Khabib Nurmagomedov has clarified why he missed childhood friend and UFC protege Islam Makhachev’s stunning victory over Alexander Volkanovski. The former UFC champion, who finished his career with an unbeaten 29-0 record, said it was not unusual for him to not be in the corner in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night. Nurmagomedov became Makhachev’s coach following his retirement in 2020, but the ‘Eagle’ announced earlier this year that he had taken a step back from the UFC. Makhachev stunned Volkanovski with a first-round knockout at UFC 294, retaining the lightweight title in their rematch. In February, Makhachev outpointed Volkanovski – who holds the featherweight belt – in the latter’s native Australia, in a competitive clash that left many fans desiring a rematch. Nurmagomedov congratulated Makhachev on his victory before responding to fans who had questioned his absence from ringside. “If you guys ask me where have I been? Why wasn’t I in the corner, I already answered this question,” he posted on Instagram. “I don’t go to fights, I don’t go to the corner and I completely left everything related to MMA. I ask you to accept my decision the same way as my brothers, friends and sparring partners did. What our team achieved will forever be in the history of MMA.” Makhachev had already addressed the fact that Nurmagomedov would not be in his corner before UFC 294, telling reporters that he understood and supported his mentor’s decision. “Here is my explanation: We have a very big team,” Makhachev said. “What if Khabib is there for one of us? We’re all equal. “No matter if somebody’s a champion and the other guy is still on his way up, we all support each other. If he is there for my fight, he will need to be there for every single one from our team to not let anyone feel abandoned. “He has already said that he will not attend the fights and he will not corner anyone. And we all support him in this decision.” Midway through the first round of the main event, southpaw Makhachev skimmed his left shin off Volkanovski’s head, wobbling and dropping the featherweight king. Makhachev, 31, followed up with a fierce flurry of hammer fists to the grounded Aussie, whose brow split open amid the onslaught. Referee Marc Goddard stepped in, confirming an emphatic victory and title defence for Makhachev, the mentee and childhood friend of UFC lightweight great Khabib Nurmagomedov. The result extended Makhachev’s win streak to 13 fights, dating back to 2015, when he suffered the sole loss of his professional career. Meanwhile, Volkanovski was beaten for the third time as a pro, though he remains undefeated at his preferred weight of 145lbs. Read More Alexander Volkanovski’s bravest move yet? Talking about his mental health Conor McGregor reacts to ‘illegal’ strikes in Islam Makhachev win at UFC 294 Makhachev stuns Volkanovski with head-kick KO in first round at UFC 294 UFC 294 LIVE: Volkanovski vs Makhachev fight results after shock KO Islam Makhachev demands two words from Alexander Volkanovski ahead of UFC 294 Volkanovski vs Makhachev gamble shows the best and worst of the UFC

West Ham agree a deal in principle with Ajax for the signing of defensive midfielder Edson Alvarez. The 26-year-old will now head to London to undergo a medical.

Fernando Alonso is riding a wave of enthusiasm that this Spanish Grand Prix can finally end his decade-long wait for a Formula One victory

Which of the last five NBA first overall picks tops the list?

Harry Kane was among the scorers as Bayern Munich beat Manchester United 4-3 in their heavyweight Champions League clash on Wednesday, while Jude Bellingham snatched a dramatic late winner for Real Madrid and Arsenal...

On the shores of Lake Issyk Kul in mountainous Kyrgyzstan, a group of divers show off their haul for the day -- a boat engine, car...

A vintage All Blacks smashed Australia 38-7 Saturday to retain the Rugby Championship title and Bledisloe Cup as Eddie Jones's gamble with a...

Dan Lanning's Oregon Ducks were able to flip former four-star USC commit Dakoda Fields away from Lincoln Riley's Trojans on Monday night.With Oregon heading to the Big Ten as well, the Ducks' budding rivalry with the USC Trojans is only just getting started.Oregon and Washingt...

England manager Sarina Wiegman hailed a “very important” three points after the Lionesses opened their Nations League account with a 2-1 win against Scotland. Just over a month since their World Cup final loss to Spain, the Lionesses picked up an inaugural win in the competition. Former Black Cat Lucy Bronze opened the scoring at the Stadium of Light before Lauren Hemp doubled the lead and Kirsty Hanson pulled one back – all in the six minutes before the break. The visitors had opportunities to level in the second half, with Hanson and Christy Grimshaw having the pick of the chances, but were unable to capitalise and Wiegman was pleased her side were able to take the win – which left them alongside Belgium at the top of Group A1 after the latter’s surprise win over the Netherlands. “First of all I’m very happy with the three points, three very important points,” she told a press conference. “You see how competitive the Nations League is with the other results we’ve seen. “I think the first half we’ve played a lot better than the second half and scored two good goals. “We also gave away a couple of counter-attacks where Scotland showed they were really dangerous in those moments – I think those were our own mistakes that gave them that opportunity – but I think overall we were a lot better the first half and second half we were struggling. “Overall we kept the win and that’s the most important thing off the back of the World Cup and a very short turnaround where players haven’t played any competitive games yet.” The Nations League is a new competition for this year and there is a chance for England to secure Paris 2024 Olympics qualification on behalf of Great Britain via the tournament. England next face the Netherlands in Utrecht and Wiegman is pleased to see “more competitive games” being played. “If you look at other groups there’ve been really tight too, some remarkable results, that’s what we want,” she added. “We wanted more competitive games, we want to develop the game and get top countries to improve, but countries just underneath the top to also get closer. “We’ve seen in the World Cup that everything comes closer and closer, which is very exciting for the game, but it’s really good to have these competitive games that you don’t know ahead who’s going to win the game and who’s going to top the group.” Scotland manager Pedro Martinez Losa was “disappointed” with the result. He said: “We are disappointed because we came here to win and that’s the ambition we have as a team. We wanted to come here to compete and play the football we wanted to play. “I think Scotland was brilliant in many other moments, this is the performances that this team can put together and we want to do it again in the next matches. “We are not still happy, we will never be happy losing games but we want the ambition to win games. “We had the feeling we could get something else in the game but now the only thing we can do is to take the positives, continue building to make sure we can recover and go again on Tuesday (against Belgium).”

Toronto FC unveiled John Herdman as their newest head coach.

The New York Mets’ Kodai Senga, San Francisco’s Alex Cobb, Philadelphia’s Craig Kimbrel and Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes were added to the National League All-Star roster as replacements for pitchers who will be inactive for Tuesday’s game

West Ham have condemned the behaviour of a section of their support after Fiorentina defender Cristiano Biraghi was left bleeding by an object thrown from the crowd during their Europa Conference League final victory in Prague. The game was goalless in the 35th minute when Biraghi went over to take a corner from in front of the end of the Eden Arena where West Ham supporters were sitting, with the player struck by what appeared to be a vape pen as cups and other objects rained down on him. He required a head strapping in order to continue, after referee Carlos Del Cerro Grande had briefly called a halt to the game and a stadium announcement had issued a warning for fans to stop throwing things and respect the players and officials before the match could continue. West Ham issued a statement promising to take action against anyone found to have committed an offence and ban them from attending matches at the London Stadium. “West Ham United unreservedly condemn the behaviour of a small number of individuals who threw objects onto the pitch during tonight’s UEFA Europa Conference League final,” said the statement. “These actions have no place in football, and do not in any way represent the values of our football club and the overwhelming majority of our supporters, who have behaved impeccably in Prague this week and throughout our last two seasons in European competition. “We will work with the police and other stakeholders to review the incidents and act against anyone found guilty of an offence. “In line with our zero-tolerance approach, anyone identified will have their details passed to the police and will be given an indefinite ban and therefore be unable to enter London Stadium and travel with the club. There is no place for this kind of behaviour at West Ham United.” West Ham won 2-1 thanks to a penalty from Said Benrahma and a goal in the 90th minute from Jarrod Bowen to land their first major trophy since lifting the FA Cup in 1980. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live