List of All Articles with Tag 'sports'

At last. It has taken over five years to get Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr in the same ring for their wonderful fight in Las Vegas on Saturday night. The old neon city has waited patiently for a fight like this, a fight without gimmicks, a fight with undefeated boxers and a fight that just had to happen. It might lack some of the stardust associated with the strip in Las Vegas, but it remains a fight for the ages. Spence is unbeaten in 28, he holds the IBF, WBC and WBA welterweight titles; Crawford is unbeaten in 39 and he holds the WBO version. Crawford has also held world titles at lightweight and light-welterweight. Spence is 33, Crawford is 35, and they are the most perfect rivals in an imperfect sport. Spence crashed his car, suffered injuries, had a potential career-ending eye problem and Crawford was shot in the neck and left for dead before he took boxing seriously. They have a backstory or two, don’t worry. Spence won his first welterweight title one cold, May night in Sheffield when he stopped Kell Brook in 2017; the following year, Crawford won his WBO title. A fight between the two has been discussed since the summer of 2018. It might not be the longest wait between the first talks and the first bell, but it is the longest for a fight of this importance. There are no circus attachments here, no desperate men, no lost causes – it is just two very good fighters, both still in their primes, meeting. Well, actually, they are an exceptional pair of fighters, quite brilliant in many ways. Spence has looked long and hard at moving up in weight to light-middle and has so far made six defences of his welterweight title. Some, it must be said, have not been spectacular. Crawford has also made six defences and stopped or knocked out all six men. He has appeared more focused. However, both have been guilty of holding out for the type of money that came so close to ending any chances of this fight ever happening. They have both talked about the risks they take as fighters and the need to maximise their pay, their cash, their fee for fighting. Thankfully a compromise has been found to satisfy their pockets. This is strictly a fight for money, but wealth is health in the boxing game. All the talk of pride, unification and being called the best welterweight in the world are just nice and necessary tributes. There is, by the way, nothing wrong with two boxers admitting that money has kept them apart and that money has finally brought them together. Legacy, it seems, belongs in another time and place. It is the first proper unification between two men holding all the existing welterweight belts (four now, three then) since the night in Atlantic City in 1986 when Lloyd Honeyghan ruined Donald Curry. Honeyghan was the welterweight king, the man on that long and glorious night; the winner at the T-Mobile Arena will take that fanciful crown. The Curry and Honeyghan fight was anonymous, which is often forgotten. This fight has become an event during the last few days, and at about 10pm in Las Vegas on Saturday night, we will have another welterweight king. They have, often in parallel boxing worlds, beaten the best men at their weight and have, on occasion, eyed each other up close and personal. The fight was made, mentioned, desired and collapsed several times. It was, thankfully, inevitable, and all parties finally saw sense and sat and talked – and talked – and found a deal to satisfy every single ego in their respective businesses. It is also the right time because there are now a pair of quite exceptional and dangerous contenders in Jaron Ennis and Vergil Ortiz Jr waiting with menace in a line. Crawford and Spence had to fight each other before either Ennis or Ortiz Jr had their crack. The wait will be worth it and all that really matters now is that it is on. Forget the money demands, the excuses, the insults, the threats and anything else that somehow stopped this fight taking place. Forget it all. It’s on, so sit back and enjoy it. Crawford has aged better during the five years and one month they have shared as champions. That should be the factor once that first bell sounds. Read More Spence vs Crawford time: When does fight start in UK and US this weekend? Errol Spence Jr lifts lid on Anthony Joshua’s training sessions in Dallas Naoya Inoue, the best boxer in the world, fights on Tuesdays

Christine Sinclair

England continue their Women’s World Cup campaign against Denmark in a crunch Group D clash in Sydney. The Lionesses got their tournament underway with a narrow 1-0 win against Haiti as Sarina Wiegman said her side lacked “ruthlessness” in front of goal. LIVE! Follow coverage of England vs Denmark with our blog Denmark also got off to a winning start as they edged China 1-0, so both teams will be looking for improvement as they target a place in the knockout stages. Wiegman hinted that England are likely to make changes for Denmark, who are led by former Chelsea forward Pernille Harder. Here’s everything you know as the Lionesses continue their World Cup campaign What time is England vs Denmark? The Group D match will kick off at 9:30am BST on Friday 28 July at the Sydney Football Stadium. What TV channel is it on? England vs Denmark will be shown live on BBC One and on the BBC iPlayer, with coverage starting from 9am. England’s final group-stage fixture is against China on Tuesday 1 August and will be shown on ITV, with the match starting at 12pm BST. Should England make it through to the round of 16, their fixture will be shown live on the BBC. Click here for the full World Cup TV guide. Team news Sarina Wiegman has a fully fit squad and the manager has hinted that she will make changes to try and spark the Lionesses into life. Wiegman, who did not make any changes to her starting line-up during the Euros, could bring in Lauren James and Rachel Daly in attack. The back-four is likely to remain the same, with Millie Bright partnering Jess Carter and Lucy Bronze and Alex Greenwood at full-back, in front of goalkeeper Mary Earps. Keira Walsh will shield the back-line alongside Georgia Stanway, England’s goalscorer against Haiti, in midfield. Ella Toone, Lauren Hemp and Chloe Kelly face competition from James, while Daly could be preferred to Alessia Russo. Predicted line-up Earps; Bronze, Bright, Carter, Greenwood; Walsh, Stanway; Kelly, James, Hemp; Daly Read More Sarina Wiegman must take chance to reset England’s World Cup bid Darts, colouring in and 1,000 bags of Yorkshire tea: Inside the Lionesses’ World Cup den Women’s World Cup schedule: How to watch every match today

On a September night in California aboard the superyacht “Aviva,” one of the UK’s richest men sat down

The New York Mets began the process of dismantling the team with the largest payroll of all-time, trading closer David Robertson to the Miami Marlins for two teenage minor leaguers

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has urged his fellow Formula One drivers not to complain if wet conditions affect racing at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix

Colombian star forward Linda Caicedo, an 18-year-old cancer survivor, puts a hand to her chest and voluntarily drops down to the ground during a video of a Women’s World Cup training session posted to Twitter on Thursday by a Colombian media outlet

With a tied score and two minutes left to play after a stunning second-half comeback, China's women's soccer team finally scored the goal that had eluded them for 16 years.

Mark Canha had a sacrifice fly after a 97-minute rain delay in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting the New York Mets to a 2-1 win over the Washington Nationals

Ticket sales are nearing 1.6 million for the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand after surpassing pre-tournament targets and FIFA's revised record expectations

The Matildas missing out on the knockout rounds of the Women's World Cup barely factored into pre-tournament reckoning in Australia

If gamesmanship could win test matches Eddie Jones’ Wallabies would beat the All Blacks at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday and take a giant step towards returning the Bledisloe Cup to Australia after 21 years