The Rocky Road

It’s ten years since Jason Quigley became the first Irishman to reach the final of the World Championships In a breakout 2013, he won his first Irish Elite title, followed up with European senior gold and then reached the decider of the Worlds in Russia, going down to Zhanibek Alimkhanuly of Kazakhstan. It was to be his last amateur contest. Since then he’s operated as a professional boxer, graced...

This is the second part of our interview with Eamon Carr as he launches his book 'Showbusiness with Blood'. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eamon Carr is the special guest for this week's episode as he joins Kevin Byrne to talk about his new book: Showbusiness with Blood. Carr reflects on his early career in journalism as he covered a golden age in Irish boxing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Limerick's Graham McCormack joins Kevin Byrne for this week's episode to reflect on his life and career so far as he gears up for his next fight. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dylan Moran hails from Waterford but started his pro career in Manchester, the city he will return to on September 2 for his biggest fight to date. Now preparing to take on Albania’s Florian Marku at the Manchester Arena, on a Sky Sports BOXXER show headlined by Liam Smith v Chris Eubank Jr’s rematch, it’s the culmination of years’ worth of work. Here, Dylan talks about leaving school early to wor...

“Some fellas are afraid of nothing, and some fellas are afraid of getting a clatter. And some fellas are not afraid until they get a clatter! Then they realise.” We’re back with Part 2 of If Walls Could Talk, a special double episode of The Rocky Road with Philip Sutcliffe from Crumlin Boxing Club. Plug the imagination back in and let Sucko guide you around one of Ireland’s most successful schools...

Terry O’Neill is a former Irish international boxer turned actor and comedian. During his years in the fight game, the Dubliner won national titles and represented his country across Europe, winning Four Nations gold. His current show, Rope A Dope, is an international hit, featuring twice at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It’s based on his years in the sport and some of the comic elements he came...

Big Joe Egan joins the podcast this week to tell his story and he’s well and truly travelled The Rocky Road to contentment. Raised in Ringsend, Dublin, he took up boxing after being bullied as a kid and never looked back. His first fight was against future world champ Steve Collins and he went on to become multiple-times Irish heavyweight champ, which brought him into the orbit of Floyd Patterson,...

Kevin Byrne is joined by Pierce O'Leary, Gary 'Spike' O'Sullivan and Dee Walsh to look ahead to the eagerly anticipated showdown between Errol Spence and Terence Crawford for the unified welterweight title. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’ve something different this week as we kick off a new feature called ‘If Walls Could Talk’. On one of my visits to the boxing gym it struck me that I’d love to hear the stories behind the pictures and headlines that are stuck on the wall. It applies to most gyms in the country, so where better to start than in the capital’s Crumlin boxing club with the storyteller that is Phil Sutcliffe. They’r...

Ireland’s newest heavyweight star Jack Marley is going to the Olympics. The Monkstown BC fighter qualified at the European Games in Poland, where he won silver. In doing so, he became the first Irish heavyweight or super-heavyweight to win a major medal (World, European or Olympics) since Gearoid O Colman way back in 1947, O Colmain winning the European Championships in Dublin. Here, The Rocky Roa...

STOP! ‘Hammer’ time. Padraig ‘Pody’ McCrory knows a thing or two about stopping people in their tracks. He’s a quiet man but he has been making some serious noise in recent years, knocking out a string of opponents, primarily in his home city of Belfast, and building up a passionate gang of supporters who followed him to Germany last year where he upset the odds to defeat Leon Bunn and claim the I...

Mick Dowling joins The Rocky Road this week to look back at the boxing life of his Olympic team-mate, Jim McCourt RIP. Two amateur boxing devotees who rebuffed the professional ranks to dedicate their fighting lives to Ireland, Dowling and McCourt travelled the world together representing their country. Here, Dowling tells us why ‘The Prince of the Immaculata’ might well have been our best ever, w...

Last time Feargal McCrory joined us on The Rocky Road, he hadn't had a fight for three years and was desperate to find out if he'd still got it. Three fights later, it looks like he does. 'Fearless' has been winning fans on America's east coast, serving up wins in Brooklyn, Atlantic City and Philadelphia, and is back in action at the end of the month in New York. Here he discusses what it's like t...

“Be nice to people on your way up, because you’ll meet them on your way down” – just one of the phrases beloved by Brendan Ingle, the Dubliner who became Britain’s greatest boxing trainer. Ingle died aged 77 five years ago this week, having left an enormous legacy in the sport. He trained four world champions in Naseem Hamed, Johnny Nelson, Kell Brook and Junior Witter while his Wincobank Gym in S...

Michael Conlan is the special guest for this week's show. He joins Kevin Byrne to preview Katie Taylor's homecoming clash with Chantelle Cameron in Dublin and looks ahead to his own tilt at world title glory when he faces off against Luis Alberto Lopez in Belfast one week later. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A true fighting hero joins us today. She’s Ireland’s first female boxer and was Ireland’s first female world champ. She added to the legacy of Barry McGuigan between the ropes and now Katie Taylor adds to hers. We call this show The Rocky Road but that’s not the half of it when it comes to the journey Deirdre Gogarty went on to make her name in the fight business. Now she’s rea...

Today we welcome back a guest who has lived two lives in boxing – firstly as an amateur and then a pro fighter, and for the last 34 years as a referee and judge Last time we spoke with David Irving, we discussed his career as a fighter but today we’ll be hearing about his three and a half decades as an official, with the Boxing Union of Ireland and also the WBC His first fight as a ref was back 19...

“I’m John Farrelly. I’m not Gus Farrell. I’m an ordinary Joe Soap. Gus Farrell is gone.” This week’s guest was known as Gus Farrell during his fighting days in the 1960s and 70s. Hailing from Sheriff Street in Dublin, he rose to prominence in 1965, winning the Irish junior title, and followed it up with senior success in 1966. A Texaco Award winner for boxing, he was one of Ireland’s most popular...

Roberto Diaz joins us for this week’s episode while enjoying his first ever trip to Ireland. The former Golden Boy Promotions matchmaker was over for the Jason Quigley homecoming and sat down to discuss his relationship with the Donegal contender as well as working with other Irish fighters such as Jamie Kavanagh, Spike O’Sullivan and Aaron McKenna. He goes in depth on what the job of matchmaker e...

Irish boxing has welcomed a host of new pros in the last few years and Limerick fighter Jamie Morrissey is among the most interesting of the crop. He’s clearly willing to fight anyone, going by his record across five bouts to date. He’s up for testing himself, already claiming two BUI Celtic titles against unbeaten opponents. And his pre- and post-fight interviews alert you to a thoughtful, intell...

‘I’ll tell you a funny story…’ Dennis Hogan is coming home. After 36 fights all over the world – from his base in Australia to Mexico via Germany and the USA – the Kildare man is finally set to realise his dream. He’s been visualising a world title fight at The Point ever since his days sitting ringside at Bernard Dunne’s big nights there and now it’s all set to go down on the Katie Taylor v Chant...

Ace reporter Kev came down from the mountains for the Katie Taylor ‘Homecoming’ press conference at Dublin’s Mansion House (talkin’ bout a revolution?) as she gears up to challenge Chantelle Cameron for the undisputed world light-welterweight championship. It’s Ireland v England, unbeaten v unbeaten, undisputed v undisputed. It may not be Croke Park but it’s going to be a night of nights at the 3A...

We’re joined by Steve Collins, AKA The Celtic Warrior, for The Rocky Road St Paddy’s Day special 2023. Steve talks about his amateur days under legendary coaches Maxie McCullagh, Peter Glennon, Tony Davitt and John McCormack, the Collins/O’Rourke boxing dynasty and why he too had to fight, the shock of losing his father at an early age and the power of perseverance. Because, just as it took him th...

David Irving is the special guest for this week's episode. The Belfast man charts his rise through both the amateur and professional ranks from the early days of the Holy Trinity Boxing Club through to his decision to hang up the gloves and become a referee. (This is part one of a two-part interview). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.