While combat sports fans can choose from a wide selection of podcasts that break down fights and preview upcoming bouts, a new podcast from a pair of industry veterans is the first to focus exclusively on the health and safety of the athletes. Sponsored by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA), the Fighter Health Podcast, from boxing journalist Kieran Mulvaney and Dr. Margaret Goodman, neurologist and VADA founder, bills itself as an “open conversation on fighter safety and clean sport,” and will feature an in-depth interview every episode. The Fighter Health Podcast is presently available on Substack and Spotify and will shortly be available on other platforms. New episodes will post twice a month.
The first two episodes, presently available, feature Dr. Goodman providing background on VADA, and Andy Foster, executive director of the California State Athletic Commission, discussing measures the Golden State is taking to improve fighter pay and welfare.
Future interview subjects will include fighters, trainers, cutmen, referees, judges, commissioners, ringside physicians, drug testing technicians, and more. Each will offer insight on the realities of the fight business and how best to provide combat athletes with better medical, financial, and legal protection.
“I’m excited to have this opportunity to work with such a widely respected figure as Margaret,” said Mulvaney, who is presently a writer for BoxingScene, having previously been a podcaster for both HBO and Showtime. “I’ve known Margaret for 20 years, and in all that time she has consistently placed the welfare and interests of fighters at the forefront of everything she does. The fighters are the only truly indispensable people in boxing and MMA; we expect so much of them but spend far too little time considering their welfare. But from cutting weight to opponents taking PEDs, to the struggle for money, to say nothing of the intrinsic dangers of being in the ring or the cage, fighters undergo struggles that so many of us aren’t even aware of. If we can help shed even a little light on those problems, and on what we can do to help protect the men and women who put their health at risk for our entertainment, I’ll be happy.”
“It’s a privilege to have Kieran shepherd this project,” added Goodman. “Combat sports safety should always be at the forefront and it’s our aim to tell the untold stories of those who protect the athletes.”
