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Canelo Alvarez to fight Ilunga Makabu at cruiserweight in five-weight world champion bid | Boxing | Sport

Boxing

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November 17, 2021

Canelo Alvarez to fight Ilunga Makabu at cruiserweight in five-weight world champion bid | Boxing | Sport

The WBC have confirmed they have approved a world title fight at cruiserweight between defending champion Ilunga Makabu and pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez for 2022. The Mexican will now sensationally step up 200lbs after clearing out the entire super-middleweight division to become the undisputed king, as he targets history as a five-weight world champion.

Last night’s announcement was met with huge surprise in some quarters given Canelo had been tipped to defend his belts at 168lbs against David Benavidez or alternatively, move back up to light-heavyweight to fight world champions Artur Beterbiev or Dmitry Bivol.

Canelo stepped up to 175lbs back in late 2019 to dismantle WBO champion Sergey Kovalev via 11th-round knockout.

Now he will bid to go one better in a bid to cement his legacy as one of the best fighters to have ever lived.

Having recently introduced a new weight class – bridgerweight – between cruiser and heavyweight, the WBC have decided to shift their cruiserweight limit to 190lbs, something that is likely to favour Canelo as he bulks up.

“We just approved the challenge between Canelo Alvarez and Junior Makabu in cruiserweight,” Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the WBC, confirmed at the convention.

Fight negotiations can now begin following the bout’s approval and if no deal is struck, pursue bids will be ordered.

Canelo’s trainer Eddy Reynoso, who hopes to work with Anthony Joshua having guided Alvarez to wins over Avni Yildirim, Billy Joe Saunders and Caleb Plant this year, believes his man has the tools to get the job done despite conceding this is an almighty risk.

“I know what he has done with the heavyweights he spars with, and that is why we asked for the fight,” Reynoso told ESPN Deportes.

“We know that [Makabu] is strong, but Canelo can beat him. Many may say that it is crazy, but they also said that it was crazy when Canelo was junior middleweight champion, and we were looking for middleweights, super middleweight, light heavyweights.

“I have a lot of confidence in Canelo. He is very strong and has many qualities, and I know that he is going to win that fight.”

There has already been talk of staging the bout in Makabu’s homeland of DR Congo in June or July next year.

The 34-year-old last tasted defeat back in May 2016 when he was stopped in devastating fashion by Tony Bellew at Goodison Park.

Makabu has won nine successive bouts since then, winning his WBC strap in early 2020 against Michal Cieslak.

The WBC’s approval of the fight with Canelo does complicate British star and WBO champion Lawrence Okolie’s chances of unifying the cruiserweight division.

He tweeted in response to the developments: “I get it, Canelo is a f****** g but that’s another belt I can’t unify now.

“Madly enough I think he will actually win and go back down in weight. So I can go back to being a fan.”

Mairis Briedis, who currently holds the IBF and Ring Magazine world titles, had also invited Canelo to move up and fight him but the Latvian is yet to make an offer to Okolie, who is desperate for a unification after winning his belt back in March.

Guanyu Zhou becomes China’s first F1 driver

F1

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November 17, 2021

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Guanyu Zhou becomes China’s first F1 driver

周冠宇 Guanyu Zhou alfa romeo f1 2022

Alfa Romeo announced Guanyu Zhou as China’s first Formula 1 racing driver on Tuesday with his arrival in 2022 hailed by both the team and the sport as a historic breakthrough in a key growth market.

The 22-year-old will partner Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas, who is joining from Mercedes after five seasons alongside seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, in an all-new line-up.

Formula 1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali said the signing was “fantastic for the sport and millions of passionate Chinese fans that now have a home hero to cheer all year long.”

“Zhou is an incredible talent, who will be a fantastic addition to the amazing grid we have and he will entertain and keep all our Chinese fans excited in 2022,” Domenicali said.

The youngster takes the place of Ferrari-backed Italian driver Antonio Giovinazzi, while Finnish veteran Kimi Raikkonen is retiring.

“The decision is crucial for the future of the company,” said Alfa team principal Frederic Vasseur, whose team are ninth out of 10 in the constructors’ standings.

“It was not only based on the fact that he is Chinese but it will be a mega-push for the company, for sponsors and I think also for F1 in general,” he told Reuters.

“He’s a front-runner in F2, he won in Bahrain and Silverstone this season and is still in a position to win the championship and it´s a very good combination at the end. I´m more than optimistic.”

Zhou: A breakthrough for Chinese motorsport history

Zhou is a test driver for the Renault-owned Alpine F1 team this season, and drove their car in Friday practice in Austria last July.

He is also second in the Formula Two standings, with two weekends to come in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi.

“I dreamt from a young age of climbing as high as I can in a sport that I’m passionate about and now the dream has come true,” said Zhou in a team statement.

“To be the first ever Chinese driver in Formula 1 is a breakthrough for Chinese motorsport history.”

Vasseur said Zhou would be severing his ties with Alpine.

“He’s a completely free agent, free management… I don’t want to have someone linked with another team who if everything is going well will leave. This was not an option at all for me,” he said.

Zhou is likely to bring considerable backing from China, some reports suggesting as much as $30 million, but Vasseur would not be drawn on the details or duration of the contract.

“We are 200% focused on the performance of the team and we don´t have to hide the fact that the budget is part of the performance and we are also targeting to get to the cost cap because it´s an important step for us,” he said.

Vasseur: Bottas and Zhou are an ideal driver combination

Formula 1 introduced a $145 million budget cap this season, with the figure set to drop to $135 million in 2023.

Big teams have to cut their spending to meet the cap while small teams like Alfa, run by Swiss-based Sauber, are aiming to attract more funding to reach the limit and compete on equal terms.

“On top of this positive news on the marketing and budget side, we can have a driver who is able to win races in F2. It’s a perfect combination,” said Vasseur.

He felt the absence of China’s Shanghai round from the calendar next season, for the third year in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic, would help reduce the immediate pressure on the rookie.

Formula 1 this month extended the Chinese Grand Prix contract until 2025. The race was first held in 2004. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin)

Our latest signing @gyzhou_33 has a special message for the team’s fans… 😊💬 #AlfaRomeoRacing #ORLEN #TeamZhou pic.twitter.com/4nOWsLtaVF

— Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN (@alfaromeoracing) November 16, 2021

Warriors vs. Nets – Game Summary – November 16, 2021

Basketball

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November 17, 2021

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Warriors

Nets

U.S. captain Davis Love III says Tiger Woods can pick his role for the 2022 Presidents Cup in Charlotte

Golf

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November 17, 2021

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U.S. captain Davis Love III says Tiger Woods can pick his role for the 2022 Presidents Cup in Charlotte

Davis Love III would be more than happy to have Tiger Woods serve as one of his assistants at next year’s Presidents Cup.

He’d rather have him at Quail Hollow in Charlotte playing.

Love is the 2022 U.S. Presidents Cup captain after twice serving as a U.S. Ryder Cup captain and as an assistant in 2018 as well as this year’s victory at Whistling Straits.

Woods played as the captain for the last Presidents Cup, in Australia, where the U.S. side won in 2019. Love said he had hoped Woods would continue his captaincy in Charlotte, which will host the event this year after it was postponed in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It would have been a great captaincy for Tiger to continue on,” Love said Tuesday at the RSM Classic, where he is the tournament host. “At the time we were discussing it, he said, ‘No, I’m playing really good. I’m gonna make the team, and I enjoyed Australia being playing captain, but I want to be a player on the team.’

“So his role is whatever his role wants to be. If Tiger calls me up and says, ‘Hey, you’re kicked out, I’m taking over’ — that’s Tiger’s role. If he wants to be an assistant, you know … I would hope that he comes back and starts playing and can make that a goal, to be on the team.”

Woods made those remarks to Love before he was involved in a serious auto accident in February and suffered multiple injuries to his right leg. Woods has offered no update on his status, and it would appear a playing comeback is not imminent.

But Love said Woods played a big role behind the scenes at this year’s Ryder Cup and again welcomes his input and help.

“It took us a while to get him to the point where he would engage,” Love said. “Obviously he had a rough start to the year, but once we got him in the loop, he was a big help and a lot of fun for the Ryder Cup and for the team. Obviously the guys were going to see him down there in South Florida all summer. He can do whatever, and I know he’ll be a big part of it.”

As for what Woods brought to the Ryder Cup team, Love said that Woods “can give a little more insight” to a few of the players.

“Tiger went from a guy we didn’t know to now he’s a leader and an inside guy,” Love said. “So he has good information on some of the players that we don’t know.

“He was really helpful in captains’ picks. I think for me, in ’16 [when Love was Ryder Cup captain and Woods was an assistant] and then as an assistant captain, he’s very helpful in strategy and pairings. He’s a tactician. He watches a lot more golf than I do, so he has a lot of information.”

Woods, 45, has not played an official event since the postponed 2020 Masters in November of last year.

Djokovic makes winning start, Berrettini suffers major injury — Sport — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News

Tennis

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November 17, 2021

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Djokovic makes winning start, Berrettini suffers major injury — Sport — The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News

World No 1, Novak Djokovic began his bid for a sixth Nitto ATP Finals title with a victory yesterday, downing Casper Ruud 7-6(4), 6-2 in Turin to move to 1-0 in Green Group action.

The top seed took an early tumble but recovered as he rallied from a breakdown in the first set, finding his rhythm from the baseline to fire 23 winners to secure victory after 90 minutes. The Serb, who last lifted the trophy in 2015, is aiming to tie Roger Federer’s record six triumphs at the tournament, which is being held in Turin for the first time.

Djokovic will also play Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev in the round-robin stage, with the pair facing off in their opening match on Monday evening.

Djokovic arrives in Turin in form, having clinched his record-breaking 37th ATP Masters 1000 crown in Paris two weeks ago.

By reaching the final, he secured the year-end No. 1 FedEx ATP Ranking for a record-breaking seventh time, eclipsing the mark he previously shared with Pete Sampras.

Earlier this season, Djokovic came within one victory of completing the Grand Slam. He went 27-1 at the four major championships with trophies at the Australian Open, Roland Garros, and Wimbledon before he lost to Daniil Medvedev in the final at the US Open.

Djokovic has now tied Ivan Lendl for the second-most wins (39) in Nitto ATP Finals history, behind Federer with 59.

Meanwhile, Matteo Berrettini’s opening match on home soil at the finals ended in disappointment Sunday night after he was forced to retire due to an injury to his abdomen at the start of the second set. Following the Australian Open in February, the 25-year-old was sidelined for two months due to an abdominal injury he suffered at the first major of the season. Berrettini admitted he is unsure, whether the injury, which forced him to retire against Zverev, is a recurrence of the same problem and is unsure if he will continue.

If he pulls out of the tournament, the first alternate, Jannik Sinner would take his place.

Yorkshire racism crisis – David Lloyd issues apology to Azeem Rafiq over comments on Asian players

Cricket

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November 16, 2021

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Yorkshire racism crisis – David Lloyd issues apology to Azeem Rafiq over comments on Asian players

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Sky commentator and former England coach had made disparaging remarks in an exchange with a third party

David Lloyd, the Sky Sports commentator and former England coach, has issued an apology to Azeem Rafiq and the wider Asian cricket community, after admitting to a text message exchange in which he had questioned Rafiq’s personal life and called into question the community’s willingness to participate in the social side of club cricket.

“It’s clear the problem is there,” Rafiq said. “Everyone’s known it for a very long time. I think it’s been an open secret. As I’ve seen over the last 15 months, if you speak out your life is going to be made hell – and there’s no doubt my life [has been made hell].

“I sat in front of national TV and talked about the dark places this whole episode has got me into and what’s happened since then? Denial, briefings, cover-ups, smearing.

“High-profile media people messaging other members of the media who supported me saying stuff like, ‘The club houses are the life blood of a club and Asian players don’t go in there’, ‘Getting subs out of Asian players is like getting blood out of stone’.

“And then personally this guy doesn’t even know me, has never spent any time with me, is talking about my personal drinking, going out and socialising.

“That was David Lloyd, he’s been an England coach, commentator, and I found it disturbing because Sky are supposedly doing this amazing work on bringing racism to the front and within a week of me speaking out that’s what I got sent to me.

“And I thought, ‘Gosh, there’s some closet racists and we need to do something about it’.”

Responding on Twitter, Lloyd, 74, acknowledged that he had made an error of judgement in making such generalisations, and pledged to work harder to “make cricket a more inclusive sport”.

“In October 2020, I had a private message exchange with a third party involved in cricket, about a number of topics,” Lloyd wrote. “In these messages, I referred to allegations about Azeem Rafiq which I had heard from within the game. I also made some comments about the Asian cricket community.

“I deeply regret my actions, and I apologise most sincerely to Azeem and to the Asian cricket community for doing this, and for any offence caused. I am strongly committed to making cricket a more inclusive sport.

“It is very obvious now that more work needs to be done and I will do everything I can to remove discrimination from the sport I love, and the sport that has been my life for over 50 years.”

Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket

Bruno throws his hat into the ring to help Joshua reclaim belts | Boxing | Sport

Boxing

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November 16, 2021

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Bruno throws his hat into the ring to help Joshua reclaim belts | Boxing | Sport

The defeat scuppered Joshua’s plans for a long-awaited bout with Tyson Fury, and he will be under pressure to avenge his defeat to Usyk and raise the possibility of that all-British bout happening in 2022.

The Matchroom fighter responded to the blow by immediately triggering his rematch clause, with the clash set to take place in Spring 2022, and has since been on the hunt for a new trainer.

Joshua has long worked with coach Rob McCracken, a relationship that dates back to him winning Gold at the London 2012 Olympics, with Joby Clayton and Angel Fernandez having also come on board for his last two fights.

However, the comprehensive defeat to Usyk, 34, has sparked him into seeking a change of approach and he hasn’t been short of public offers.

JUST IN: Tyson Fury’s father John claims Dillian Whyte pulled out of Otto Wallin fight due to him

“I think he’s still got the fire in his belly and he’ll want to prove a few people wrong by coming back stronger. If I can help in any way I’d love to. He just needs to call me.”

Whilst regaining his belts is currently his primary focus, Bruno also believes that Joshua still has a burning desire for an eventual unification bout with Fury, 33.

The pair were deep in negotiations for a bout in Saudi Arabia in 2021 when their plans were scuppered by Deontay Wilder, who took legal action against the Manchester man after claiming he was contractually bound to face him next in the pair’s trilogy fight.

A court ruling duly favoured ‘The Bronze Bomber’, but although it was Fury who came through their epic fight in Las Vegas, Joshua’s defeat means it is now Dillian Whyte in line to be his next challenger.

The blind footballer making waves in Paris

Football

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November 16, 2021

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The saying that – there is ability in disability can be said of Yvan Wouandji Kepmegni, a blind footballer who has looked beyond is current condition despite being blind. His blindness hasn’t cut his dream short. Born in Douala, Cameroon as a twin to Eugene Wouandji, and Yvette Wouandji. His twin brother Yven currently works […]

The post The blind footballer making waves in Paris appeared first on The Guardian Nigeria News – Nigeria and World News.

McCollum scores 29 as Trail Blazers beat Raptors 118-113

Sport News

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November 16, 2021

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McCollum scores 29 as Trail Blazers beat Raptors 118-113

PORTLAND, Ore. – If only the Trail Blazers could figure out why they’re successful at home but struggle on the road.

CJ McCollum had 29 points and Damian Lillard added 24 to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 118-113 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.

The Blazers, who were playing the second of a back-to-back, improved to 6-1 at home. That’s in stark contrast to the road, where Portland is 1-7.

“When we play at home, it’s a different team than when we play on the road. That’s just the truth. And I’m not sure what it is,” Lillard said. “I think when you’re at home there’s just a level of comfort and support that you feel from the fans. But at the same time, we’re NBA players. We play on the road a lot.”

OG Anunoby had 27 points for the Raptors, who have lost five of six. Pascal Siakam added 20.

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“They made tough shots,” Anunoby said. “We were playing hard. They’re making tough shots, but we were playing hard. That’s how it goes sometimes. They have good players on their team.”

Tech Draft: Smoke, Mirrors and Formula 1 rules

F1

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November 16, 2021

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Tech Draft: Smoke, Mirrors and Formula 1 rules

mercedes illegal or legal tech draft

Formula 1 is highly technical sport and so it would seem reasonable to me that media use informed and adequately qualified journalists when commenting or expressing opinions on technical matters.

Now, I don’t usually listen to Autosport’s Grand Prix review podcasts, but this morning I found myself listening to their Sao Paulo Grand Prix review, but at the 23-minute mark I turned it off, and I will never listen to it again.

A good example is the following.

Listeners were privy to a commentary of one of the hosts and she raised the following concerns with respect to the primary technical narratives of the weekend:

F1 is becoming a court of law rather than a sport;
Journalists are being forced to do a lot of digging so that they understand what is happening;
Journalists are not privy to the conversations in Stewards hearing;
F1 rules are complicated and convoluted;
Because of this F1 has a dark and shadowy side.

Anyway, one of the major points of conjecture surrounding the disqualification of Lewis Hamilton from qualifying on Friday due to a DRS technical infringement seems to be the process.

It would seem Mercedes were either confused about the application of F1 technical regulations in the instance when a technical directive is also applied, or they were outright questioning the legality of a TD.

I’d like to have a look at the following extracts from the FIA’s Document 29 from the weekend’s proceedings, the determination of the DRS irregularity of car #44.

The Competitor also noted, that Art 3.6.3 of the regulation states a maximum dimension, which is possible to measure without applying a force or load. It is not until a force is applied, that the gauge is able to go through.

Here Mercedes were attempting to argue that in a static condition their wing is compliant.

There was no disagreement that the test itself was undertaken as described in TD/011-19. The gauges were measured and the Stewards were satisfied that they were the correct dimension.

The FIA established correct conformance and calibration of the test performed under the technical directive.

The Competitor, therefore, argues that their car complied with the regulation in the static position and thus meets the regulation.

However, every Sporting Director in F1 knows that if a technical directive is issued that is to be read in conjunction with a technical article, compliance is consequently dependent on both the article and the TD.

The FIA argues that while not regulatory, the TD, like many others, describes the procedure for the test so that competitors may design cars to meet the regulations. Further, the TD states that the test is designed “to make sure that the rear wing element does not deflect to a larger opening than the permitted value…”.

The Stewards take the position that while a TD is not in itself a regulation, TDs are accepted as the method upon which the teams may rely and in this case, the test that was carried out was in conformity with the TD and its legitimate aims.

The FIA are reminding Mercedes of the TD and its intent.

Maybe it is that word, ‘intent’, where many perceive the smoke and mirrors to be.

Could be a fair observation that the language, or wording, in which the FIA drafts its codes and regulations become so focussed on the technical detail that the broader intent of the regulation is diluted?

Let’s use last weekend’s Mercedes DRS issue as an example.

Yes, the FIA have a very detailed technical regulation prescribing the limits of the deployed DRS opening. And sure TD/011-19 has been applied to further reinforce that regulation, or in essence, mitigate ambiguities.

But isn’t the overall intent to ensure that the DRS opening doesn’t exceed 85mm, regardless of wing flex, or actually regardless of anything?

It isn’t uncommon in other forms of law for a regulation or clause to be headed with a statement of intent, which becomes legally binding.

In the previous example of the DRS opening the regulation and the TD could very well be headed with a statement of intent along the lines that “The intent of this regulation is that the DRS opening will not exceed 85mm under any circumstance whilst the vehicle is in operation.”

Inevitably though, I for one don’t necessarily think a strategy like that is necessary because after all, like I have written over and over before, I believe in the fact that F1 is deeply rooted in innovation and closing every loophole would ultimately kill any scope for it.