The Opening Bell; A boxing podcast

THE POND, THE ATLANTIC AND TYSON FURY | WARRINGTON-WOOD II I SMOKIN’ BERT COOPER

Tyson Fury is back with promises of domination and soundbites aplenty. But will Arslanbek Makhmudov really find competing with him as difficult as swimming the Atlantic in bad weather? And is Fury really planning to do his fighting without a trainer? And when will John Fury just grow up?

Elsewhere at heavyweight, Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois have agreed to collide in a sumptuous matchup with huge consequences.

This weekend, there’s Leigh Wood-Josh Warrington to look forward to in the UK and Mario Barrios-Ryan Garcia in the US.

Best of all, however, is the chance to go back to 1987 and witness a young ‘Smokin’ Bert Cooper in blistering form. Willie de Witt never stood a chance….

Thanks for the sport, comrades. Keep listening and spread the word.
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Tyson Fury is back with promises of domination and soundbites aplenty. But will Arslanbek Makhmudov really find competing with him as difficult as swimming the Atlantic in bad weather? And is Fury really planning to do his fighting without a trainer? And when will John Fury just grow up?

Elsewhere at heavyweight, Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois have agreed to collide in a sumptuous matchup with huge consequences.

This weekend, there’s Leigh Wood-Josh Warrington to look forward to in the UK and Mario Barrios-Ryan Garcia in the US.

Best of all, however, is the chance to go back to 1987 and witness a young ‘Smokin’ Bert Cooper in blistering form. Willie de Witt never stood a chance….

Thanks for the sport, comrades. Keep listening and spread the word.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nick Ball is the latest fighter to understand what makes Brandon Figueroa so effective following last gasp drama in Liverpool.

Elsewhere, the WBC is again under fire over sanctioning fees. Is the industry about to turn its back on the alphabet groups?

Floyd Mayweather, meanwhile, is chasing money again as he files a lawsuit designed to earn him north of $300m.

We also catch up on the hairline of Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller before zipping back to 2003 to relive Rafael Marquez’s dramatic victory over Tim Austin.
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BALANCE OF POWER | SUPREME SHAKUR | JOSH KELLY | TYSON FURY | BALL vs FIGUEROA

As 2026 gathers pace in the boxing world, figures like Dana White, Eddie Hearn, Turki Alalshikh and Oscar De La Hoya are jostling for power. Will those sizeable egos be able to work together or are we facing a new battle: Zuffa vs DAZN?

Shakur Stevenson turned on the style to dominate Teofimo Lopez and signal his arrival amongst the pound-for-pound elite.

In the UK, Josh Kelly surprised plenty when he boxed the perfect fight to win a world title in Newcastle and, bracing for his return, Tyson Fury prepares to become the new face of Netflix.

Our trip back in time lands in 1974, in a talent-rich Paris no less, for a battle between Carlos Monzon and Jose Napoles.

Read the Thomas Hauser piece on Zuffa Boxing here: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jan/28/zuffa-boxing-contract-dana-white-reform?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
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TEOFIMO LOPEZ vs SHAKUR STEVENSON | DEONTAY WILDER vs DEREK CHISORA | BAKHRAM MURTAZALIEV vs JOSH KELLY

It’s a Teofimo Lopez fight week which can mean only one thing: We have no idea which Teofimo Lopez is going to turn up.

As well as studying the form for his showdown with Shakur Stevenson, we look ahead to Josh Kelly’s date with destiny and wonder if now is the time for those bags of potential to be fulfilled.

We also put ourselves in the brace position for the heavyweight showdown between Deontay Wilder and Derek Chisora and head back to 1994 for the first loss of Julio Cesar Chavez’s career.
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