Year: 2020

One of the best stories to come out of UFC 250 was Cody Garbrandt’s triumphant return to the win column with a stunning knockout victory over Raphael Assuncao. Not only did the former UFC bantamweight champion put a halt to his three-fight losing skid, it was also the first time we had seen “No Love” compete in over a year ...

Eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao denied that he ever told Top Rank's CEO Bob Arum that he intended to run for president of the Philippines in the upcoming 2022 elections. During a video interview with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman, Arum claimed that Pacquiao not only advised him of the presidential run, but also asked him to be at the inauguration. ...

Claressa Shields is pound for pound the best women’s fighter in the world, and equally the best trash talker outside of it. Shields (10-0, 2 KOs), the three-division champion and two-time US gold medalist, is trying to convince former female boxing queen Laila Ali (24-0, 21 KOs) to come out of retirement for one last hoorah. In doing so, she’s ...

Where it started is anyone’s guess. Most would likely be hard pressed to recall the first time they heard it said. The adage so far remains able to stand the test of time. ‘The book is always better than the movie.’ It’s not true. Nothing is always true. In this case, it’s true often enough to feel like a fact ...

Former two division UFC champion Conor McGregor explained the reasons behind his decision to walk away from the sport of mixed martial arts. Late Saturday night, following the UFC 250 pay-per-view event from Las Vegas, McGregor took to social media and announced that he was retiring from MMA. McGregor had officially retired from MMA on at least two other occasions. He retired ...

World Boxing Council President Mauricio Sulaiman is supporting Alejandra "Tigre" Jiménez, who disagrees with the recent ruling to remove her recognition as the WBC super middleweight champion. On January 11 in Texas, Jimenez won a decision over Franchon Crews-Dazurn to capture the WBC, WBO super middleweight titles. Jimenez had previously held the WBC's heavyweight title and shed a lot of weight to drop down to a weight ...

Abraham Nova has a new opponent in Avery Sparrow for his co-feature on the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card on June 25 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas -- assuming that the paperwork is completed. Nova was initially scheduled to fight Toka Kahn Clary in a 10-round bout at a contract weight of 132 pounds on the undercard ...

For the second time this year, Mikaela Mayer has watched a fight canceled due to the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This time around, it had a physical impact. The unbeaten 130-pound contender was forced to withdraw from a planned ESPN-televised appearance on Tuesday after testing positive for COVID-19. Mayer was due to face Helen Joseph—a veteran contender from Connecticut ...

An eight-figure fee for stepping aside is an obvious bonus if Deontay Wilder were to allow Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury to fight next. As long as Wilder were guaranteed the winner in the following fight, Paulie Malignaggi thinks there’s another reason Wilder would be wise embrace that option. “I think Wilder should let them fight first, and then take ...

Shakur Stevenson entered his most recent training camp amidst a pandemic felt around the world, expecting to merely come out of it as the first televised headliner in the United States in nearly three months. Instead, his next ring appearance will be accompanied by a movement which has carried a global impact. The unbeaten 22-year old was deep in training ...