The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Boxing with Chris Mannix - The future for Gervonta Davis

Episode Date: January 29, 2022

Al Bernstein, the hall of Famer, and Showtime boxing broadcaster stops by to run through all the news of the week, from Demetrius Andrade's decision to move up in weight, the rumors swirling about Anthony Joshua taking step aside money, Gary Russell Jr's future, plus, are we going to see Gervonta Davis in the ring with a top fighter at lightweight in 2022. Later, Trevor Bryan, the WBAs regular heavyweight champion joins Chris to discuss how we can inject himself into the mix with the other top heavyweights. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The volume. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On The Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam Jay.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Cliver Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it.

Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. CareerBuilder is made for people who have that thing. You know, those superpowers that make you good at your job, the skills you bring to work. And CareerBuilder knows those skills make you right for other jobs too. Higher paying jobs with benefits. Jobs you never thought of trying. Are you a people person? Work from home as a customer service rep.

Are you organized and like driving? Become a delivery driver. You have the skills it takes, and CareerBuilder.com has the jobs to get you hired fast. Visit Carebuilder.com. Millions of Americans are getting back to work. CareerBuilder calls it the great rehire. And we want to help you get the best jobs before everyone else. CareerBuilder gives you the competitive edge to get the job you want,

at the salary you want, with the benefits you want. We even send job alerts, so your perfect job lands right in your inbox. Go to careerbuilder.com today or get left with whatever jobs are left. Find your next job fast at careerbuilder.com. The more we learn about COVID-19, the more questions we have. The biggest question now? What's next? What will COVID bring in six months?

A year. If you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. Cal Hope offers free COVID-19 emotional support. Call 833-3-3-1-7-4-6-73 or live chat at calhope.org today. Boxing with Chris Mannix is presented by Fandul's Sportsbook. There's no better place to bet the action than on Fandul's sportsbook during the football season. I bet on Fandul as often and as comfortably as I possibly can. It is America's number one sportsbook.

It's easy to use. safe and secure. There are fast payouts in as quick as two hours. So many bet types. Same game parlay bets, live betting, player props, futures, and so much more. If you are new, just download the Fandual Sportsbook app to get started right now.

Sign up with the promo code Boxing, so they know I sent you. This is Boxing with Chris Manning. Or somebody punch him in the face. Anthony Joshua is a composed and ferocious finisher. Watch this. Andrew Ruiz is the heavyweight champion. Hosted by S.I.'s Chris Mannix. That was my moment.

Now with interviews, analysis, and everything going on in the world of boxing. When you have talent, you are given another chance. Here's Chris Mannix. All right, welcome back to another episode of Boxing with Chris Manix, part of the Volume Sports Podcast Network. We've got a great show for you this week. Al Bernstein, the Hall of Famer, Showtime Boxing. He joins me to run through all the news of the week from Dmitri's.

Andres' decision to move up and wait, rumors swirling about Anthony Joshua taking step aside money, Gary Russell Jr.'s future. Plus, are we going to see Gervante Davis in the ring with a top fighter at lightweight in 2022? Stick around for that. Great conversation with Al Bernstein. A little bit later on, Trevor Bryant,

the WBA's regular heavyweight champion. He is an action this weekend on a pay-per-view undercard. Trevor Brian is undefeated, but he is largely untested and relatively unknown. I talked to him about that and how he can inject himself into the mix with the other top heavyweights. As always, best way to support this podcast, get a word of Apple podcast, post a comment, leave a rating, it's simple, it's easy, it's free,

it's the best way to make sure that we keep doing this podcast week after week. That's it. All right, on to the show. All right, joining me this week is the great Al Bernstein, Long time boxing journalist, Showtime boxing analyst. You can catch him on the Showtime Telecast, Showtime Paper Views everywhere. There is Showtime boxing. Al, how are you, man?

Thanks for joining me. Good, good. So I got a bunch of stuff I want to get into with you. It's an interesting time in boxing as we head towards, as we had towards kind of fight season. You know, you guys at Showtime had a fight last weekend with Gary Russell Jr. Against Mark McSye. I want to get into that.

Of course, February, March, usually pretty busy months in boxing. But something I report. on this week. I wanted to get your take on. Demetrius Andrade, the WBO middleweight champion, intends to vacate his title and move up to 168 pounds. Andrade, of course, has been a world champion at 160 since late 2018. He's well known to have had a lot of problems securing a big fight. So his plan, as far as I've been told, is to vacate, move up. They're trying to secure a fight with Zach Parker, which the winner would become the mandatory for one of Canello's belts at 168. So let's start there. Your take on Andrade moving up, and I guess his legacy over the last

three years at 160. Yeah, it's intriguing. You know, you've reported extensively on him and how difficult it's been in the middleweight division for him to get the fights he wants against some of the top fighters. The interesting thing about him moving up to 168, I don't think a lot of people thought of him ever as a 168-pound fighter. You know, he may well be able to compete well in that, at that division, but that's not where people kind of thought he was at. They thought middleweight would be the place for him. And the Parker fight would certainly be an interesting one, and especially if a win lines him up in theory for one of Canello's belts. And I'm guessing what they figure is if he beats Parker, he could be on the list for,

Canello after whatever Canello does in May, whatever that may be. And I, you know, it's a move born, I guess, out of what they thought with, what they think are the best business opportunities, which is what boxers, you know, end up doing. It'll be interesting to see how well Andrade does that 168 pounds. You know, he's not a powerful puncher. He's a really good fighter, obviously. very skilled. Yeah, the impetus, I guess, for doing this was that there was a purse bid schedule for Friday for Andre to defend his title against Genebec. Not going to say his last thing,

because I'll butcher it. So he didn't, and Andre did not really want to go through with that. He's been facing effectively mandatory after mandatory or a fighter like that for the last three years. It was Jason Quigley, that it was Liam Williams. He's been going that route and it didn't really interest him to do that, especially since. there were really no guarantees that he was going to get a Canello, a Golofkin, a Mungia, one of the guys, Jamal Charlo, of course, one of the guys who's been chasing for the better part of the last few years. You know, when I think it lasts three years with Andrade Al, and I've done every one of his

fights over at DeZone, it's just disappointing. Like, you know, oftentimes we see reasons why fights don't get made, whether it's because there are promotional issues or network issues or money issues. Like Andrade had a title. he had real money behind him. He had fighters on his, quote, side of the street, whether it was Golofkin, Mungia, somebody else, that were available on the other side of the street.

You had Jamal Charlo fighting the same level of unknown fighters as he would. And like I've been, I'm officially out. This will be the first time I say this. I'm getting off the Andrade Charlo train. I am getting off. I am now off the Android Charle. I have been broken, Al. I have a broken man.

For your own mental health, Chris. I'm happy to hear this. Only for that. Your cause may have been a good one, but for your mental health, I'm happy. You know, it is frustrating. Listen, it's probably the classic, one of the classic cases, as you point out. There were some fighters that could have been available to him, some that were stretches because of the boxing business model. But the idea that we didn't get to see him against any of those people in middleweight is distressing because he's very talented. And so it's one of those. You know, this is the frustration with boxing. Listen, boxing is making a lot of fun matches and a lot of good matches, some of which we'll talk about. But because certain matches can't be made, it's always frustrating for boxing fans. Yeah. Well, I sit before you a completely broken man on that count now.

I'm going to go curl up and cry and pour one out. We're going to have to get your therapy for this. I'm pretty sure. For Andrew versus. Until they're both at 168 when I will climb back on the train once. again. Then you can get back on that wagon. All right. That's good. So don't, don't, don't, you know, don't, don't count that out. I won't despair. I won't despair. All right, let's talk about the fight that you called this past weekend. Gary Russell Jr. against Mark Megsio.

McSio wins by close decision. I wasn't surprised, Al, that Megsaya won only because, like, Gary Russell was doing everything but say he was probably going to lose beforehand. Like when he was like, you know, it's been a tough training camp. My father, he lost his foot. He wasn't able to train me in the way he's trained me in the past. I was basically training myself. Then he reveals an injury. Doesn't say what the injury is, but said it was there.

Then he talked about the layoff, like two years off. I mean, everything leading up to that was screaming that this should be an upset. And I give Gary credit, he went in there knowing he was. He fought bravely. He fought with one hand. I thought he lost a little bit more lopsided. He certainly didn't give Meg Sayo a boxing clinic, which is what he told Jim Gray in the ring afterwards.

But I give him credit for fighting through the pain and lasting the full 12 rounds. But he doesn't pull it out. So give me your reaction to the way Russell fought. And I guess where he goes from here. There are many stories. I think there are many layers to this fight that are kind of interesting. You know, you touched on some of them and well, well put.

You know, it is true that his, that his, the things he said before the fight were kind of foreshadowing. In fact that, hey, this might not work out perfectly for me, and these are the reasons. The interesting thing is, I have a rule that I have never bet on a fight in my life. I don't bet on fights very much anyway that I have announced. It is a hard and fast rule. I think it's totally inappropriate for any sportscaster to ever bet. I agree.

If I was a betting man at the odds they had, I would have bet on McSyell because of these things you're talking about. You know, Russell did fight with guile and grit. There's no question about that. And probably made and gave himself at least a chance in his fight with those things. Mark McSyell fought the dumbest fight you could possibly fight. Now, that's on him, and God bless Freddie Roach. I love him like a brother. He's a Hall of Fame trainer. Sorry, it's on you too, Freddie, because they had a one-armed fighter in front of them. The way you fight a left-hander to begin with is move to your left,

throw double left-hooks and straight right hands, period. End of sentence, end of paragraph, right? He has all those weapons, McSail. He didn't do any of that. He moved. He moved as Abner-Maris pointed out, he moved to the right for the whole fight. He was, he had less volume than he should have. So he allowed Russell to have a chance in his fight. I think you're probably right that, I mean, I think Russell probably lost the fight. I didn't score every round. It seemed like McSai did enough to win more rounds than him. And again, Russell was limited to only his left hand. We are, we know fighters have gone into fights with injuries before. It's It's very seldom they tell you they're injured. Usually they deny that they're injured, right? They say, no, I'm not. I'm okay. So that was different. That's what gave this a different dynamic. And Gary Russell's future is, listen, he gets healthy again. We know he's one of the best feather weights in the world. He would say the best. And maybe he is, maybe he isn't. But clearly, if he can get healthy again, we should see him back in the ring. The problem, of course, is well documented.

meant it, even though he's, the irony is, and the weird part of this is, he said before the fight, I want to fight three times this year. Well, it is odd that he said that in retrospect, given the fact that he had a shoulder injury. But I give Gary Russell all credit for, as you did, for getting through this fight and giving himself at least a chance to win. It's a testament to his boxing skills. Yeah. You know, for Russell, I'm curious how long this injury should. shelves him. He talked about it being an old injury, which does suggest there could be surgery in the offing. And if it's an old injury, it takes a while. Like, shoulder injuries are legit. It could take him many months. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised. I wouldn't be surprised,

out if this is the last we see of Gary Russell this year, you know, given how much time to recover and how he doesn't, he doesn't necessarily run into fights that often. He's not like out there seeking them out. So I think he's going to have to come out of his comfort zone, little bit to get back into the mix among the top buyers. He's 33. I still think he has the talent to be a top guy, but you're going to have to recline the ranks a little bit. You don't have that title anymore. And Mark McSiah doesn't owe you anything. You know, I know Sean Gibbons is like, yeah, we'll give him a rematch, but he doesn't owe you anything. And frankly, like Meg Sayo, if he winds up facing Ray Vargas in his next fight, which is the WBC is suggesting, he might lose that

fight. Like, I mean, right, Mark McSio, listen, Mark McSow is a talented young fighter. But the Vargas fight is a very dangerous fight. Ray Vargas could beat anybody in his weight class, including Russell, including anybody, because he's so tall and so long and fights so smartly and fights his style so perfectly. So yes, it's going to be a tough fight for McSai. Now, McSai was a lot more powerful than Vargas, and he will feel, and Freddie Roach and him, and I know I said a negative about Freddie, but he's a great trainer, of course. They're going to try and they're going to work very hard

on figuring out a game plan that will allow McSio to use his power against Fargus. But you're right. That's a dangerous fight as well. Very good fight. Very good fight. So we'll see what happens with that. When and if Gary Russell ultimately returns. All right, I want to get your take on what's going on in the heavyweight division.

Right now, Tyson Fury maybe sort of might fight Dillion White. They can figure that out and never get to. to a purse bid. We've got Anthony Joshua, maybe sort of might fight Alexander Usick in a rematch if they can figure out some of the details there. Looming over all of this are the reports that there have been offers extended to both Dillion White and Anthony Joshua to step aside so Fury and Usik can fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship. Now, let me couch this question, Al, by saying, I've talked to enough people in Fury's orbit. Nobody's really sure where all that money's coming from. Like this, like it was 20 million.

dollars out there for Anthony Joshua, well, who is putting that up? Because Fury Usik, if it's in the UK, it's not some, it's a big moneymaker, but I don't know if it's big enough to be able to shave 20 million off the top and hand it to Anthony Joshua and hand whatever a million off to Dillian White. But putting that aside for a second and focusing on Anthony Joshua, given what happened in the Usoc fight, and let's just say there's $15 to $20 million on the table for him to step aside. In your mind, would it be wise for him to take that?

or should he go straight into a fight with Usik? Well, that is the 64,000 question. He takes a PR hit in a way, in quotes, right, for doing it. But that's a lot of money to simply wait to fight somebody else, obviously. Listen, I think from a fan standpoint, either way it works out is okay for the, I think it's not terrible for the fans. I think Fury White's an interesting fight. And the rematch of Joshua Usik is certainly,

into Ussick is certainly interesting because we want to see can Joshua do better in this? Can Usoc even do better? He claims he can even be better as every way. But of course, probably the majority of the fans at this juncture, if you took a poll of all boxing fans, probably seven out of ten would say they'd rather see the Fury Usook fight, right? I mean, they would probably say, well, that piques my interest right now at this moment more because of what we've seen. you make the very interesting point, and it is worth at least again mentioning that business-wise,

it's hard to understand where the $20 million comes from. There's no Middle Eastern Sultan out there poning up the cash. Like there's no, as far as I know, there's no possibility of a Saudi return for the heavyweight. That would be the only thing, right? That would make you think that kind of money is floating around there. So we don't know what to make of that. The only thing I can say is I hope they get sorted out as soon as possible for everyone, for the fighters, for the fans, so that we can move forward with this.

Here's the one, you know, I'm always, sometimes I've criticized for being too rosy, but at the very least, although sometimes I'm criticizing it for the opposite, so I guess I don't know. But go figure, Chris. Always happens. Shocking. Shocking, that's the case. Exactly. But I, you know, at least we're talking about the heavyweight division and interested in their matches.

Four years ago, not so much, right? We weren't maybe five years ago. So that's good. That's a good thing that we have these heavyweights that we're interested in. And that both of these fights, if whichever, if both of those fights come about or they smush the Usik Fury one together, either way, fans will have something interesting and fun to root for. So among the reasons I think Joshua should strongly consider the step aside money if it's there, is that unlike in 2019, there's a measure of control that he'd have over getting a shot at the winner of Fury Usook. Like when it was suggested that Joshua should step aside for Ruiz Wilder in 2019,

that was a dangerous game because then you're talking about maybe getting back on the hamster wheel with Deonti Wilder and who knows how long it would take for a fight that never came to fruition actually happen if he stepped aside for that. Like, we kind of know that the winner of Fury Usik is going to run towards an Anthony Joshua fight. There's too much money and Fury wants a legacy fight. Usik will fight anybody. He's shown that over the last couple of years.

So I like that. And look, if you're AJ, let's say 15 million to step away, you can take a comeback type of fight against maybe somebody that fights like Usik, somebody smaller, a blown up cruiser weight, who isn't as dangerous, maybe you can learn a couple of things. If you're bringing in somebody new to your team, that gives you a chance to work out some of the kinks with that trainer. So I don't know, to me, if that money's there, I take it.

Pretty much cut and dry. If the money, if it's $15, $20 million, I take it, and I gear myself up for, let's say, a December, January, whatever it may be showdown with either Joshua or with the Fury or Usik. Well, those are the compelling, those are compelling arguments for him doing it. And, and I think there's logic there if he feels that he can make all that happen. If the money's there and he can, and you also make an interesting point about the fact that he's changing trainers, he's going to a different team.

A fight to get him ready for a tougher fight wouldn't be the worst thing on the planet. clearly. And of course, he doesn't know if he'd be facing Fury or Usik, so he's not sure what style to fight because he presumably is going to fight the winner of that. But either way, a fight for him that could get him ready again to battle a top fighter with a new trainer isn't a terrible idea. It will be interesting. Of course, he will face a huge backlash if he does take step aside money, just because that's what happens now in our society. To those people out,

like to those people be like, you wouldn't take $15 million to just do nothing? Like, give me a break. I believe they would, yes. I would. I think if somebody said to us, if we step aside from three broadcasts for $20 million and then we come back,

would we do it? Yes, I believe we probably would. I'm pretty sure. Well, in your case, that would be less than you're getting for the three fights. so it would matter. But in my case, you know,

it would, you know, I would be, I would be on a beach in some Caribbean island for that period of time. There's, there's no doubt about that.

All right, let's talk about a fight that was announced this week that I'm pretty excited about. Juan Francisco Estrada, he had to drop out of his fight

against Chocolatito Gonzalez. Estrada contracted COVID. A third fight between Estrada and Chocolatito was highly anticipated, but the same, is pretty good. Julio Caesar Martinez, 112 pound champion is going to move up and face Chocolatito on the same date March 5th. I think Estrada Chocolatito 3 is a tremendous

fight out. This fight might actually in the ring be better. Like it could be all out war. It probably will be all out war between a Mexican brawler in Martinez and Chocolatito who has never been in a bad fight in his life. So when I saw the announcement, I'm like, you know, I kind of like the new fight, a little bit better than the old. What did you think? I think this says all you need to tell about A, Chocolotito and D, the fighters in that general weight class, okay? God bless every one of them for fighting the toughest competition. Now, of course, somebody would argue the cynic would say they have to because that's the only way they can get big money. Well, yeah, but, you know, forget about that for a second. For Chocolatito, take this check. And

as the replacement, which keeps it, as you point out, a destination fight to watch. You know, it's very, very exciting. You know, as you point out, an all-out aggressive brawler against an older fighter who still showed in his last couple of fights that he has so much left in the tank. He is, and he's a volume puncher. Martinez is not so much a volume puncher, but a power puncher. So you have that kind of dichotomy going on. I was super looking forward to the first fight.

And as you point out, I'm looking forward to this one almost as much as the first one. You know, I'm curious to get your take on this. Like, smaller fighters, they very rarely are elite in the way Chocolatito's been elite. Right. As he gets a little bit older. So there are examples, of course, of guys that have aged really well. I mean, hell, Nolito Donair is the greatest. I mean, he's dropped down to Bantam Wade and is kicking everybody's ass at this point.

But, like, one reason I'd be optimistic if I was Martinez that I can win is that I kind of got the sense. And Sergio Morris said this at the time, and I think he's right. Like, against Estrada, could that have been Chocolatito's last stand? Like, could that have been when he kind of emptied the tank against a younger, bigger, stronger fighter? I thought he won that fight. I thought the scoring by Carlos Sucre was reprehensible in giving it that way to Estrada. But was that the fight that Chocolatito gave everything he had left? A rematch with Estrada, a big fight, a chance to put himself on top, arguably once again at 115.

Now you've got a younger guy in Martinez who won't come in with a size advantage, but he's going to have youth aggression, all these attributes on his side. So if I'm Martinez, I'm thinking, look, this guy's an all-time great, but I don't know if he's still that guy after the fight with Estrada. That may have been his last stand. So I think that's a reason for Martinez and people that support him, like Eddie Renoso and others, to be optimistic their guy can win. Well, I think he would be.

And let's remember that several fights ago when Chocolatito was knocked out after he had lost to that same opponent previously. So Rung beside a couple times. The thought was that was the point at which Chocolatito had probably jumped the sharp. clearly he showed us that was not the case but there's every reason for them to be hopeful of that and here's the other thing so they're stepping to a different weight division even if he should have a great fight with chocolate tito and lose how does that hurt him doesn't hurt him at all really i mean it's like oh my god then you've now joined the pantheon of all these wonderful lower

weight fires who are in these great fights You're young enough that we can't wait to see what you do next. And I can't imagine that it would hurt him. And I think they feel confident that no matter what happens, this is going to be a super competitive and great fight. I don't think they anticipate getting blown out or could happen, of course, but they anticipate a great fight like we all do. So this is logic because even Chocolotito says,

okay, I'm going to keep this a big event. I'm going to challenge you myself, and I'm the bigger guy. I believe I can win this fight. And Martinez says, I'm willing to roll the dice on this because there are a lot of reasons why it makes sense to roll the dice. Good for them.

Yeah, Martinez wouldn't lose a bit of shine on it. He goes back down to 112, fights a Sonny Edwards or somebody else to divide those belts. Maybe does a rematch with McWilliams-Oroyo, depending on what he's ordered to do. and, you know, like, it's an opportunity. You know, we talked about how it's nice that we're talking about the heavyweights. In recent years, it's wonderful that we're talking about these lighter weight divisions.

Back in the Stone Age, when I was announcing in the old days, you know, the Paleozoic era, we didn't, there was so little attention put on the lower weight classes. We'd have stars like Michael Carbohol and people of that nature, but, you know, Donair and stuff, but anything south of 126, you know, it just didn't get enough attention, especially when he got down to 118 and 150, 112, those fighters were not given their due. I think we're seeing a little bit more of that now, and it's great. And listen, the network you work for has shown those fighters, has, as, as, you know, told the world here, here are these great guys.

HBO did it before and the zone picked up the mantle of those weight classes. You know, we've done it at Showtime. Others have done it. I think it's really, really good. Yeah, I mean, they can't miss as far as action. Like, you never watch. No, they're almost always great fights. Like 1-18 and below, you don't watch one and be like, oh, that was kind of boring.

You're always- Yeah, no, never. They're always crackers. Speak of lower weight classes. Giovante Davis, two-division title holder, holding one belt right now, a secondary title at 135. He has been ordered to face Rolanda Romero. That was a fight that was really scheduled for late last year. Romero, of course, had to withdraw after some allegations of sexual assault. He has been cleared by the police in Nevada. So it seems like we're trending in that direction to see Davis against Romero in a rescheduled match. What do you think of that fight? And as someone that's called

a lot of Jervante Davis fights recently, do you think 2022 is that? Is that a lot of Javentis fights recently? Do you think 2020, is the year we get Gervante Davis in one of those big fights against a Ryan Garcia against I really. I really hope so. I really, really do. You know, I listen, they claim that, you know, they've said recently they were trying to negotiate for Lomachenko. You know, you're, you're more of a reporter than I am. That's not what I hear, Al. I do not hear that. I do not hear that. Right. So whether we accept that with a grain of salt or not. The key thing here is, it is, you know,

boxing always has these litmus tests for the casual media and casual fans that makes them decide boxing is not worthy of their, of their attention because they won't do A, B, or C. This is one of those things.

The idea that it's so hard it seems to get some of these top, lightways together. Now, George Cambosa, Cambossus seems pretty willing to fight one of these top lightways. Good for him. And we did see, you know,

Lomachenko and Lopez. We need to see Tank Davis in those fights. I think it's important for the sport. I think it's important for his legacy. And will only enhance him as a

business, you know, as a brand. And I hope we see it. I'm very, very, and I'm hopeful. I'm hopeful about the Davis-Garcia fight for just a variety of reasons. I think of the ones that he, that are available to him. It feels like that's the one that's more feasible to me. And I hope if this Romero fight happens, then I hope the very next one would be something like that. Well, that would be.

And listen, Isok Cruz, who fought a great fight against Davis, you know, went to distance with him in a very close fight, kind of also added, in my opinion, to some of the drama of all this because, you know, number one, he challenged Davis. Number two, we saw Davis respond to adversity because he, too, was injured in that fight. So to me that all kind of adds subplots to all these things moving forward. Yeah. And I think it's going to be incumbent on Jervante Davis to be the one pushing hardest to make that fight. I agree. Like fighters, and I talk about this all the time, but fighters need to exercise the power that they have. I agree.

And they have a lot of power. Like, you know, I mean, Floyd Mabel didn't have a boss. Like he decided who we wanted to fight, when he wanted to fight. And that was how it went. And look, if you're 21, 22, 23, sure, you, you follow the guidance of your promoter. But Jervante Davis is 27. He'll be 28 years old this year. It's time to see him in a big fight.

Like, I get smacked, you know, for people saying I'm a Jervante hater. Leonard Lerbby likes to say that about me. I'm not. I think he can, I'm not picking anybody to beat him. I just want to see him in these fights. I don't know who wins with Jervante and Ryan Garcia. Somebody's going to get knocked out. I think that's for sure in a fight like that.

And Jervantes got the pop to stop a Devin Haney, to give a problem to Loma Chanko. You just, you can't, you can't go another year. If it's like Romero and, you know, whatever version of Issaq Cruz is available at the end of the year, that just always every time. Everybody wants to see him in a fight against one of the top rivals in that weight division. I, you know, I think it's just a fact, you know, we all want to see that. And I'm very hopeful that it can happen this year. Yeah, so am I. All right, last thing I want to ask you about this weekend, there is a cruiserweight title fight

between Tabiso Machunu and Junior Maccabu. Now, ordinarily, Al, I wouldn't give a damn about a cruiserweight title flight. I'm not a cruiserweight fan, and none of either one of those guys. You know, see, I actually think the Cruiserweight Division has produced really, really great fights over the years. It's not bad. You're right. Especially in the world boxing super super. But you are right.

They lack the marquee value oftentimes. Right. I loved the World Boxing Super Series. Yeah, that was fun. It established, it built Alexander Usick. It made him into a household name in boxing to a lesser degree. Mari's Bredis is well known. Lawrence O'Cole is an interesting guy now fighting over in the UK at Cruiseway.

But these two guys, I mean, I would, I will buy the paper view. I would have bought the pay-per-view because I'm a boxing guy, but whatever. But the intriguing part of this is that as we record this, all quiet on the Canelo front, Like a month ago, some people were saying, maybe it's Dimitri Beaville. Then Joe Smith fights. And Jamal Charlo is still lurking out there as a potential opponent for Canelo. Now we have Macabu Machu, Muchunu, and the knowledge that Canello is open and his trainer wants him to fight at Cruzeaway. So as you, like I will, prepare to sit down and watch the Don King-produced pay-per-view, which should be interesting.

Did you think you're ever going to say that? Nope. Those words again. Not in 10 plus years. I didn't think I was going to say that. Warren, Ohio. I almost went out there for this. Like, I'm just that fascinated by the Canelo aspect of it.

But do you look at this maybe as an audition for either one of these guys, but the most notably Macabu, to face Canelo Alvarez? This is just a feeling I have. And it's not born out of a lot of super intelligence. I think Canello's off the Cruiserweight idea. I really do. I really believe that, you know, it's like people send up trial balloons. I think that was a trial balloon by Renoso and by him and whatever.

And I think he's off it. I believe that we're going to see him against somebody, in quotes, more appropriate. And I only say appropriate because, let's be honest, you know, nine out of ten boxing fans would rather see him face somebody as a light heavyweight, as 168-pounder. of course, whoever, whether it's Charlo Benavides, better be out of, you know, or any, or Bevold,

who cares? Most boxing fans would like to see that. So I believe they are off the idea that they're going to do. So I think that this fight does not end up being an audition for

them to fight Canella. That's my opinion. And that's just the feeling I get. Which I think is really the right thing. And I'm not, you know, Conno can do whatever he wants, obviously. He's one of those, you know, every once in a while we have a fighter in that category

that can do that. But I just don't know if there's any appetite for that from fans. And I just don't see it. Yeah, the Canello app. I mean, Conello, he's the one selling every pay-per-view unit. Like against Caleb Plant, it was Canelo. Against Billy Joe Saunders, it was Canello. The 73,000 fans that were in AT&T Stadium, I can tell you from being there, they were all for Canello.

So he's whoever he steps in with, he's the draw and all that. But I tend to agree with you, especially when Canello said afterwards, after Eddie Renoso went to the WBC convention and made the pitch, he's like, I don't know who was going to do it. Like, but whatever, I mean, if Eddie wants you to do it. Staggering, that was shocking to me, right? It's crazy. So it feels like Jamal Charles. is the leader in the clubhouse right now. I guess that's fine at this point.

I've disappointed. I've said this before in this podcast that Golofkin Marada didn't happen in December because if Golofkin had performed really well against Marada, it would have. Right, that would have given the impetus for him to fight. Undisputed at 168 versus Unified at 160 adds another layer to their competition. But that being said, I don't get the sense right now. and I could be wrong, but I don't get the sense right now. He's, I don't get this light heavyweights where he wants to go at the moment.

He will eventually. But, you know, all the talk about Joe Smith, about Better Beev, about Bevo. Like, Bevo could have happened already. Like, Beville would have taken short money. That's a easy, easy fight to make. So I get the sense, Charles. I don't know who beats Cannella right now. I don't know who even gives him a fight right now besides maybe Better Beave.

But go ahead. Yeah. You know, from a competition standpoint, like 168 is the perfect weight for Canello right now. He's not going to make 160. He's really good at 168 pounds. He's got enough, he's got enough power for that weight class. His chin, of course, is ridiculous.

And even going up to 168, thus far anyway, it's held up now. And even the toughest, what people perceive is maybe the toughest challenge for him. Benavides. Benavides is a terrific fighter. He's not a one-punch knockout artist. So the idea of one-punch knocking out Canello from him doesn't seem, you know, but of course, that's not what Benavides does. He throws so many punches and hits you with so many that at the end of the day it wears on you. But I think 168 is just where he should be from a competition standpoint. I think at the end of the day, that may rule his thinking. I think that may be ultimately what tells them, you know, but we've talked during this interview, we've talked equal amounts about fighters thinking as businessman, businessman, and thinking as fighters.

And both those factors seem to enter into their decision-making process. In this case, I think maybe Canelo and Reynosa as boxing people will figure more heavily into their decision-making than as businessmen. Let me ask you this. You've called most of Jamal Charlo's recent fights, his last fight against Juan Montiel, where he went the distance with Montiel. What kind of odds or chances do you give Charlo at 168 against Canelo? And what have you seen from him in recent fights? Montiel was a struggle. It was more of a struggle. I thought it was going to be for Charlo. You know, listen, I thought his effort, I thought Sergei Dervenchenko fought a great fight against Charlo. He looked just as good, in my opinion,

mostly as he did in those tough fights with Jacobs and Galafkin when we saw Dervianchenko really performed well. I thought he was almost on that level against Charlo. And the reason I say that is because that was Jamal Charlo's best performance ever. I mean, he faced adversity. He fought really well. Now, the following fight, the fighter he fought was best. turned out to be better than people would have anticipated. But then we always asked the question,

how much do we land Jamal Charlo? Did he underperform in that fight? He won the fight, clearly, but got a much tougher competition. Here's the thing about a Charlo Canello fight to me, anyway. Jamal Charlo is a wonderful offensive fighter. He's going to land punches against Canello. How much, how many, I don't know. Canela's, by the way, is a lot. a better defensive fighter, and you've, of course, very much chronicled Canello's, you know, maturity, maturation as a fighter. He's a better defensive fighter and he used to be, but he's going to be hit by Jamal Charlo. Can Jamal Charlo do enough to hurt Caninello or land enough of those punches to deal with Canello's offense? And, and that's the big question. And we don't know

you know, whether Charlo will be hurt by Canello. He's moving up and weight, right? Even though Charlo was formerly, or Canello was formerly a middle weight. So he wasn't born to 168 pounds. So the thing that makes that fight kind of intriguing is we know Charlo will function pretty well on offense and he gets some things done. Can he get enough done to blunt what ultimately ends up being Canello's huge office? offensive firepower.

Charlo's got a great jab. The issue with beating Canelo is that you can't out jab him. Like, I mean, you can throw more jabs than him, but you can't win by out jabbing him. At some point, you have to let the right hands go. And nobody recently has been willing to do it, whether it's Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders, Caleb Plant, you throw the jab, it's kind of safe. And it might be a scoring punch, especially early in the fight. But when he's coming at you and you know what's coming back if you let that

right hand go, it's made guys reluctant to do it. So until I see somebody that's not named Ganadi Golofkin, let the right hand go, I'm just going to be skeptical that somebody's going to do it. Yeah, I think Charlo's the kind of fighter, though, who is likely to at least attempt to do that because of a variety of things. Number one, it's his legacy fight, period. Number two, he's kind a condition to try and do that. And the other thing about Charlo that I'll say is he's not a one-trick pony offensively. He has a very wide arsenal of offense when he uses it correctly. Both he and his brother, that's one of the things you really are their strengths. And Golovkin used that to his advantage. You know, he has a really good offensive arsenal of a bunch of different punches. So I,

Your point is a very valid one, but I think there could be a couple of ways for Charlo at the ski. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media.

Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clivered Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need. to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of ton-tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs?

Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex In. English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In the cat against Canelo. Now, it's a very tough assignment, especially if you're coming up in weight. You've never had a fight at 168 pounds. you know in the old days people used to take fights at a weight class until they moved there for a major fight not so anymore people just go there and they and they fight people sometimes it works out and sometimes it

does yeah hopefully somebody gives canello a good fight because he's yeah we want to see that don't we we want to see something like the golovkin fight we want to see uh you know fights listen Caleb Plant, I thought, overperformed in parts of that fight and demonstrated that he could be a very solid 168 pounder and showed us his improvement, but he wasn't on the level that could create a super competitive fight with Canelo. Yeah, and maybe not so much with the talking about what a great fight it is during it. That was kind of weird.

So I saw Caleb Platt going, well, Caleb Plant, you know, on the showtime after show, like when he's like, it's a good fight, huh? And I was like, yeah, all right. Well, he was, he was, I never seen that out. That was weird. Yeah, he was auditioning for a commentary. There you go. So he's next in line.

While he was fighting, so you have to give him credit for that. Always enjoy the conversation, man. Good to talk to you. Hope to see you at a fight real soon. Yeah, okay. I know. We're overdue to have a cocktail or a couple of coffee. Yes, sir.

Thanks for joining me. When we come back, my conversation with Trevor Bryant. Career Builder is made for people who have That thing. You know, those superpowers that make you good at your job, the skills you bring to work. And CareerBuilder knows those skills make you right for other jobs too. Higher paying jobs with benefits. Jobs you never thought of trying.

Are you a people person? Work from home as a customer service rep. Are you organized and like driving? Become a delivery driver. You have the skills it takes and CareerBuilder.com has the jobs to get you hired fast. Visit careerbuilder.com. Look, we're all adults here. And I know some of us choose to use nicotine to relax, focus, or just unwind after a long day.

Lucy is a modern oral nicotine company that makes nicotine gum, lozenges, and pouches for adults who are looking for the best, most responsible way to consume their nicotine. It's a new year? Why not start it out by switching to a new nicotine product that you can feel good about? If you enjoy using nicotine, you should definitely check out Lucy's products at lucy.com. That's lucy.com. and use the promo code boxing at checkout. Also, I have to read this disclaimer. Warning, this product contains nicotine.

Nicotine is an addictive chemical. Remember, if you're interested in a better way to use nicotine, visit lucy.cote, and be sure to use that promo code boxing. Millions of Americans are getting back to work. CareerBuilder calls it the great rehire. And we want to help you get the best jobs before everyone else. CareerBuilder gives you the competitive edge. to get the job you want, at the salary you want, with the benefits you want.

We even send job alerts, so your perfect job lands right in your inbox. Go to careerbuilder.com today or get left with whatever jobs are left. Find your next job fast at careerbuilder.com. Fight fans, throw your best haymaker with a risk-free bet from the Fandual Sportsbook. Even if your fighter gets knocked out or tapped out, new customers get up to $1,000 back if your first bet doesn't win. That is a great deal. Just sign up with the promo code boxing

and you'll be able to bet on all the biggest boxing matches and UFC fights. Fandul offers all your favorite bets. Choose from the money line to the method of victory to which round the fight will end and so much more. You can even parlay different fight bets together. The bigger your parlay, the bigger your potential payout becomes. Fandual is America's number one sportsbook

and is now live in New York. New Yorkers, you don't got to drive from New Jersey anymore to make some bets. You can do it right from your home. The app, it's so easy to use, and when you win, you'll get paid in as little as two hours. To place your first bet risk-free,

sign up with the promo code boxing and make every fight night mean more with the Fandul Sportsbook app. All right, Trevor Brian is the WBA heavyweight champion on Saturday. He will defend that title against Jonathan Guidry. That's a fight that will take place in Warren, Ohio,

and you can watch it on pay-per-view. Trevor, before I get into the fight and kind of your place in the heavyweight division, I was watching back your media conference call with Don King. And I'm wondering, like, at what point when Don starts talking, do you kind of lose track of everything that he's saying during these conversations? You know, Don King's an historian, man. And so just to sometimes listen to him, you can get lost because he has so much knowledge and so much information.

And sometimes even I turn him to a fan as well just sitting there talking to him and listening to him. So, yeah, man, it's funny. I just love to hear that man speak. Yeah, I've been down to his office in Florida a few times. I've done magazine stories on him. Like, it's just at some point he's like, I'm not sure where he's going with his conversations. And, you know, I was just laughing, just thinking, watching your conference call at just, just vintage. Don when he starts talking. I mean, how would how would you describe your relationship with Don King?

I have a great relationship with Don. He's my promoter and we talk about whatever we need to talk about for the fights and continue my career. My promising career is heavyweight champion. So what when you look back at the decision to sign with Don, what went into that for you? As I said in that last interview as well, I had my first meeting with Don. He basically told just, hey, man, I usually don't sign guys straight out of the amateurs. I sign guys that's getting ready to fight for titles or in positions for titles. So that was something big coming from my city of Albany, New York, of two amateur guys getting signed, me and A. Mary Mom.

But what got me was when Don King showed me his ledger of all the champions he had, all the former champions, all the headway champions, every champion he had, and all the millionaires he made. And I was like, man, sign me up. Like, I want my legacy to start here. I want to be part of this list. And I told him that day, I'm going to be heavyweight champion one day. So give me the contract.

I'm ready to sign. Let me put the work in. And that's where it started off. When you were coming up in the amateur ranks, becoming heavyweight champion, like when did that dream start to kind of form for you? When did boxing really become a thing that you wanted to do for the rest of your life? Man, it's funny because I started doing this sport for just for fun, like just to let out some inner city steam.

And it was like a safe haven for me to go to and not worry about what's going on in an actual reality. And just going to those that in that amateur background of just going to those tournaments and fighting all over the country, fighting all international. I mean, I never really thought that y'all one day I'm going to become a heavyweight champion in the world. It's funny because meeting all these guys, meeting all these different individuals, fighters and the amateurs and their father was champion, their uncle was champion, this and that,

me just being a kid just doing it for fun. And it really didn't come to like the end of my amateur career trying to go to the Olympics where I say, you know what, hearing all these other formal champions saying, hey, man, I see something in you and you could become heavyweight champion yourself if you stick with it. And at that point, that's where I decided to say, you know what, let me see how good my talents are. Let me see how good my heart. our hard work ethic is, let me see if I could do it. And that became a dream of mine to become heavyweight champion and actually see this through. And here I am today, I manifest my own dream into reality.

And I'm heavyweight champion. You got to put some respect on my name. So I'm here to stay. And that's where it started. Who was, when you think about the people that encouraged you along the way, was there one or a couple that kind of stand out that what they said to you really pushed you in that direction? There was more than a feel. I mean, different times in my life, different stages in my life.

There's a lot of different, like I'll be talking all day. If I was to tell you every last individual, but the main characters was Jamel Muhammad, Masaya Muhammad, my home coach, Kittles, Vincent Kittles, my college coach, Al Mitchell, and a lot of other strong male figures of my family. But just to have all that collective energy for people wanting me to do better in life, that's what drove me to stick with it and to be here when I am today.

Al Mitchell, I think a lot of people know. What was his influence on you? Oh, man, I always seem the best out of me, man. And he always used to tell him the truth, man. Trevor, you could be so great. Trevor, you can do this, Trevor, you can do that. You just got to, I always been who I am, man. I always been a big guy, a big kid off the street, man.

and I really appreciate the time that I have with Al Mitchell out there in Marquette, Michigan at the MMU program. And, man, Al-Mishol has always been in my corner. He always hits me up from time of time. Trevor, you're doing great, me, looking great, man. Keep continuing to do his thing. And I'll always be a Mark K. Michigan bad boy. So I'm a shout out to my boy, Al Mitchell, man.

How is a guy from Albany, New York, like living or being in that area of Wisconsin? Um, well, well, I, then listen, I'm from Auburny, New York, but I've been in South Florida for the past 10 years, man. My bones don't weak, man, for real, I ain't going to lie to you. Like, this cold weather is crazy. Like, I mean, but it feels good to actually see the, the weather again. And, like I said, it brings me back those memories from opening New York and Market, Michigan, where snow for, like, a whole month street nonstop. Like, so. It's great to be back out here and it's climate.

That Midwest, that gets cold up there for sure. No doubt about that. Let's talk about your situation. You are mixed up in one of the more interesting, wild situations in boxing. You won the WBA's interim version of the title that you have in 2018. You won the regular version last year beating Bermaine-Stevern. That's the title and the title you're going to defend this weekend against Gidre. As we've been talking, you know, you call you.

yourself the champ. Alexander Usik would disagree. He would say his version supersedes your version. So tell me what you think of this situation and where it places you in the heavyweight division. Well, you got to understand the regular WBA

belt is the original belt. The Super Bell is something new. I mean, my belt, all the greats have had, is what I'm saying? And I'm not going to, I'm not going to argue and say which bell is more. but they put more value on the Super Belt right now. And hey, listen, man, I'm a heavyweight

champion. I'm coming to collect all the belts. So you say, can say what he wants to say, but once I get in that position where I have to fight him, we'll, we'll finish that fact there, you know what I'm saying? But like I said, me being a heavyweight champion in the world, I just come to do what I do best. And that is fight and show my ringmanship. So like I said, I want to fight the best. I'm here for the best. I am one of the best. I am one of the best. now. And like I said, I'm just, I'm ready to, to further my legacy with those great big fights. When, with the WBA trying to eliminate belts and they have done it in multiple different divisions, do you agree with that? Do you think it should be one title holder in, you know,

in that way, in that, in that organization? Well, again, like I said, the original belt is, is the number one to me, but I feel like it'll be, it's strengthening the, the, it's sharpen up the belts more. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the iHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw,

unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life,

mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be.

Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, Follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes.

Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Do you remember when Diana Ross

double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jay.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 was big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so you know.

I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

back at it on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yeah, just having one belt and not having all these, like I said, one of the previous belts I had. I mean, I think it's great for the deal of the belts. I mean, they find that has more value on it. So me, my regular belt, let's put me against. Let's make it a, uh, make it an undisputed fight. Let's make this thing happen. Like, let's, let's get to it. I'm ready to fight. You sick. I'm ready to get whoever. I mean, you sick is the man. He has my super. belt so I'm ready I'm ready to go after him and let's let's let's have one belt let's definitely have one belt and have that one number crown champion of the world I'm in for it now that's that's

certainly the easiest way to do it to have everybody each other and and clean up that mess in the ring um you know you won that title against bj flor as the interim title in 2018 didn't fight again until 2021 for people that don't know like what went into what what was the cause of the long layoff you had where I'm sure you'd be disappointed point to lose kind of prime years of your fighting career. It was, it was a challenge. If people don't know, Manuel Shaw was the hold up.

He was the holdup. He had the regular WBA belt since 2017, where he won that against Alexander Yusinawif, I believe, right? And he hasn't defended the belt, period. And here we are in 2021, 2021, 2022. He hasn't defended that belt. So, I mean, he couldn't make it to the United States back in 2020 to defend his belt against me.

And here we are now. I got the belt now, and he's no more to talk about. I'm just going to further this career from where I'm at now, and let me, like I said, let me get the U-Sik, man. That's what I want to talk about. Let's get the U-Sek. I mean, there's two years in the past. I can't talk about the past, I mean.

What happens, what happened? It's in the past now, but let's worry about what's going to happen in the future. So I think people look at your resume. They see B.J. Flores. They know him. They know Bermaine's to Vern as a former champion. But I think people wonder how good is Trevor Bryant? How good are you?

What is the answer to that question? I'm the man. I'm the man with the plan. I mean, they can look at my record and say whatever. People in boxing know who I am. You know what I am and know what type of fight I bring. It's just for the world to catch up. I mean, that's all it is.

And once after I get past this hump right here on coming on January 29th, the rest of the world is going to see because there's some real big names out there for me to fight against and showcase my talent against. And these are the best that the world say they are. So after this fight, I'm going to be fighting among the best. And then we'll say after that next fight of Trevor Bryan, you talked everything that you said you were. And I'm here to stay. Like I said, I'm here to further this legacy from this point on.

Yeah, you've talked about getting that big blockbuster fight in your next fight out, or at least in 2022. What fight is that for you? I mean, realistically, you know, Ussick, Joshua, Fury, they're going to do their dance over the next, you know, whatever number of months. Is it Daniel Dubois? Is it somebody else?

Like, what do you see as that big blockbuster fight waiting if you win on Saturday night? Like I said, you just mentioned them. You said, Fury, Anthony Joshua. These are they the best. Now, you have other guys that's coming up, like Danny Dubois and other former champions like DeNont wilder. Look through your children's eyes to see the true magic of a forest. It's a storybook

world for them. You look and see a tree. They see the wrinkled face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles. They see a windy path that could lead to adventure. And they see you. Their fearless guide is this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. Look through your children's eyes to see the true magic of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree.

They see the wrinkled face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles. They see a windy path that could lead to adventure. And they see you. Their fearless guide is this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. If I could be you.

And you could be me for just one hour. If you could find a way to get inside. Each other's mind. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes. We've all felt left out. And for some, that feeling lasts more than a moment.

We can change that. Learn how it belonging begins with us.org. Brought to you by the ad council. Walk a mile in my shoes Some other other fighters out there and all that Like I said, it's up to the promotion Like we want to make these big fights That the promotion and the sanctioned and body feels

That will be strong for the title And I'm up for it Because now we're going to show people What boxing's all about So you feel confident that you will get Several fights this year Two, maybe three fights in 2022 Well shit, I hope so

Three guys damn fights That would be nice, but I ain't going to lie to you. That sure would be nice. But if I can get two, I'll be satisfied as well. But like I said, after January 29, let's not look past that. We have a hard, strong opponent in front of us 17 and no. And we're going to get past this. We're going to get past this.

And then we're going to talk about the next. All right. Well, hopefully get that done on the 29th. And then we're talking about you in bigger fights the rest of the year. Trevor, good to talk to you, man. Good luck on Saturday. Thank you. I appreciate it.

When we come back, this week's picks brought to you by Fandul. All right, time now for this week's picks brought to you by our friends over at Fanduil. And before I get into them, I just want to remind everybody that I am now 4 and 0 since I started making picks on this podcast. And I haven't just been picking easy winners. First time around, I told you Joe Smith by knockout. That was a pretty easy one to predict. Last week, I told you, bet the underdog, Mark Megs, over Gary Russell.

I told you to pick Meg Sayo by decision, and that is exactly what happened. So I'll have to a pretty good start, is all I'm saying. This week, I am focused on the cruiserweight division, the headliner of a pay-per-view this weekend, Junior Maccabu versus Tabiso Machuno. This is a rematch of a really good fight back in 2015 that was won by Maccabu by 11th round knockout and I actually see this fight playing out a lot like that one did. I think it's going to be close in spurts. Machinu is a very solid boxer, has shown good defense during his career, but Macabu is a puncher and how he knocked up Machinu last time with a straight uppercut that put

Machinu down face first on the canvas. I think there'll be a similar shot that puts Machinu down. Now, Macabu is a slight favorite in this one. He's coming in at minus 164. Macabu by knockout is only at plus 155. So the odds are not great on this one, but I think Macabu is going to be the sharper fighter. And I think Macabu is going to be the more motivated fighter because we know that if Macabu wins this fight,

there is at least the possibility that he could face Canelo Alvarez his next timeout. So if there's any reason for a fighter to be motivated and ready to go, it's that. There is a winning lottery ticket, potentially available for Macabu if he wins. I think that's going to focus him, and I think it's Macabu by knockout. That's my pick for this week, brought to you by Fandul. That's it for this week's episode. My thanks to Al Bernstein and Trevor Bryant for joining the show. As always, subscribe, rate, review this podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, wherever you can download podcasts.

And I'll see you next week. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all,

embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year.

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to Look Back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your... podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the fourth. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Cliford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it.

Listen to The Clippert Show on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever. you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.