5:31 PM ET Nick Parkinson Close •Reports on boxing for ESPN.co.uk, as well as several national newspapers•Has been reporting on British boxing for over 15 years•Appears on BoxNation’s Boxing Matters show Anthony Joshua has been concentrating on overcoming Oleksandr Usyk’s southpaw stance in preparation for Saturday’s world heavyweight title defence. The WBA, IBF and WBO
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7:49 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua won’t clash this year as hoped, but both heavyweights each have a big-time challenge ahead of them in the coming weeks. Joshua’s defense on Saturday against Oleksandr Usyk (5 p.m. ET, DAZN) and Fury’s trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder (Oct. 9, ESPN+ PPV) are part
11:51 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Probellum, a boxing promotion and media company, launched on Monday, the company’s president, Richard Schaefer, told ESPN. The company aims to take a global approach to the sport, using alliances in different territories — Europe, Eastern Bloc, Asia, Middle East and Africa among them — in an attempt to unify
2:39 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Manny Pacquiao has not made a decision on his future despite comments from the boxer suggesting he has retired, Sean Gibbons, the president of Pacquiao’s promotional company, told ESPN on Monday. The future Hall of Famer, during an interview with Filipina star Toni Gonzaga on Sunday, said his “boxing career
12:15 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Joe Smith Jr. was hospitalized with COVID-19 and his Oct. 30 light heavyweight title defense vs. Umar Salamov has been postponed, the boxer’s promoter, Joe DeGuardia, told ESPN on Tuesday. The 32-year-old stayed in a Long Island, New York, hospital overnight before being released, according to DeGuardia. The 175-pound title
11:57 AM ET World heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has signed a new “career-long” agreement with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom, the promoters announced on Tuesday, although the length of the deal is undisclosed. Joshua will put his WBA, IBF and WBO world title belts on the line when he fights Oleksandr Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
6:19 PM ET BEVERLY HILLS — Canelo Alvarez and Caleb Plant started their scheduled fight more than a month early. The two boxers got into an ugly punching exchange during a staredown at a news conference Tuesday at the Beverly Hilton hotel. Alvarez and Plant are scheduled to fight for the unified super middleweight title
11:35 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Oscar Valdez wasn’t the only person to be scrutinized by the boxing world after he tested positive for the banned substance phentermine ahead of his victory over Robson Conceicao earlier this month. His trainer, Mexico’s Eddy Reynoso, was dragged into the controversy, and had his reputation called into question by
4:26 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Teofimo Lopez has signed a contract to allow Triller to move his lightweight championship fight with George Kambosos from Monday, Oct. 4, at New York’s Hulu Theater at MSG, to Saturday Oct. 16, at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, Triller’s Ryan Kavanaugh and Teofimo Lopez Sr., the fighter’s father and trainer, both
Lewis Hamilton has decided not to back out of on-track battles when he believes he has a right to the corner, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff says. Wolff said it followed discussions over the aggressive approach to racing of title rival Max Verstappen of Red Bull. “The change in approach is that Lewis pretty much
Valtteri Bottas led Lewis Hamilton in a Mercedes one-two in first practice at the Russian Grand Prix. He was 0.211 seconds ahead of Hamilton, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen third just 0.016secs behind his title rival, who the Dutchman leads by five points. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who starts at the back of the grid after
7:54 PM ET The NHL anticipates 30 of its 32 arenas will open at 100% capacity for the 2021-22 season, according to a memo circulated to teams this week. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Montreal Canadiens are expected to open at 33% capacity, or around 7,500 fans. The Vancouver Canucks will open at less than
7:41 PM ET Associated Press SHEBOYGAN, Wis. — British actor Tom Felton, known for his portrayal of Draco Malfoy in the “Harry Potter” movies, collapsed while playing a celebrity golf exhibition Thursday at the Ryder Cup. Ryder Cup organizers said only that Felton experienced “a medical incident” at Whistling Straits and was taken to a
6:35 PM ET Associated Press SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks opened training camp with a big void at forward with Evander Kane not participating and little idea of when or if he will come back. The Sharks took the ice for the first time this season Thursday, a day after Kane was
7:22 PM ET Associated Press SEATTLE — It didn’t take long for Mark Giordano to get years of seeing red out of his system. The former longtime Calgary Flames defenseman didn’t even flinch Thursday while pulling on the jersey of a different team for the first time in his career. Give an assist to his
4:19 PM BST Rugby World Cup winner Steve Thompson, who was diagnosed with dementia aged 42, has pledged to donate his brain for research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the former England hooker said on Thursday. Thompson is one of a group of nine former players who filed a class-action lawsuit against World Rugby and
3:50 PM ET Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz will face in-form Andy Murray in the quarterfinals of the Moselle Open in Metz, France after he eased past Lucas Pouille in straight sets on Thursday. No. 1 seed Hurkacz took just 68 minutes to cruise to a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Pouille, putting in a dominant display as
8:00 AM ET Our NBArank countdown is back for its 11th season. Which players are beginning their ascent up the league’s hierarchy? Who is on the verge of breaking into the superstar tier? To get the final NBArank prediction, we asked our expert panel to vote on pairs of players: Kevin Durant vs. James Harden,