AIR DATE:
EPISODE: Episode 43
Billy “The Kid” Irwin is a former lightweight world champion and Olympian. He’s a former professional boxer who is now training and educating new and upcoming fighters in Niagara, Ontario, at Irwin Boxing. Canadian heavyweight champ Bola Ray lends his vast experience in the sport and provides his comments and analysis on boxing, on YouTube and TalkinFight.com/live. #boxinghistory @irwinboxing @billyirwin #irwinboxing #BillyTheKidIrwin @Clifton Hill Niagara Falls
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Podcast Episode
Transcribed:
Hello talking fight fans across canada and around the world welcome once again to another episode of the scoop featuring champ bola ray, and this week we’ve got a very special lineup of profiled guests, including tonight.
So why don’t you take us away champ and let us know what you got lined up all right well, um today, this guest is a fighter renowned for his merciless left hook, um, especially to the body um yeah, former canadian national team member and olympian former world Champion winning the international boxing organization, featherweight featherweight, no sorry lightweight, lightweight, strap.
He likes long walks on the beach and drinks pina coladas in the rain.
Oh he’s gon na love this one.
My name is raymond olive wally and this is a scoop.
Today’S guest is none other than billy the kid irwin.
How you doing all good guys! Look at you! Oh god, how are you keeping how how’s this whole cold with nonsense? Treating you uh, you real.
You know what it hasn’t really affected me much uh! Really, i’m still got the gym going.
You know we got that signs up and we got sanitizer and we got you know if you’re sick, you don’t come in, but otherwise it’s been the same, you’re very fortunate because in toronto it’s completely.
It’S done.
It’S dead.
It’S nothing right like we’re.
Looking for something to happen in the next couple days, but we’ll see okay, yeah i’ll, probably i’ll, probably be up this week.
That’Ll be awesome yeah! I know it might come up uh pretty much every other weekend come on.
Oh really yup stay with my buddy lee: oh [, Music, ], no man.
Now i’m gon na do a series on boxing families in the future, and yours is one.
But maybe you could explain how you and your brothers got into boxing how i got into blocking yeah? Oh wow, i went to my friends.
I went to my buddy’s house when i was when i was uh 13 to go, play road hockey and he said he was going boxing.
I had no idea there was boxing in niagara falls at all.
I didn’t have a clue, so i just asked him if i could come and watch so i went and watched and the next day i joined up in four days.
I started spurring wow and then uh the the head coach was away on vacation when he came back.
He saw me – and he said if you, if you keep if you keep up to this, and you keep doing this you’re gon na travel all over the world and i’m just like [ __ ] right, like you said, everybody was never on an airplane before and Next thing you know it all came true.
He was a genie, what’s that it’s almost as if he was a genie predicting the future yeah.
I remember i remember when i was who was your first coach, 14 or 15.
I won the provincials and we used to have training camps in toronto.
Yeah – and i remember they were obviously on you – know – airport road, okay uh remember we have to go for runs because i never was on an airplane before i remember running down the road and seeing the airplanes i’m like, oh man, hopefully one day i can get An airplane and yep in no time i was flying all over the world i was, i was away from my whole home for months at a time it’s like it all came through.
That’S amazing yeah! That’S one thing that um i’m very grateful for the sport.
I got to see the world yeah 40 countries, wow yeah wow yeah pretty crazy.
What did uh now? How did you start, though, like who was your first coach and what was what was the? I don’t know what what was the light that actually ignited you boxing, loving it following it: uh.
Well, my coaches, pat kelly.
He just passed away from coleman, yeah uh um.
For me, i i listened to what he said as far as training, but i i learned uh.
I learned a lot just watching.
Videos like i watched like my favorite fight, was uh the vincent bramble from the virgin islands.
He was the guy that i kind of put myself there and then i and i stopped losing travis.
So i had a combination of uh, a bramble of travis and that beat obviously that’s just a given but um.
I, like the fact that i didn’t have to rely on anybody else, yeah.
No, nobody, nobody! I could name anybody.
If it was my.
I thought it was my fault and if i won, i won so it was the combination of working with um, the the people that i looked up to the boxers that i looked up to and the fact that i didn’t want to lose and and that that I pretty much just you know, made me what i what i am yeah, no fair enough now you’re on the national team.
For quite some time.
Do you have any stories? I bet you have plenty and please feel free to trash chris johnson.
All you want on my show, i’m not gon na.
Do that i’ve done enough.
Nobody! Nobody will just help me out.
I have a lot of stories trash chris, okay.
No, i keep trying to drag his lazy ass.
I remember in cuba he called martin child molester, geez god and mark threw up kitchen table and went after him.
I remember that story for sure yeah.
That was crazy.
He was chasing him on my own.
Oh, my god, our teammates are fighting uh.
Oh, i got too many stories.
It’S just it’s just crazy.
I got i got jumped in russia, three guys uh walking down the street in downtown moscow.
Three guys were following me.
I was with mike strange and we’re walking down the street.
It’S like one in the afternoon and i kept looking and i thought mike these guys are following us, so he took up and ran away.
I stood, i took my ground and as soon as i got close, i turned around and threw a right hand and i slipped into stone bones, because i was gon na fight them all and they threw me up against the wall.
They started slapping me around a little bit and then i i talked, i talked my way out of it by saying: listen, hotel, russia exchange, which exchange we can.
You know we’ll make it we’ll make a deal right, yeah and they’re like all right.
Okay and i went back to the hotel – and i had my heavyweights tom, the lesbian, sir johnson – i had them already.
I go.
Listen, there’s three guys coming you’re gon na come and try to beat me up.
Try to get some clothing.
I want you guys with me and the security will let them yeah.
That was one story.
I got lots wow yeah too many stories i lost my i lost my passport uh coming back from russia had to stay there for two more days with the whole team.
Flew back and i was alone, i got my passport stolen cuba.
You know uh, you know my buddy lee yeah.
Well, we were um we’re getting girls in the hotel, like 20 bucks a night, the last night for our trip.
They wanted 40.
leave lee freaked out and he’s getting upset with the security guard.
Next thing you know put on put it right at his head, i’m like, oh, my god.
What’S going on now, yeah they had to write this temple.
Oh yeah, okay, gon na shoot them.
Okay, i got yeah.
I bet you do yeah, oh dear god, yeah um these nuts.
I can see that happening yep first time.
Well, i’ve been to cuba like 50 times right, i mean yeah so time i i brought him the first time i brought him or got out of the airport and we’re walking down the aisle to get out and one door says and or whatever it is in Spanish and today the other one was outside right.
He goes to the outside door and starts in the door trying to get out and i’m like.
What are you doing? This is the end.
This is the exit right here right and on the other side of the door, was a cuban with an ak-47 all set to go? Oh, what are you doing like man, you can’t we can’t be.
This is your first year.
You can’t be doing this kind of stuff and he had the he had the gun all set and locked and loaded – and i was like oh scared, the crap out of me crazy wow, was leon.
The national team part of me lee, was on the national team.
No, no! Never! No! I just brought him for vacation.
Oh okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, yeah! We just wanted a trip after i won the canadian title.
I won the canadian title in june of 90 94 and then week later, i brought him to cuba.
I was going to ask you about that.
Yeah.
Did you have a hard time transitioning from the amateur game to the pro game? No, not me because i was always a pro when i was an amateur.
I always felt like yeah you did yeah um.
I was one of those guys, even even the team, the whole team said billy’s going to make the best pro because he’s already got that style, yeah yeah.
So no i never.
I never really had any problems with that.
He looked out there yeah a lot of people.
That’S a sticking point yeah! I i transitioned well, because i had that style yeah.
How did your life change after you won the world title? Pardon me: how did your life change after you won the world title? Not one bit, you just went right back to the gym and start training again yep.
My next.
My next fight was uber yeah after i won the actual title i thought uh.
I thought a guy named um rodriguez, the wbc.
Well, i already won the.
I want a canadian i won.
I won the eye of the ibo title now, i’m fighting against jesus rodriguez, which was even harder because he was a southpaw, oh okay, yeah.
So that was a harder that was a harder fight and then and yeah a couple fights later.
I thought uh that day twice that was hard.
I remember the first, the first fight he threw up that’s up to the body.
I blocked it first round, i blocked the body shot, but i’m like, oh my god.
How am i gon na last 12 rounds with this guy so hard yeah yeah? I was like, oh my god, because i went out there because i knew how we fought.
So i’m like you know what you’re not going to intimidate me, i’m going right after you and then you give me i left and i blocked it.
I’M like! Oh, i better box, this.
This guy could punch yeah.
How did you do how’d you deal with guys who are who are more difficult that way, but they’re heavy-handed, [ Applause, ] or even worse or even worse, southpaws.
I i hate them.
That was my biggest that people was fighting so far.
I [ Music ].
You remember me saying that yeah yeah, no they’re, it’s hard.
You know it’s hard to fight those guys.
What do you think about it? My motto is we spar them or we fight them? Ten percent of the time yeah and they spar fight us.
Ninety percent of the time exactly so it’s it’s very difficult and i i i had a hard time.
Southpaws hate, fighting self pause.
Yes, you can see that watch your fights on tv, too, yeah yeah, that’s impressive, even when i thought ibf titles couldn’t punch at all.
Nothing but there’s a shell pop that was it just parked me it just confused you it just confused you yeah, just i’m not used to it, and i i’ve spotted a cell phone for two weeks from the states worked with him, but still it wasn’t enough.
You know that was just.
It was just hard fair enough.
What does what does um your involvement with boxing look like today say that again, what does your involvement in boxing look like today? How are you involved in boxing? Well, i run a gym uh.
You know that you know what my picture is on that wall.
You are on the wall, i’m not even on the wall in that gym.
Really, there’s a there’s, a huge picture of two amateurs fighting me versus burmese tavern: oh really, oh yeah, okay, i’m gon na have to check that was my second last amateur uh fight.
Second, second, last uh win in the amateurs yeah.
I got ta look, there’s so many pictures.
I have really have another chance to look at them.
So how is the boxing gym going? No, it’s pretty busy good for you.
Even throughout this whole cold war.
It’S still busy it’s kind of hard.
It’S kind of hard for me because there’s uh no fights coming up, yeah motivationally, it’s hard for me, serious! Okay, there’s! No, there’s no goal at the end right, so i’m yeah, i’m kind of down! That’S coming to an end.
You know one of these days this summer this this summer, there’s going to be a whole whack load of shows.
I i think so.
Thank you.
I think so i think so i i genuinely, i think this summer is going to be really busy.
Okay, hopefully, fingers crossed good.
Hopefully how would you like to see you know both the amateur get so many? How would you like to see both the amateur and the professional game change for the better yeah, more fights more uh more people join.
Well, you know what i got a couple of calls today: yeah for paraguay, girls, but so what yeah? That’S what we need going? How how would you like to see or what do you think, what kind of changes do you think would make the pro game better for me, the biggest change that not necessarily was to get rid of ken ayashi in canada.
Well, in ontario, just get rid of getting rid of ken.
Aisha was a huge, huge thing yeah i agree, but at the same time what’s happening now was the joke.
There’S there’s, there’s also um, but these guys some of our guys they’re fighting bums.
It’S it’s they’re.
Absolutely horrible, that’s gon na happen, like one of my one of my former students, lucas boddy, he’s fighting he’s fighting absolutely bombs.
He’S fighting 43 year olds, who’ve lost their last five fights.
That would never happen when i was fighting yeah.
My my my second, my second pro fight, i fought a guy 9-1 with 9-1 with eight knockouts and here’s here’s these guys.
Now, fighting guy guys who’ve lost their last.
Five fights been knocked out four times.
It’S like come on.
You can and they’re bragging and posting stuff on internet – and it’s like come on.
You guys are fighting nobody.
They are um.
It’S the new age of padding.
Your record yeah but they’ll be they’ll, get exposed, they’ll get exposed because yeah you get to that level.
They’Re going to fight the next step, then bang they’re going to get it right like it’s, it’s inevitable, they’re, not doing themselves or whoever the handlers are, aren’t doing them in favor yep.
Exactly i’m looking forward to some shows yeah, hopefully showing you gon na.
You got any pros, i uh i train uh, kevin hickson, oh really and dylan, and i have one of my own guys.
Uh antonio carnegie he’s turning he’s turning pro soon so i got.
I got three guys three pro bunch of amateurs.
You know good for you, yeah just keep working, that’s right with that.
I always say thanks for coming on, it’s been a pleasure talking to you.
I’Ve been wanting to actually bring you on the show for a while.
Finally, um i’m still gon na do the episode with uh your your family or your brothers and whatnot talking about boxing families, but again thanks again for coming on today.
You’Re welcome, awesome.
Okay, please we’ll talk soon, we’ll do take care! Thank you all the best and for you scoop nation, i’d like to say thanks for uh coming out.
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