Michael Patrick Francesa (born March 20, 1954) is an American sports-radio talk-show host. Together with Chris Russo, he launched Mike and the Mad Dog in 1989 on WFAN in New York City, which ran until 2008 and is one of the most successful sports-talk radio programs in American history. On December 15, 2017, Francesa retired from his own show, Mike's On: Francesa on the FAN, which had been airing in the afternoon-drive slot formerly occupied by Mike and the Mad Dog. He was succeeded by Chris Carlin, Maggie Gray and Bart Scott in the same time slot for the first ratings book of 2018.