Boxing

Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford argued in the bowels of Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City in 2018, an otherwise ordinary back-and-forth exchange that went on to hold outsized significance to boxing fans everywhere. A matchup between two of boxing’s best fighters was ripe on that November evening nearly five years ago, but for

Timothy Bradley Jr. Jul 27, 2023, 09:16 PM ET The boxing world is bracing itself for an electrifying battle between two of boxing’s best pound-for-pound fighters, Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford. This impending duel on Saturday transcends the ordinary A-side buffoonery that boxing usually produces, and promises a thrilling welterweight matchup for the undisputed

Mike Coppinger Ben Baby Close Ben Baby ESPN Staff Writer Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 25, 2023, 10:54 AM ET Naoya Inoue isn’t simply the best boxer in the world — he’s an all-time great still adding chapters to his legendary career. “The Monster” continued his climb up the mythical all-time list with yet another see-it-to-believe-it performance, a pulverizing eighth-round TKO of Stephen Fulton on Tuesday in

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 25, 2023, 09:55 AM ET Naoya Inoue cemented himself as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world with a destructive performance: an eighth-round TKO of Stephen Fulton on Tuesday in Tokyo to claim the WBO and WBC junior featherweight titles. Inoue, who was fighting at 122 pounds for the first time, dominated

Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterJul 24, 2023, 11:00 AM ET Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), the boxing promotional company co-founded by Jake Paul, has signed rising Hollywood star and boxing up-and-comer Javon “Wanna” Walton, officials told ESPN on Monday. Walton, best known for his role as Ashtray on the HBO Emmy-winning series “Euphoria,” has had an

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 23, 2023, 07:30 AM ET His opponent, Paul Butler, was in survival mode the entire fight, ultra reluctant to throw a punch for fear of opening up his guard. Butler knew what he was up against: not just any boxer, but the one who earned the moniker “The Monster” for his unbridled

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 23, 2023, 12:51 AM ET Former lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr. returned to the win column — but in highly controversial fashion — with a majority decision victory over Maxi Hughes on Saturday night in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The 114-114, 117-111 and 115-113 scores in favor of Kambosos (21-2, 10 KOs) were met

Jul 20, 2023, 11:07 AM ET While a unification bout at Wembley against Tyson Fury is no longer on the cards, Oleksandr Usyk could still compete under the lights after swapping his boxing gloves for football boots and signing a contract with Ukrainian club, Polissya. Heavyweight champion Usyk, who trained as a footballer with Ukraine’s

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 19, 2023, 05:17 PM ET Errol Spence Jr. said a coin flip will determine who will walk out second when he meets Terence Crawford for the undisputed welterweight championship on July 29 in Las Vegas. Spence, who holds the WBA, WBC and IBF titles, will battle Crawford, the WBO champion, for welterweight

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 19, 2023, 04:50 PM ET Luis Alberto Lopez will defend his IBF featherweight title vs. Joet Gonzalez on Sept. 15 in Corpus Christi, Texas, sources told ESPN. Lopez, ESPN’s top boxer at 126 pounds, will headline a Top Rank on ESPN show for the first time in the U.S. The 29-year-old Mexican

Andres Waters Jul 19, 2023, 08:03 AM ET After years of buildup, ESPN’s No. 1 pound-for-pound men’s boxer, Terence Crawford and No. 4 Errol Spence Jr., will finally square off on Saturday, July 29 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, in one of the most anticipated fights in men’s boxing. The 12-round fight for Spence’s

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 14, 2023, 06:20 PM ET Boxing star Gervonta Davis was released from a Baltimore jail on Friday, a spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services confirmed to ESPN. Davis, 28, served 44 days at a detention center after a judge ruled on June 1 that he violated the

Mike Coppinger Ben Baby Close Ben Baby ESPN Staff Writer Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for

INDIANAPOLIS — As the clock ticked past midnight on the evening of July 23, 2022, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay found himself in something of a sudden-death scenario. Even after his decades-long association with the NFL, this was a nail-biter unlike any Irsay had ever experienced. Irsay and another persistent bidder were squaring off in

Mark Kriegel, ESPNDec 4, 2019, 10:44 AM ET Editor’s note: This was originally published ahead of Crawford’s fight against Jeff Horn on June 9, 2018. Crawford fights Errol Spence Jr. for the undisputed welterweight championship on July 29. OMAHA, Neb. — Grover Wiley was 25, six years into a pro career that would see him

Jeff Wagenheim Nov 12, 2020, 06:57 AM ET The elevator door slid open and out walked Terence Crawford. Despite being the best boxer in the world, the 5-foot-8, 147-pound Crawford does not cast an imposing figure, not in the way a hulking heavyweight might draw eyeballs. But he embodies the swagger of a prizefighter who

Mike Coppinger, ESPNJul 13, 2023, 03:03 PM ET Boxer Devin Haney was arrested Thursday morning in Los Angeles and booked on a felony charge of carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle, a Los Angeles Police Department information officer told ESPN. Haney was released on $35,000 bail, according to Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Court Records.