Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets spoke about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang during La Liga trophy celebrations.

The six seeded Diamondbacks have moved on to the NLDS. Here's an update on their schedule for the 2023 playoffs.

The Arizona Diamondbacks don't have many well-known names in their bullpen

Why do the Miami Heat have UKG on their jerseys in the NBA Finals? Here's all you need to know about the Heat's jersey sponsor.The Miami Heat made it to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2020 with a jersey sponsor that's only been around about that long.Jimmy Butler and ...

Many in the Muhammad Ali business believe that the boxer never fully recovered from his comedy fight with a wrestler in Tokyo. It was the summer of 1976; Ali was the world heavyweight champion, and some men in Japan came up with a financial package for Ali to meet renowned wrestler, Antonio Inoki. It was scheduled for 15 rounds of three minutes, and it was for the ‘heavyweight martial arts championship of the world’ belt. Sound familiar? It was, trust me, not the joke you thought it was. For a start, it was meant to be a fix, a rigged encounter with blood, comedy, action and a classic wrestling twist. Ali got wind of the fix and refused to attend rehearsals. The plan was simple: Ali would beat Inoki senseless for six or seven rounds, the wrestler was prepared to cut himself with razor blades and then, because of all the blood, it would be stopped in Ali’s favour. At that point, with Ali’s hand raised and 20,000 Japanese fans howling, Inoki was meant to jump on Ali’s back and pin him. Glorious stuff – Ali rejected it. It came at a crucial time in Ali’s career. He had just stopped Richard Dunn in Munich to retain his heavyweight title; Dunn was dropped repeatedly, and they were the last knockdowns Ali ever scored. He fought seven more times, in six world title fights, but never dropped another man. He met men like Ken Norton, Leon Spinks, Larry Holmes and Earnie Shavers in that period; everybody in the Ali business came to regret each awful fight during that time. The hidden injuries from the Inoki farce added to the decline. The Inoki circus was conceived and sold as a safe way to make $6million and not get hurt; neither thing happened. At a ‘contract-signing’ event the night before, which was available to fans at a price, they agreed it would be winner-takes-all. Ali also had four suites and 31 rooms at the best hotel in Tokyo; this was not a joke. “I can’t let boxing down,” Ali said before the fight. “He’s not used to taking hard shots to the head. The moment I go upside his head, it’s over.” Ali’s assessment is true, but the rules were not made clear. Inoki dropped to his back and chased Ali for 15 rounds from that position on the canvas. In total, Ali threw six punches and connected twice; it was repetitive and dull, with Inoki on his back kicking out at Ali. At the end, it was declared a draw. There was no grandstand wrestling moment and there had certainly not been a single quality moment of boxing. Ali’s legs were cut, bleeding and damaged from Inoki’s hard wrestling boots and the dozens of kicks he had sustained. It was the eyelets on the boots that caused the superficial damage; the real damage was hidden as ruptured blood vessels formed. Ali was told to rest the leg and get it treated before leaving Tokyo, but he had commitments in Korea and Malaysia; when he got back to America, he was hospitalised with blood clots and muscle damage. His left leg remained damaged until the end of his boxing career. Ali finished with about $2.2m dollars for the event; Inoki had been guaranteed $2m, but was paid just a fraction of that total. In Tokyo, in that ring, nobody won. It would be funny if the martial arts championship of the world belt was found and given to Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia in October. That would be cool. Incidentally, the fight was being shown all over the world on closed-circuit screens. In New York, outdoors at Shea Stadium, it was part of the night when Chuck Wepner, the inspiration for Rocky, met Andre the Giant in a wrestling ring. The Ali and Inoki fight was shown on big screens. What a time to be a fan. Anyway, back in 1976, Ali limped on, fighting from memory for too many people and for far too long, and Inoki, well, he became a genuine mixed martial arts pioneer and icon. The big lad was in front of all curves. Inoki died last year and fought for the last time in 1998 when he was close to 60. The man who busted Ali’s legs was far more than just a novelty act on the wrestling circuit. Read More Why Fury vs Ngannou may tarnish the Gypsy King’s legacy forever ‘Nonsense’: Anthony Joshua reacts to Fury vs Ngannou fight announcement Francis Ngannou to earn more in Tyson Fury fight than entire UFC career, says rep Why Fury vs Ngannou may tarnish the Gypsy King’s legacy forever The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings Don’t be fooled by Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte’s calm reunion

Aaron Judge’s tiebreaking, two-run homer broke a large Maple Leaf attached to the front of the Rogers Centre’s restaurant, lifting the New York Yankees to a contentious 6-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays after pitcher Domingo Germán was ejected for sticky stuff

By all accounts, Chicago Cubs rookie Matt Mervis is off to a good enough start in his debut season. The first baseman has played in 17 games, and is batting .200/.273/.317. Defensively, he's been about as good as Trey Mancini, just a few percentage points below him in success rate, according to...

If you haven’t taken advantage of some of the best sportsbook promotions in your state, what are you waiting for?!New Jersey is home to two of the very best sportsbooks (and promotions) in the industry at Bet365 and DraftKings.You’ll win a combined $350 in bonus bets simply for s...

Second-ranked Duke is opening Year 2 under Jon Scheyer with four returning starters and a top-tier recruiting class

Dean Smith defended his under-fire Leicester players as they fight for their Premier League lives. The Foxes go to Newcastle on Monday knowing their top-flight future hangs in the balance as they sit two points from safety with two games left. If Everton win at Wolves and Nottingham Forest avoid defeat against Arsenal over the weekend Leicester will need to win at St James’ Park or they will go down. The squad – with one win in their last 14 games – has been accused of lacking fight in their relegation battle but Smith has given them his support. “I don’t need to pay homage to the players, I’ve inherited a squad and not brought any of them in,” said the boss, who saw the Foxes limply lose 3-0 to Liverpool on Monday. “I can openly criticise them if I need to, I don’t think I need to and I choose not to because the work ethic I see is there. “The numbers I get from my performance department prove to me it’s there. The thing which is missing is keeping clean sheets and making fewer mistakes in the defensive third. “It’s out of our hands because if other teams get the results there’s nothing we can do. We just have to concentrate on Newcastle and get the win. “If we get the performance we are capable of and minimise mistakes, not a problem. “We are in a position we don’t want to be in. Our job is to get out of it. Our job hasn’t changed from eight games (when he came in) to two games. “If you look at it realistically it was going to be tough to get points from Manchester City and Liverpool. Other games we would have expected to get points.” Kelechi Iheanacho (groin) and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (ankle) are expected to resume training on Saturday after missing the Liverpool defeat while Caglar Soyuncu (hamstring) and Danny Ward (dislocated finger) remain out. It is a fourth straight Monday game – meaning Leicester will know all the results before they play – but Smith insisted other scorelines will not impact his approach. He added: “We’re preparing for Newcastle now, I don’t want to suddenly change tactics with what we’ve been working on for four or five days.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live A look at how Pep Guardiola has fared previously against Inter Milan Dominic Calvert-Lewin set for Everton return ahead of crunch clash with Wolves Manuel Akanji wants three trophies to make it an ‘unbelievable’ debut season

Derrick White put up 28 points as the Boston Celtics beat rivals Miami 119-111 on Friday while NBA Draft top pick Victor Wembanyama starred in his first...

Seattle’s Jamal Adams hadn’t taken into consideration that more than a year had passed since last playing a game inside his home stadium