Captain Sam Kerr declared herself available on Saturday for Australia's must-win clash with Olympic champions Canada in a major boost for...

The UFC has hit out at the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) for its statement on Conor McGregor this week, calling the agency’s words ‘false’, ‘garbage’ and ‘trash’. McGregor returned to the Usada testing pool on Sunday (8 October), as he prepares for his first fight since suffering a broken leg in July 2021, when he lost to Dustin Poirier for the second time in a row. However, Usada’s announcement of McGregor’s return to the pool was accompanied by a revelation that the agency would be ending its partnership with the UFC in January. Usada CEO Travis Tygart said the relationship between both parties had become ‘untenable’, and that he could not be sure whether the UFC would honour its stipulations when it comes to McGregor. In order to compete in the UFC, athletes must have been in the Usada pool for six months while returning at least two negative test results and zero positives. The UFC and McGregor hinted earlier this year, however, that Usada might grant the former champion an exemption. Tygart took exception to that suggestion this week. Now, the UFC’s Senior Vice-President of Athlete Health and Performance, Jeff Notitzky, and the promotion’s CBO, Hunter Campbell, have taken aim at Usada over this week’s developments. Campbell said at a press conference on Thursday (12 October): “At no point in time did Jeff, myself, or any other UFC representative, Dana [White, UFC president].... Not a single person ever went to Usada and told them anything other than Conor McGregor would reenter the program when he was healthy. “And in doing so, we would require him to be in the program for six months; there would be no exception to the rule. And what I said to Travis on multiple occasions, including the call on Monday, was there would never be a situation where Conor would fight until he had been in the program for six months, and my words were: ‘I don’t give a s*** if he has 37 clean tests.’ “[Conor has] conducted himself with integrity and honesty. He’s done everything right, and he’s – as you can imagine – very upset at the moment for the way that they’ve sort of used him. And they’ve never done that with any other athlete in history, and I think that’s a really important point. “I’ll say it one last time: What they’ve done to him is disgusting. And for an entity that holds themselves out to have a level of honour and integrity, using him as a media vehicle to advance a fake narrative is disturbing, disgusting, and I think they have some legitimate legal liability that they should be very concerned with. “They use him the way they have because he has allowed them to get a level of media attention that they can’t get on their own. Usada puts some s*** out, no one cares. You connect Conor to it, and all of a sudden it explodes, whether it triggers the algorithms or whatever. And truthfully, that’s why I’m most disappointed about the way that they’ve handled the last 48 hours. They used an athlete as a vehicle to advance a false narrative. I think it’s incredibly unethical – incredibly.” Meanwhile, Novitzky alleged: “The narrative that Usada put out yesterday is false, it’s garbage, trash. I can’t sit up here and come up with enough adjectives [for] what they said and what that’s done to this programme currently.” The UFC also said it would move forward with Drug Free Sport, which works with the NBA, NFL and MLB. The Independent has contacted Usada for comment. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Usada ends UFC partnership over ‘untenable’ Conor McGregor situation When will Conor McGregor return to the UFC? Alexander Volkanovski admits it’s ‘crazy’ to fight Islam Makhachev on short notice Usada ends UFC partnership over ‘untenable’ Conor McGregor situation Alexander Volkanovski admits it’s ‘crazy’ to fight Islam Makhachev on short notice When will Conor McGregor return to the UFC?

Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star guard Anthony Edwards has been fined $50,000 by the NBA for a postgame outburst following the team’s ouster from the playoffs in Denver

Josh Taylor has a point to prove when he takes on Teofimo Lopez this weekend, with the WBO super-lightweight title on the line in New York City. Taylor has not fought since February 2022, when he retained the undisputed titles with a controversial decision against Jack Catterall in Glasgow. The unbeaten Scot later vacated two of the belts and was stripped of another as he focused on a rematch with Catterall, which fell through earlier this year. The collapse of that fight led to the announcement of this one, however, with 32-year-old Taylor defending his remaining title against Lopez, a former unified lightweight champion. Lopez, 25, outpointed Vasiliy Lomachenko to win the lightweight belts in 2020, before losing them to George Kambosos Jr in 2021. The American has since bounced back from that sole professional loss with two straight wins at super-lightweight, though, stopping Pedro Campa in August and winning a debated decision against Sandor Martin in December. Here’s all you need to know. When is it? The fight will take place on Saturday 10 June, at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theatre in New York City. The main card is set to begin at 1am BST on Sunday 11 June (5pm PT, 7pm CT, 8pm ET). Ring walks for the main event are then due at approximately 4am BST (8pm PT, 10pm CT, 11pm ET). How can I watch it? In the US, the event will air live on ESPN and ESPN+. In the UK, Sky Sports will broadcast the fights. Sky Sports subscribers can watch the event live on TV, as well as on the broadcaster’s website and Sky Go app. Odds Taylor – 8/13 Lopez – 11/8 Draw – 12/1 Full odds via Betway. Full card (more fights to be confirmed) Josh Taylor (C) vs Teofimo Lopez (WBO super-lightweight title) Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings Joe Rogan is right: Tyson Fury has ‘no chance in hell’ against Jon Jones Why is BT Sport being rebranded to TNT Sports? Eurosport merger explained Who is fighting on Josh Taylor vs Teofimo Lopez undercard this weekend? What time does Josh Taylor vs Teofimo Lopez start in UK and US this weekend? The Independent’s pound-for-pound boxing rankings

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