Referee Steve Smoger has seen more than his share of mayhem and gore in a sensational 35-year career that has included more than 200 world title bouts, including such classics as Hopkins-Trinidad, Hopkins-Jones, Pavlik-Taylor I, Forrest-Mosley, and Cotto-Margarito II.
The only still-active referee in the International Boxing Hall of Fame has officiated in more states and foreign countries than anybody else in the history of boxing, and he has a great story for most of those experiences.
Pop some popcorn and enjoy this colorful in-depth interview with a living legend of The Sweet Science.
Our conversation with Steve Smoger is preceded by expert analysts Rizwaan Zahid and John J. Raspanti, who talk to us about Tyson Fury's demand for the fat end of a 60/40 split in any fight with Anthony Joshua, Evander Holyfield's plan to stage an eight-man welterweight tournament, the Bam Bam vs. Danny and Donaire vs. Frampton match-ups, rampant PED use in the heavyweight division, and much-maligned HBO's dominance of the premium TV ratings -- Lampley, Kellerman, and Lederman called 17 of the top 20 events in 2017.
We also get a Christmas-week update from British correspondent Paul McLaughlin on the most-recent happenings in the United Kingdom.
Dennis Taylor is host of The Ringside Boxing Show, editor/publisher of www.ringsideboxing.com, and co-author (with John J. Raspanti) of "Intimate Warfare: The True Story of the Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward Boxing Trilogy," currently on Amazon's Bestsellers list.