his “Four F’s” – his family, his fighters, his friends, and his fans. Listen to Robert in this interview to understand why he continues to be one of the most successful trainers and most loved boxing figures of his era. Cheers to Mr. Robert Garcia!
Interview Date : 5/18/2020
Mancini wrestled from 1984 – 1992 for the then-WWF as a “jobber”. A jobber is a term used for the wrestlers who were used to lose against the up-and-coming stars and/or the superstars of the moment. Today Mr. Mancini is part owner of “Paradise Alley Pro Wrestling”. For those of you that know me know that as a kid, I was a die-hard wrestling fan. And I remember watching Mario Mancini all the time on TV. I thank him very much for coming on, and making me remember a lot about those days. - TheBoxingBar.com
43 years ago today Mexican great Carlos Zarate knocked out then-undefeated Mexican Olympian Alfonso Zamora in the fourth round in a popular match known as “The Battle of the Z’s”. There was a lot of real drama about the fight at the time. It was a real honor and privilege to have the International Boxing Hall of Famer, Zarate, come on TheBoxingBar.com today to talk about this fight and his career. I will be posting the interview on the site sometime by Saturday night, so keep looking out for it. Cheers to Mr. Carlos "Cañas" Zarate!
One of Nicaragua’s most popular boxers, Rosendo “El Bufalo” Alvarez, was on TheBoxingBar.com a few nights ago. We talked about a lot of different topics in his life, and we covered the biggest fights in his career. Alvarez is remember for his two fights against the undefeated Mexican great Ricardo “Finito” Lopez giving him his only draw. The rematch was considered one of the best fights ever in the lower weight classes. Today Alvarez and his wife, Ruth, have Bufalo Boxing Promotions based out of Nicaragua. They put on many shows yearly, and together they donate food and other items to the people in their community. It was a real pleasure to have Rosendo on the podcast to tell his story. This show is in Spanish and you can listen to it by going to TheBoxingBar.com !
Interview : 4/15/2020
Mario “Azabache” Martinez was a very tough fighter from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. He fought in many tough fights in his career against guys like Roger Mayweather, Jeff Fenech, Azumah Nelson, Adrian Arreola, and Rolando Navarrete. Nelson called him the toughest fighter he had ever fought. But he is most remembered for his battle against Julio Cesar Chavez for the vacant WBC super featherweight title on September 13, 1984 at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. Chavez would win his first title on that night. He was on TheBoxingBar.com earlier this week and wanted to share his story about his career and his toughest fights. He is a good man! Cheers to “Azabache” Martinez!
A few days ago, I had the honor to speak to former world Bantamweight and Super Bantamweight champion Daniel Zaragoza on TheBoxingBar.com. Zaragoza fought at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, Russia representing his country of Mexico. He was the first world champion of Hall of Fame trainer Nacho Beristain who named his popular gym “Romanza” combining the last names of his first two champions, Gilberto Roman was the second. We talked about all his tough fights against guys like Jeff Fenech, Paul Banke, Carlos Zarate, Tracy Harris Patterson, Harold Petty, Wayne McCullough, and Erik Morales. In 2004 he was inducted into The International Boxing Hall of Fame with his family at his side. I would like to thank the Mexican great for coming onto our podcast. Cheers to Daniel Zaragoza! This interview is in Spanish/Espanol. - AC
Former two-time Jr. Flyweight world champion Melchor “Baby” Cob Castro of Campeche, Mexico was on TheBoxingBar.com just a few nights ago. On that day Castro was celebrating the 29th anniversary of his first world title victory over Rolando Pascua on March 25, 1991 at The Great Western Forum in Inglewood, CA. The tough Filipino fighter, Pascua, was the first to defeat the popular Humberto “Chiquita” Gonzalez via sixth round KO in December 1990 before losing it in his first title defense to Castro. Castro then lost the title in his first title defense to Gonzalez just a few months later on June 3, 1991. Castro was Hall of Fame trainer Nacho Beristain’s third world titlist. In his career he also battled Michael Carbajal and Jorge Arce. This interview was in Spanish.
Stockton's Gabriel Flores Jr. is one of the hottest prospects in boxing today. Flores signed with Top Rank in 2016 at the age of 16 years old and was the youngest ever to sign with the company at that time. In this interview we talk about his start in the sport to the present.
Interview date : 12/17/2019
Boxing media figure James "Smitty" Smith came on to give us his thoughts of what was going on at the time. The former pro fighter has done a bit of everything possible in the sports media world.
Interview Date : 5/29/2012
Listen to Hector Camacho Jr. talk about his life, career, and his Hall of Fame father. Camacho Jr. is a great talker and story teller.
Interview date : 10/3/2011
Oxnard's Crystal "La Morenasa" Morales comes on before her 2012 return after several years of inactivity.
Interview Date : 4/29/2012
Last night (Oct. 1, 2019) Javier passed away. The young fighter from Oxnard touched many lives in and out of the ring. He became the first ever BKB Welterweight champion winning the tournament for the new brand. About seven years ago I got the pleasure to chat with this polite young man. Rest In Peace my friend.
Interview Date : 4/6/2012
Sacramento's Tony Lopez was one tough fighter! He fought guys like Julio Cesar Chavez and in 1988 got The Ring Magazine Fight of the Year for his fight against Rocky Lockridge.
Interview Date : 1/9/2015
In this interview Ricky and I discuss when he worked as the trainer for Oxnard's Hugo "The Boss" Centeno for the first and only time. He brings up many great points of his experience as a trainer and was mentored by Joe Goossen. Check it out!
Interview Date : 12/20/2013
Former world Lightweight champion Julio "The Kidd" Diaz of Coachella, CA comes on to tell us about his life and career in boxing.
Interview Date : 11/16/2011
San Jose's Andy "El Tiburon" Vences talks about his start in boxing. This Northern Californian is a very exciting fighter to watch with a promising future in the sport. List to what he has to say.
Interview Date : 2/22/2016
Referee Jack Reiss talks about his start as a referee and how passionate he is about the sport of boxing. Great chat.
Interview date : 10/13/2014
International Boxing Hall of Famer Orlando Canizales talks about his career and big fights. It was an honor to have him on. Check it out!
Here is our interview with former Light-Heavyweight champion "The Golden Boy" Donny Lalonde of Canada. We talk about his life, career, and big fight against "Sugar" Ray Leonard in 1988. Lalonde is a very smart and classy man. Check it out!
Interview Date : 5/2/2012
2000 USA Olympian, Rocky Juarez, discusses his amateur and pro career in detail. Juarez was a tough all-action fighter with a lot of heart. Great story.
Interview date : 3/4/2014
Montell Griffin was a 1992 USA boxing Olympian who is best known as the first man to defeat Roy Jones Jr via disqualification in March 1997. He fought all of the best fighters in his era in his weight class.
Interview Date : 10/11/2011
Juan LaPorte was one of the most popular Puerto Rican fighters around. He ducked no one and fought all of the best fighters of his era. In this interview we discuss some of his big fights against Salvador Sanchez, Julio Cesar Chavez, Wilfredo Gomez, Barry McGuigan, Azumah Nelson, Eusebio Pedroza, and more. Laporte is a great guy. Check out this interview!
Interview Date : 9/8/2013
Rudy "El Chicano" Hernandez is a former professional boxer and now a top cornerman in both boxing and MMA. In this chat we talk about his upbringing, his career, and his former world champion brother Genaro "Chicanito" Hernandez.
Tito Santana was one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWF (now WWE) in the 80's and 90's. The former WWF Intercontinental and Tag-Team champion talks about his start in wrestling and some of his bouts. It was an honor to have on one of my favorite wrestlers as a kid to be on TheBoxingBar.com.
Interview Date : 3/16/2015
1992 USA Olympian and former World Heavyweight champion Chris Byrd talks about his life and his amateur & pro career in this interview. His whole life from his first memories have to do with boxing. This '92 silver medalist in the middleweight division would go on to defeat Vitali Klitschko in April 2000 for the WBO Heavyweight title, and losing it six months later to brother Wladimir Klitschko. This was a great interview with a "real" boxer that fought everyone.
Interview Date : 5/14/2013
1992 USA Olympian Pepe Reilly talks about his terrific amateur career, pro career, and life after boxing. Reilly is now the trainer of boxer Rey Beltran.
Interview Date : 11/25/2013
Graciela Casillas, of Ventura County, was a real pioneer for women's boxing. She made her pro debut at the first all-women's boxing card on July 13, 1979 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. She was the only fighter (male or female) to hold both a boxing and kickboxing world title at the same time. She discusses all the difficulties she went through during those days to even be allowed to perform in competition. At the end she has a great message to all about self-defense. If you are a female fighter in boxing or MMA listen to Graciela's story!
Here's our interview with Christopher Klein who is the author of the 2016 book "Strong Boy: The Life and Times of John L. Sullivan, America's First Sport's Hero." Sullivan was the last real bare-knuckle / first gloved Heavyweight Champion of the world. Klein has contributed to History.com, Smithsonian.com, The New York Times, ESPN, ect.. Check it out!
Interview Date : 8/6/2018
Ring announcer Lupe Contreras is amongst one of the best in the business. His delivery, work ethic, and professionalism is undeniable. In this interview we talk about his professional and personal life, and his start as a ring announcer at boxing shows. On this day I had strep throat which almost had me cancel, but I didn’t not want to lose this opportunity for this interview. I’m glad I did it!
Interview Date : 6/12/2013
Bobby Czyz and I discuss the post-prison career of “Iron” Mike Tyson. The former world champion and I go through each fight from Tyson's first fight after prison against Peter McNeeley to the mega-fight against Lennox Lewis. Great interview with Bobby about Tyson’s fights!
Interview Date : 7/14/2012
International Boxing Hall of Famer Richard Steele talks about his childhood, his boxing career, and start as a referee. In the 80's Richard Steele was the third man in the ring for many of the most memorable fights of the era and talks about many of them. This was a great interview with a great man.