Sports

Dec 15, 2022 The UFC will end its year with a main event highlighting one of the promotion’s most interesting divisions. Sean Strickland will take on Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday in a critical middleweight battle. Both men are coming off losses against elite fighters, and the winner

1:35 PM ET Associated Press GRAND BAIE, Mauritius — Antoine Rozner and Alfredo Garcia-Heredia credited island vibes after they moved into a tie for the lead with Sami Valimaki at the Mauritius Open on Friday. Rozner shot an 8-under 64 to join Garcia-Heredia and Valimaki in a one-stroke lead — at 10-under 134 overall —

8:00 AM ET 2022 featured the breakout of many boxers, the retirement of others — some of them short-lived — and a few new undisputed champions. The year also included plenty of upsets, disappointing performances, and of course, controversies. What fight will be remembered as the best of 2022? Who did we select as Fighter

Dec 15, 2022 Associated Press SANDUSKY, Ohio — Hailie Deegan will drive full time in the NASCAR Truck series next season with ThorSport Racing. ThorSport formally added Deegan to its driver lineup Thursday as it announced a manufacturer move from Toyota to Ford. Deegan, a 21-year-old California native, will race in the Truck series for

8:54 AM ET Associated Press LONDON — Iga Swiatek and Rafael Nadal were honored by the International Tennis Federation as its 2022 ITF World Champions on Thursday after each claimed two Grand Slam titles this season. The ITF determines its awards based on criteria that include all events and give special weight to the four

When LeBron James passed Karl Malone for second on the NBA’s career regular-season points list, he set his sights firmly on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA’s current all-time leading scorer. Abdul-Jabbar has been atop the career points list since April 5, 1984 — eight months before James was even born — when he broke the mark

6:00 AM ET Eric WoodyardESPN ALLEN PARK, Mich. — A familiar face was reintroduced to the Detroit sports community Jan. 21, 2021. And he could hardly contain his excitement. On this rare occasion, Dan Campbell eschewed any team-issued gear for a dark suit while addressing reporters for the first time, via Zoom from the broadcast

Dec 14, 2022 December 14, 1947 was a Sunday afternoon. Yes, most of the men who gathered in Daytona Beach, Fla. on that chilly, gray day were dressed in suits. But no, it was not a church service. Far from it. There was entirely too much brown liquor on the table and cigar smoke in

Dec 1, 2022 Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Goodyear will remain the exclusive tire for NASCAR’s top three national series under a new multiyear deal announced Thursday. Specifics of the extension weren’t included, but the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company will continue as title sponsor of the annual Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway as part

11:06 PM ET ESPN staff Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin has scored goal No. 800 — reaching the feat with a hat trick against the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 13, the 29th of his career. Go inside Ovechkin’s journey to 800 — and what comes next — with our Ovechkin 800 project, narrated by Emily

7:00 AM ET There has already been a lot of action in what will likely end up as the biggest MLB free agent extravaganza of all time, but there are still plenty of solid players left on the market. After the most recent New York Mets-driven spending explosion and the flurry of activity Monday, it’s

Dec 13, 2022 It wasn’t just any year in college football. We’re going to have a College Football Playoff for the first time that doesn’t include Alabama or Clemson and one that does include TCU. There are similar surprises on ESPN’s 2022 All-America team. Some of the players on everybody’s radar when the season began

9:24 AM ET Associated Press Tony Stewart‘s Superstar Racing Experience is moving to ESPN and a new night as the network plans to use the all-star summer racing series to revitalize its “Thursday Night Thunder.” ESPN said Monday it signed a multiyear agreement with Superstar Racing Experience that begins in July. SRX will air on

8:34 PM ET United States midfielder Giovanni Reyna was almost sent home from the World Cup in Qatar due to a lack of effort in training and in a pre-tournament scrimmage against Qatari side Al Gharafa SC, sources told ESPN on Sunday. Reyna, 20, did not start a single game for the US in Qatar

12:18 AM ET Paddy Pimblett was the most talked about fighter on the card. The most talked about thing coming out of the card might be the decision in his fight. “The Baddy,” one of the UFC’s top rising stars, squeaked out a unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over Gordon in the co-main event of

Dec 9, 2022 Associated Press NEW YORK — Trainer Jason Servis, whose horse Maximum Security was the 3-year-old champion in 2019, pleaded guilty Friday to federal charges involving a widespread scheme to drug horses. The 65-year-old New Jersey-based trainer faces four years in prison when he is sentenced next May in U.S. District Court in

9:37 AM ET If you were hoping for the venom of a Phil Mickelson–Tiger Woods showdown in previous iterations of The Match — or certainly what a rematch might bring today — then Saturday night’s made-for-TV clash featuring Woods and world No. 1 Rory McIlroy against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas might seem more like

Dec 9, 2022 Mike CoppingerESPN Teofimo Lopez was at the pinnacle of boxing after beating Vasiliy Lomachenko in 2020. A new contract, celebrity, sponsors and fandom followed the undisputed lightweight champion. Just months after his 23rd birthday, Lopez was poised to be the next superstar in a sport with a long history of them. Lopez

6:49 PM ET Associated Press ATLANTA — Hawks guard Dejounte Murray is expected to miss about two weeks because of a sprained left ankle, the third Atlanta starter to go down with an injury in the past week. Murray was hurt Wednesday night early in the first quarter of a 113-89 loss to the New

10:44 AM ET FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons have made a change at quarterback, turning to rookie Desmond Ridder and benching veteran Marcus Mariota, a source told ESPN’s Michael Rothstein on Thursday. The quarterback switch comes after the Falcons have lost four of five games while scoring more than 20 points just once