Boxing

2:40 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Canelo Alvarez’s longtime goal of becoming undisputed boxing champion is further from reality than ever since he won his third 168-pound title in May. Boxing’s top star was on the verge of a deal to meet Caleb Plant on Sept. 18 in Las Vegas — a PBC on Fox pay-per-view

2:31 AM ET New Zealand boxer David Nyika did not face much trouble on his way to a 5-0 victory against Youness Baalla in his Olympics heavyweight debut on Tuesday other than having to contend with an attempted bite from his Moroccan opponent. Nyika, a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist, had won the first two

8:11 AM ET Welterweight champion Terence Crawford was hoping for a unification bout against Errol Spence Jr., or a superfight against the legendary Manny Pacquiao. But with Spence and Pacquiao already set to face off on Aug. 21, it seems Crawford could be facing Shawn Porter next, after the WBO ordered that title defense. Is

9:04 AM 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 Olympic boxing offers a glimpse into the future of who might shine in the professional ranks, but failure at the Games doesn’t always lead

1:03 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Keyshawn Davis, a 3-0 pro widely hailed as Team USA’s best hope to end the gold-medal boxing drought for the men, advanced to the Round of 16 with a 5-0 victory over the Netherland’s Enrico Lacruz on Saturday evening in Tokyo. Davis, 22, won all three rounds on all five

7:10 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 Joe Joyce took a big step toward a world heavyweight title shot with a sixth-round stoppage win over Carlos Takam in London on Saturday.

6:39 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Ryan Garcia has resumed training after a sabbatical to address his mental health, and his return fight is already being planned. That comeback bout could come this fall against Joseph Diaz Jr., multiple sources told ESPN. It will be a clash of Mexican Americans from Southern California. The fight, if

6:31 AM 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 As the Olympic boxing tournament in Tokyo starts on Saturday, Britain’s Joe Joyce will watch closely as he aims to build on his success

8:36 AM ET Associated Press PARIS — The home of the French Open tennis championship will host boxing matches in September, 75 years after French great Marcel Cerdan fought and won there. The French Tennis Federation said Wednesday that French boxer Tony Yoka and other boxers will fight on Court Philippe-Chatrier at Roland Garros on

8:01 AM 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 Frazer Clarke will begin his attempt to win Olympic gold in the men’s super heavyweight category on Saturday, and although Tokyo 2020 was delayed

8:15 AM 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 Team Great Britain has had one of the most dominant teams in boxing across the last decade with at least nine medals in the

1:24 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Terence Crawford, ESPN’s No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer, could be preparing for a quantum leap in competition. A fight between the welterweight champion and former titleholder Shawn Porter was ordered by the WBO late Wednesday night. In the letter, sent to Crawford’s promoter, Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, and Tom Brown,

6:48 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Oscar De La Hoya’s comeback fight at 48 is now exactly that — a fight. The Hall of Fame boxer’s Sept. 11 return against former UFC champion Vitor Belfort, originally planned as a boxing exhibition, now will be a sanctioned fight, Triller Fight Club founder Ryan Kavanaugh told ESPN on

11:00 AM 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 will defend his WBA, IBF and WBO world heavyweight titles against Oleksandr Usyk in front of what is hoped will be a

7:55 PM ET Mike Coppinger Ben Baby Close ESPN Staff Writer ESPN Staff Writer Previously a college football writer for The Dallas Morning News University of North Texas graduate The last 12 months have been a revelation in boxing, in terms of boxers becoming undisputed champions or looking to join that elite group. It’s only

1:48 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Canelo Alvarez is inching toward his goal of collecting all four titles at 168 pounds. Alvarez, boxing’s biggest star, and Caleb Plant are closing in on a deal for a Sept. 18 bout in Las Vegas — a PBC on Fox pay-per-view — that will crown an undisputed super middleweight

8:17 AM ET In a parallel universe, we’d be days away from the high-stakes heavyweight title trilogy fight between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder that was originally scheduled to take place Saturday. Unfortunately for fight fans looking forward to another big heavyweight clash, Fury contracted COVID-19, and that fight appears destined to take place in

3:19 AM ET Mike Coppinger Ben Baby Close ESPN Staff Writer ESPN Staff Writer Previously a college football writer for The Dallas Morning News University of North Texas graduate In one moment, Jermell Charlo appeared out of answers as his shot at an undisputed championship was slipping away. Then in another, Charlo was smacking Brian