
The Rocky Road
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Our podcast team, The Rocky Road, presents 'Rocky Road: Rewind' - a special show brought to you during the coronavirus lockdown that charts both forgotten and unforgettable nights of boxing down through the years. Join Kevin Byrne and Simon Maguire, and a specially-selected collection of eye-witness guests, for a weekly trip down memory lane.
The Rocky Road
3d ago
Robbie Murray is a former undefeated professional boxer who defied the odds to achieve success in the ring. As a boy, he battled severe asthma and depended on the use of daily oxygen masks, and at that stage a future life as a sportsman seemed a million miles away. But boxing helped him build up his lung capacity and ultimately, he found success in the amateurs before turning pro in 2001, fighting out of Breen’s Gym in Belfast and representing Dublin. He trained and sparred alongside the likes of Neil Sinclair, Eamonn Magee and Paul McCloskey in an era when fellow 140lb boxers Shea Neary, Rick ..read more
The Rocky Road
3w ago
Stephen Ormond, known as The Rock during his fighting career, knows all about The Rocky Road in boxing. A teenage elite champion who comes from a boxing dynasty, he’s related to the legendary Spike McCormack on his mother’s side, while his father and uncles were all champions in the ring as well, iconic fighting Dubliners all. He boxed as a pro for over a decade, with 33 fights in all, winning the WBO European, IBF inter-continental and WBU world titles, and was never, ever in a dull fight. Ormond was a well-schooled, aggressive boxer-puncher who shared the sparring ring with Conor McGregor bu ..read more
The Rocky Road
3w ago
The hugely anticipated Irish domestic clash between Lewis Crocker and Paddy Donovan is only weeks away and we've caught up with both camps ahead of the epic clash in Belfast in March. On this episode, we chat with Lewis Crocker, Jamie Conlan and Billy Nelson.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information ..read more
The Rocky Road
1M ago
The hugely anticipated Irish domestic fight between Lewis Crocker and Paddy Donovan is only weeks away and we've caught up with both camps ahead of the epic clash in Belfast in March. First up, we chat with Paddy Donovan, Andy Lee and Jason Quigley.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information ..read more
The Rocky Road
1M ago
Happy Christmas from all of us at The Rocky Road! It's been a big year for the podcast and to round out the campaign, here's our 2024 Year in Review show. Tommy Hyde and Terry O'Neill are back in harness to go over the Irish Fighter, Fight, Knockout and Trainer of the Year. We also discuss the biggest Gutpunch of 2024, the good, bad and ugly of the amateur season and look ahead to some major moves in 2025. Thanks to everyone who's joined us this year on the show, tuned in or helped out along with the fighters, coaches, fans and volunteers who make #IrishBoxing what it is today.
Hosted on ..read more
The Rocky Road
1M ago
What more can be said about the genius of Oleksandr Usyk? The Ukrainian got the better of Tyson Fury in their heavyweight championship rematch in Riyadh on Saturday night - this time by unanimous decision. Just as their first battle in May was, this was a thrilling fight, with ebbs and flows, momentum swings, and a force of nature – in the form of Usyk – who just couldn’t be denied in the second half of the contest. What a championship fighter this guy is. Joining us on The Rocky Road to discuss the event are rising Cork boxer Tommy Hyde, who was in Saudi Arabia for the superfight, and actor/c ..read more
The Rocky Road
2M ago
Jay Byrne is a former Irish boxer and current manager, trainer and promoter. Having just put on his seventh show in just over 12 months in Dublin, he's currently the most prolific fight fixer in the country. Here, he joins The Rocky Road to tell us about the angry young man he once was, how he matured and why he now finds contentment in helping others, be it inside or outside of the ring. Jay discusses his 19-fight career, having boxed the best of British at the start of his career live on Sky Sports, to seeking domestic glories back home with some explosive derby duels. They're now the focus ..read more
The Rocky Road
2M ago
Mercedas Taaffe-Cooper is an Irish boxing pioneer. A competitor in the 90s when female fighters were thin on the ground, she sparred with Deirdre Gogarty and boxed alongside Jane Couch. She was also one of the first female coaches in the country, guiding the Reynolds brothers, Stephen and Alan, who won a combined 12 senior titles at the National Stadium. Here, Merc talks about the struggle for recognition in the early years, how she and others helped knock down the door to allow Katie Taylor to fight Alanna Murphy in a groundbreaking 2001 contest, being part of the coaching ticket for the ..read more
The Rocky Road
2M ago
From July 27 to August 10, we'll be all about Olympic boxing once again. Ireland will send a 10-strong team to Paris 2024 with every boxer there dreaming of a place on top of the podium to follow in the footsteps of Michael Carruth, Katie Taylor and Kellie Harrington.
In this episode, I'm sitting down with two boxers who qualified at the final tournament in Bangkok - Grainne Walsh and Daina Moorehouse. They've had contrasting journeys to get to this point. Walsh's story is the epitome of The Rocky Road. Said to be one punch from retirement at one point, she's been through four thumb operation ..read more
The Rocky Road
2M ago
John Joe Nevin is on the comeback trail. Out of the ring since 2019, he’s signed a new management deal with a Las Vegas-based fight fixer and is ready to dream of world titles again. But he knows, as he approaches his 35th birthday, that time is not on his side. Nevin won the lot as an amateur - World, European and Olympic medals - and is clearly one of the GOATs in that code. But it’s ten years since his pro debut, and ten years since he suffered terrible leg injuries during an attack in Mullingar - after which he was told he would never box again before being put in a wheelchair. Somehow Nev ..read more