I am hosting a new show called "Around the Horn." It will air Mondays through Fridays on ESPN at 5 p.m. ET, beginning October 28th. We are on right before "Pardon the Interruption." Like PTI, we will be an opinion show, covering the hot sports topics of the day.

I'm hosting the show from a studio in Washington D.C. Along with me will be newspaper columnists hooked up via fiber optic cables from their hometowns. We will have one columnist from each time zone: Bob Ryan from the Boston Globe (Eastern), Jay Mariotti from the Chicago Sun-Times (Central), Woody Paige from the Denver Post (Mountain), and T.J. Simers from the L.A. Times (Pacific). In addition, the south will be represented by way of Texas in the person of Tim Cowlishaw, of the Dallas Morning News.

Everyone involved with the show agreed that it would be a good idea for Bob, Jay, Woody, T.J., Tim and I to spend some time together before our first broadcast. So I have spent the last day and a half with these guys. I had a blast, especially when Bernie Williams hit that three-run shot to win Game 1, and the bunch of them - all Yankees haters - had to watch me do my maniacal Yankees victory dance.

Just as I experienced when I guest hosted PTI, I found that none of these men who write about sports for a living follow boxing. They all seemed to enjoy a good fight, but with the exception of Ryan - who was as blown away by the Mickey Ward-Arturo Gatti fight as was the rest of boxing fandom - none seemed familiar with active non-heavyweight fighters not named Oscar De La Hoya.

As the boxing guy I of course tried to explain what they were missing, but the general response was that I should tell someone who cares. The pity is that these smart and influential scribes are missing the very best of what the sports world has to offer. Take next month for example.

Within 30 days in November, we will have three fights each with the potential for true greatness. The Ward-Gatti rematch need only be half as good as the original in order to give us another classic. The first fight defies description.

The Ring magazine featherweight champion Marco Antonio Barrera is taking on his No. 4 contender Johnny Tapia. Barrera might be too much for Tapia, but Tapia has a better chance than many give him. Barrera has not been as aggressive in recent fights as he was earlier in his career, and this could give Tapia chances, as Johnny has fast hands and feet, and can box with anyone.

Barrera was also hurt twice in his rematch with Erik Morales, both times from body shots. Tapia, in his first significant fight at featherweight, stopped rugged Cesar Soto, who had lasted the distance with the nuclear-fisted Naseem Hamed. Tapia stopped Soto - with a shot to the body.

Meanwhile, Paulie Ayala, The Ring Magazine junior featherweight champion of the world, is moving up to featherweight to take on champion Barrera's top ranked challenger Erik Morales. Morales-Ayala should be a great fight, with the winner in line for a shot at the winner of Barrera-Tapia.

Three great matchups in one month, and outside of us hard-core boxing fans, no one cares. Its a shame, because you have to watch these fights to see them. And nothing the NFL or NBA have to offer in November can match what boxing has on tap.

Max Kellerman is a studio analyst for ESPN2's Friday Night Fights.