Steve Bunce: The 'sweet science' of storytelling
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Steve Bunce: The 'sweet science' of storytelling
Steve Bunce is the most influential journalist in British boxing today.
He is also a collector of sporting tales, master storyteller and someone who revers the fight writers of yesteryear.
I firmly believe that boxing has a special narrative. It creates stories like no other sport, therefore 'Buncey' was the perfect guest to discuss the topic.
Expect a lot of tales and tangents in this 90 minutes as we discuss the particular storylines thrown up by the 'sweet science'
Steve Bunce and me
The phrase ‘sometimes you just could not make it up’ is vastly overused but…
TOPICS
Leprechauns - McGuigan v Pedrosa and Eubank v Close II
The T-junction narratives of Joshua v Ruiz II
The Daily Mirror's front page after Clay v Liston, calling out the reporters who got it wrong, including their own
Leon Spinks - the eight-fight novice who beat Ali and then threw it away in the rematch seven months later. He was arrested seven times between the fight
The adversarial nature of the boxing build-up - press conferences and weigh-in
Why those nasty press conferences may have reached their peak
How the police so nearly saved Errol Christie's life (Christie v Kaylor press conference story)
The fake hate and real hate in press conferences
How wrestler Gorgeous George forced Ali to change his promotional game (Story on YouTube)
Why Anthony Joshua won't do theatrical press conferences because of his violent past
The Larry Holmes v Trevor Berbick grudge
The natural 'rise and fall' story arc of boxing
The litany of British legends who were left with no money
The character of the promoter - Don King, Eddie Hearn, Frank Warren
The growth of YouTube channels in boxing
The critics of the new channels and the deconstruction of old media virtues
Buncey asks some advice about podcasting
Why boxing writing has a special tradition
Filing copy from fight night by knocking on houses and asking to borrow a phone
The danger of living in the past as a boxing writer
The concept of the Chief Sports Writer
Has boxing writing gone downhill?
Why boxing movies are the best sports movies
Buncey's novel - The Fixer
Why boxing is the only sport that seems to work on pay-per-view
Buncey's prediction for boxing's future - the threat from MMA
LINKS
Steve Bunce Twitter
Steve Bunce at The Independent