It’s 1980 in the Notting Hill section of London in “Lovers Rock,” the second of director Steve McQueen’s Amazon Prime series of five Small Axe movies about life in Caribbean immigrant communities in the United Kingdom. The exquisite 71-minute film is one of the brightest lights of a burst of new dramatic movies.

International Boxing Organization cruiserweight champion Kevin Larena was too much for Spokane's Patrick Ferguson, beating the Lewis and Clark graduate in the fifth round Saturday by technical knockout.

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It’s not often Spokane-area sports fans have a jam-packed Saturday. And all of the events could be over by lunchtime, leaving the afternoon for going to a movie or cross-country skiing or a nice dining experience. Oh, right.

Ferguson (17-2-1, 13 knockouts) faces defending International Boxing Organization champion and South Africa-native Kevin Larena (28-1, 12 KOs) at Emperors Palace in Kemptron Park, South Africa.

Mike Tyson stepped onto a spotlighted stage Friday and weighed in at 220 pounds, ripping off his shirt to reveal a muscled torso that could belong to an athlete of half his 54 years.

Mike Tyson became the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history more than three decades ago. In a month, one of the sport's transcendent figures is set to step into the ring again at 54 to face another legend, Roy Jones Jr., in a bout with an actual championship on the line.

Sixty years ago this week, U.S. boxer Cassius Clay won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Rome. Clay would go on to change his name to Muhammad Ali, win the world heavyweight boxing title three times and become one of the most respected – and most controversial – athletes of the 20th century.

Professional boxing matches are rare spectacles in pandemic time, but Spokane native Patrick Ferguson found a way into the ring. 

One hundred and ten years ago Saturday, Black heavyweight champion Jack Johnson took on former white heavyweight champion James Jeffries. The result sent shock waves throughout the sport and throughout the country.

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Being as today seems to be the calm between the storms, why don’t we waste as little time as possible and get right to it. That way, you can get outside, enjoy the fleeting sunshine while you can, and still have an idea what’s going on in the sports world.

Spokane native Chauncy Welliver once sparred with Mike Tyson in Brooklyn, New York. He's how it went down.

An all-British world heavyweight title showdown between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury is a step closer.

The U.S. promoter of Tyson Fury is hoping to stage a third heavyweight fight between the British boxer and Deontay Wilder by the end of the year, potentially in the Chinese enclave of Macau.

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It is obvious the holiday weekend is so far behind us, we can’t even see it in the rearview mirror. How do we know? Things happened in the world of sports yesterday. Lots of things.

Spokane Boxing opens its doors Wednesday, a result of Spokane County’s Phase 2 reopening

Add boxing to the list of sports on the comeback trail. Promoter Bob Arum said Thursday he plans to stage a card of five fights on June 9 at the MGM Grand, the first of a series of fights over the next two months at the Las Vegas hotel.

It’s hard to say what is more startling, seeing Mike Tyson hitting a bong or watching him hitting the mitts in a boxing gym like he was getting ready to fight Evander Holyfield again.

Last month, someone broke into Rick Welliver's boxing gym in downtown Spokane and stole 20 pairs of boxing gloves from his students. Two days ago, an anonymous person dropped off 14 new pairs of gloves and hand wraps for Rick. Joe McHale sits down with Welliver as he expresses the positive impact this anonymous donation has had on his gym.