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Philadelphia 76ers top assistant Dave Joerger stepping away to undergo treatments for cancer

Basketball

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November 14, 2021

Philadelphia 76ers top assistant Dave Joerger stepping away to undergo treatments for cancer

Philadelphia 76ers top assistant coach Dave Joerger is leaving the team for several weeks to undergo chemotherapy and radiation treatments for a form of “head and neck” cancer, he told ESPN.

Joerger, 47, has undergone treatments while coaching for the past two weeks — missing only one road game — but the Sixers’ extended road trip requires him to step away and stay back for treatments in Philadelphia, he said.

Joerger told the Sixers players, assistant coaches and staff of his cancer in a postgame meeting after Saturday night’s loss to the Pacers in Indiana. He had already told a small group of Sixers officials — including coach Doc Rivers, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey and owner Josh Harris — of his recent diagnoses.

“Dave is not only one of the most talented and respected coaches in the NBA, but he’s a great friend, colleague, husband and father,” Rivers said in a statement. “The same positivity, enthusiasm and grit that have made him a successful coach will also carry him through his fight against cancer.”

Joerger, who says he has Stage 1 cancer, described his prognosis prior to Saturday’s game on ESPN’s The Woj Pod podcast.

“We have caught it early,” Joerger told ESPN. “I’m very lucky. I’ve got over a 90% chance of cure rate, but it’s very scary and it’s not enjoyable going through. …I can’t go on the road and do radiation and chemotherapy in different cities around the country. To continue my treatment, I need to step away from the team.”

Joerger noticed a lump in his throat approximately 15 months ago and alerted his Memphis-based physician. After a scan returned negative, he kept monitoring the lump and worried that it wasn’t getting smaller. Five weeks ago, he called his doctor with renewed concerns.

“I stare at my face every morning when I shave and I’m very sensitive … that I know that [the lump’s] there,” Joerger told ESPN. “…We do another scan, and it’s one of those days that you’ll remember for the rest of your life. We were in Toronto, and he texted me and said: ‘We need to talk. Let’s just get it done right now.'”

Part of Joerger’s decision to make his cancer diagnosis public is the chance to encourage people to pursue early detection — including regular examinations and alerting doctors immediately like he did when something seemed wrong with his body. “You’ve got to take action,” Joerger said.

Joerger has built a reputation as one of the league’s most innovative offensive tacticians in his time as an assistant and head coach. Joerger reached the Western Conference playoffs in each of his three seasons as the Memphis Grizzlies head coach, including a trip to the Western Conference semifinals in 2015. He left Memphis to become the Sacramento Kings head coach in 2016, where he coached three more seasons.

He was 245-247 (.498) overall as a head coach and 9-13 (.409) in the playoffs. Before reaching the NBA as an assistant in Memphis in 2007, Joerger worked his way through basketball’s minor leagues — including two now-defunct leagues, the Continental Basketball Association and United States Basketball League.

Joerger credited Rivers and the Sixers organization for supporting him since the diagnosis and pushing him to take all the time that he needs away from the team.

“The first two weeks of radiation are not terrible,” Joerger told ESPN. “What will happen, in seven weeks total of treatment, it keeps compounding onto itself ….You can hear me now — I don’t sound great.

“But it’s only going to get worse as far as [my] ability to swallow, [my] ability to speak, [my] ability to keep food down. It’s been enjoyable coming to work, but at times it can be a little strenuous.”

Norris: We did everything we could

F1

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November 14, 2021

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Lando Norris had a decent 2021 Sao Paulo Sprint on Saturday, and was able to finish ahead of the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, admitting that they did everything they could as a team.

Norris started the Sprint race seventh behind Leclerc, was able to finish ahead of the Monegasque in sixth, but will start Sunday’s race in fifth, as the five-place grid penalty Lewis Hamilton becomes effective on the race starting grid.

“A good day for us with two positions gained,” Norris said in McLaren’s media brief.

“One on a very important competitor, which is the Ferrari, and one on the AlphaTauri, so we’ve given ourselves the best opportunity to score some big points tomorrow,” he explained.

“There were some positives and negatives from today in terms of how the car was and how confident I was pushing the car.

“We’ll try to make improvements overnight and see if we can come out even stronger tomorrow,” the Briton who turned 22 on Saturday went on.

Quick snack, @LandoNorris? 😅 pic.twitter.com/UUh5ZWXX8l

— McLaren (@McLarenF1) November 13, 2021

“We did everything we could,” he insisted. “Even though we didn’t quite have the pace of the Ferraris, we still managed to get ahead of one of them.

“We’ll try even harder tomorrow,” Norris vowed.

Daniel Ricciardo, on the other hand, went backwards, having started the Sprint race eighth, but lost ground in Turn 1, and ended up 11th at the chequered flag.

The Australian spoke of his Sprint in the team’s press release: “The start itself was alright but the inside line into Turn One got a bit bottled-up and the positioning wasn’t so good.

“I’ll have a look at that and make sure I get on top of it for tomorrow,” he admitted.

“We want to try to move forward, so we’ll see what we can do.

“I’ll learn from today and come back fighting in the race,” Ricciardo summed up.

A day of mixed results

McLaren team boss Andreas Seidl, lamented how Ricciardo’s Sprint race unraveled, but was able to take some positives from the whole picture.

“Mixed results today in sprint qualifying,” Seidl said. “Lando had a good sprint, moving forwards, which was the objective, overtaking Gasly and Leclerc.

“Daniel unfortunately got boxed-in at Turn One and lost momentum and positions because of that, before being stuck in a DRS train for pretty much the entire race,” he explained.

“Execution from the team was good today, and the positive is that, in terms of pace, we were in a position to fight with the cars around us.

“Points are on offer tomorrow, and we’re fully focused now on race preparation,” the German insisted.

“We’re looking forward to an exciting São Paulo Grand Prix,” he concluded.

After losing ground to Ferrari in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Standings after the Mexico City GP, dropping 13.5 behind the Italian team, the gap became 14.5 after Carlos Sainz’s one-point-awarding second place finish in the Sprint Race in Sao Paulo.(Follow me on Twitter @MallakJad)

Four-goal Mbappe fires France to World Cup finals, Belgium also qualify | The Guardian Nigeria News

Football

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November 14, 2021

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Four-goal Mbappe fires France to World Cup finals, Belgium also qualify | The Guardian Nigeria News

World champions France booked their place at next year’s World Cup in Qatar in style as Kylian Mbappe fired in four goals in an 8-0 thrashing of Kazakhstan at the Parc des Princes on Saturday.

Karim Benzema scored twice and there were further goals for Adrien Rabiot and Antoine Griezmann whose penalty marked his 42nd goal for France, taking him ahead of Michel Platini.

Only Thierry Henry (51) and Olivier Giroud (46) have scored more for France.

The French will be joined at the finals by neighbours Belgium as the world’s top-ranked team saw off Estonia 3-1 in Brussels to ensure top spot in Group E ahead of Gareth Bale’s Wales who beat Belarus 5-1 in Cardiff.

The Netherlands, who missed out on the 2018 World Cup, looked on course to join them as they led Montenegro 2-0 going into the last 10 minutes of their encounter in Podgorica.

However, the Dutch conceded two goals in the last 10 minutes to draw 2-2. They still top Group G but are just two points ahead of Turkey and Norway.

On the sixth anniversary of the 2015 attacks in Paris which claimed the lives of 130 people, France put on a spectacular show for their supporters.

Mbappe set the ball rolling when he put the world champions ahead after just six minutes.

The Paris Saint-Germain star, playing on his home ground, added a second six minutes later and completed his first hat-trick for France with a thundering header just after the half-hour.

Leading 3-0 at the break, France turned up the heat even more in the second half as Benzema struck twice before Rabiot and Griezmann had their moments in the spotlight.

It was fitting that Mbappe had the final say, stroking home his fourth to complete the rout three minutes from time.

France top Group D, leaving Finland and Ukraine to scrap over second place.

“A World Cup is a dream, an aim, it’s everything and it’s a unique chance to play in a team that can win it. We’re going over there to win it,” Mbappe said.

The Finns have a two-point advantage going into the final round of matches after seeing off Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-1.

The Finns had Jukka Raitala sent off before half-time but goals from Brentford forward Marcus Forss, Robin Lod and Daniel O’Shaughnessy sealed the win.

Belgium comfortable

Belgium had dropped just a single point in qualifying up to this point and knew that victory over Estonia would guarantee them top spot in Group E.

Manager Roberto Martinez, however, was without furst-choice strikers Romelu Lukaku, Mitchy Batshuayi and Touri Tielemans who were all injured.

That meant a call-up for Christian Benteke and the Crystal Palace forward did not disappoint, taking his chance to press his claims by netting the opener after just 11 minutes.

“I know I’m only the third choice in the hierarchy of the forwards but I’m not giving up,” said Benteke.

“The place in the squad for Qatar will be earned on the pitch.”

Yannick Carrasco doubled the lead eight minutes into the second half and although Erik Sorga pulled one back for the visitors, Thorgan Hazard put the game to bed shortly after.

That win meant that Wales, who had already secured a place in the play-offs, would not be able to catch them.

The Welsh, however, boosted by the presence of Bale making his 100th appearance, produced their own impressive show with Aaron Ramsay scoring twice on a noisy night in Cardiff.

The Dutch, meanwhile, who would have qualified with a win over Montenegro, will rue careless defending after Memphis Depay had scored twice to give them a 2-0 lead.

Ilija Vukotic marked his international debut with a goal in the 82nd minute to give the home side some hope and four minutes later Nikola Vujnovic looped in a header to halt the orange march to Qatar.

“The way we played in the second half was just outrageous,” Dutch captain Virgil Van Dijk told Dutch broadcaster NOS.

“Our organisation was just awful. We should have qualified here.”

The Dutch are just two points ahead of Turkey, who put six past Gibraltar, and Norway who proved toothless without the injured Erling Braut Haaland as they were held to a 0-0 draw against Latvia in Oslo.

The Dutch host Norway in Rotterdam on Tuesday in the final round of matches while Turkey travel to Montenegro.

France and Belgium join Denmark and Germany as confirmed qualifers from Europe with the other six automatic places to be settled over the course of the final matchday.

Jerami Grant scores 24 points, Pistons beat Raptors 127-121

Sport News

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November 14, 2021

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Jerami Grant scores 24 points, Pistons beat Raptors 127-121

TORONTO (AP) — Jerami Grant scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, Isaiah Stewart scored 20 and Detroit used a big finish to beat short-handed Toronto 127-121 on Saturday night, the Pistons’ fourth straight victory over the Raptors.

Killian Hayes had 13 points and a season-high 10 assists, Saddiq Bey scored 16 points, Josh Jackson had 15 points and Frank Jackson added 14 as the Pistons bounced back from Friday’s 20-point loss at Cleveland to win for the second time in three games, setting season-highs in points, assists (34), and made field goals (43).

“That felt good,” Stewart said. “It felt really good. Just want to continue to keep this up heading into the next game.”

The Pistons shot 6 for 8 from 3-point range in the fourth, outscoring Toronto 34-26 in the final period.

“When we’re able to share the ball like we did tonight, guys can just make plays,” Hayes said.

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Detroit rookie Cade Cunningham scored seven of his 10 points in the fourth.

“He’s made for those kind of moments,” Stewart said. “He’s that kind of player.”

Pistons coach Dwane Casey said a team meeting Saturday morning helped change the mood after Friday’s lopsided loss.

Tyson Fury trolls Jake Paul over Instagram DMs as he trains brother Tommy Fury for fight | Boxing | Sport

Boxing

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November 14, 2021

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Tyson Fury trolls Jake Paul over Instagram DMs as he trains brother Tommy Fury for fight | Boxing | Sport

Tyson Fury has been trolling Jake Paul with voicemails ahead of the YouTuber’s fight with his brother Tommy. Paul, 24, and Fury, 22, will finally settle their bitter war of words inside a boxing ring on December 18, when they meet in an eight-round bout in Tampa, Florida.

The pair have been embroiled in a series of volatile online exchanges in 2021, and then things got physical in September when they had an altercation backstage at a show in Cleveland.

Paul had just beaten former UFC star Tyron Woodley in the main event to take his professional record to 4-0, while on the undercard, Fury had made it seven unbeaten bouts with a win over Anthony Taylor.

The clash paved the way for the rivals to negotiate a bout, and both training camps are now in full swing with Fury being trained by older brother Tyson, who last month beat Deontay Wilder in an epic heavyweight clash to retain his WBC title.

And ‘The Gypsy King’ is seemingly targeting Paul with his infamous mind games, leaving him messages via his Instagram account.

JUST IN: Mike Tyson offers to train Anthony Joshua despite Logan Paul ‘agreement‘

“Tyson, you can’t hate the guy. I love Tyson and I love that he’s involved, a great entertainer, but unfortunately I have to end his brother’s career. That’s just the way it is.”

Paul added that beating Fury badly would ‘110%’ halt his boxing ambitions, and again spoke of the strange contract clauses he claims will mean his opponent will have to change his name if he loses.

“He’ll have to change his name to Tommy Fumbles, his family says they’re gonna disown him, and that’s it for him. He says he wants to be a world champion and then he gets beat by me? Then see you later.”

Paul, whose win against Woodley was the subject of controversy with many pundits feeling he was fortunate to take a split verdict, did have a word of solace for his bitter rival though.

Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert, Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner among 4 fined after altercation

Basketball

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November 14, 2021

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Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert, Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner among 4 fined after altercation

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner were among four players fined by the NBA on Friday after the two players got into a scuffle late in Thursday night’s game.

Gobert was fined $35,000 for initiating the on-court altercation, while Turner received a $25,000 fine for escalating it, the league said. Utah’s Donovan Mitchell ($30,000) and Joe Ingles ($20,000) also were fined.

The incident began after Gobert appeared to pull Turner down to the ground with him after Turner blocked his shot at the rim with just over four minutes left in the game. Turner responded by shoving Gobert in the back, which led the Jazz center to bear hug Turner and try to wrestle him to the floor.

Mitchell and Ingles joined the fray as members of both teams converged near the Jazz bench. Gobert, Turner, Mitchell and Ingles were all ejected.

The NBA said Mitchell was fined for “escalating an on-court altercation by verbally taunting an opponent,” while Ingles was fined for
“making inappropriate contact” with an official during the altercation.

After the game, Mitchell pinned the scuffle on built-up frustration over the referees allowing too much contact early in the game.

“That whole thing could have been avoided — just draw the line early, as opposed to letting it build up for the whole game,” Mitchell said.

Gobert said that the officials “allow guys to do way too much s—” but noted that he didn’t feel like it was a situation where he needed to throw a punch.

Data-defying Australia 40 overs away from elusive T20 glory

Cricket

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November 13, 2021

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Data-defying Australia 40 overs away from elusive T20 glory

Thirty-five minutes, forty-one balls, eighty-one runs, six sixes and four fours were enough to shift the narrative. Australia were dead and buried at 95 for 5 in pursuit of 177 in their T20 World Cup semi-final against Pakistan on Thursday night in Dubai but Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis‘ nerveless partnership saw them head into Sunday’s final with their chests puffed out. Their squad’s quiet self-belief is now firmly in the public domain.

It was fitting that Wade and Stoinis were the finishers, epitomising Australia’s ability to embrace a messy web of internal contradictions. Wade and Stoinis are the most prolific regular openers over the last three Big Bash seasons but have been thrust into unfamiliar roles down the order. They were thrust into pressure situations against South Africa and Pakistan, and have found a way to finish the job.

Australia have always backed talent and adaptability over cohesion and long-term strategy in men’s T20 World Cups. They were the bookies’ favourites for three of the first five tournaments but have never previously looked like winning one: they were torn to pieces by Yuvraj Singh and Chris Gayle in their two semi-final defeats and hammered by England in the 2010 final. Their prioritisation of Test and ODI cricket meant that their best players rarely appeared in the same T20I side and when they did, they were filling unfamiliar roles.

This time round, there was reason to believe that had changed. Australia arrived in England 15 months ago as the No. 1-ranked team in the ICC’s rankings and with a clear strategy: five specialist bowlers, including Ashton Agar at No. 7, and Steven Smith anchoring at No. 3. Justin Langer had built a pastiche of his successful Perth Scorchers side, designed either to get par then defend it, or to restrict a team to a middling total which they could chase without taking risks.

A year later, Australia left Bangladesh on the back of five consecutive series defeats and looked like a rabble. There was no clarity as to the identity of their starting XI for the World Cup following Covid-related withdrawals which caused wholesale personnel changes across different tours. There was disquiet around Langer’s hands-on coaching style. There was no clear plan as to how they would accommodate their returning stars, many of whom had hardly played in the build-up to the tournament.

For once, that meant no expectations on them to reach even the semi-finals – not least with the defending T20 and 50-over World Cup winners both drawn in their Super 12s group. “We were underestimated,” Adam Zampa said. “We spoke about it as a collective before the World Cup: our lead-up wasn’t ideal but when you look back, even 18 months, two years ago, we were the No. 1 team in the world and all these names were back in our squad. We were pretty confident coming into this World Cup.”

On the eve of the tournament, they confirmed they would throw out their long-term plans by extending the strategy that Langer had adopted in Bangladesh with a half-strength side, anticipating slow pitches in the World Cup: seven specialist batters including Mitchell Marsh at No. 3, Smith floating in the middle order and Wade at No. 7, with Marsh, Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell filling in as the “fifth” bowler. After South Africa and, in particular, Sri Lanka highlighted its vulnerabilities, they reverted to the old plan by restoring Agar to the side against England in Dubai.

The result was among the most comprehensive defeats of the tournament: England took early wickets, the rest of the batting lineup were rendered shotless without the cushion of batting depth, and Jos Buttler knocked off a 126-run target with 50 balls to spare. “We were disappointed,” Finch said. “We felt as though in that game we were probably a little bit timid and got outplayed in the powerplay. It was just about staying really aggressive and understanding this format of the game that when you’re up against a great opposition, they don’t always allow you big opportunities to get into the game.

“For the guys to have a couple of days off and re-group after a really gruelling first couple of weeks where we turned up, had some quarantine and trained really hard in the lead-in to the tournament was important. What we talked about during that time was staying committed to being aggressive. We reiterated that was how we wanted to go about it and committed to playing that way.”

They returned for must-win games against Bangladesh and West Indies after the taking the chance to “mentally and physically freshen up” with renewed purpose. Both sides had won series against Australia in the last six months but had been mathematically eliminated by the time they played them in the Super 12s. The timing was perfect: Australia brought Marsh back in for Agar and completed two emphatic chases to ensure their net run-rate would take them through ahead of South Africa.

The ascendancy in their semi-final against Pakistan shifted like a seismograph’s needle during an earthquake. Australia squeezed brilliantly for most of their bowling innings, using Mitchell Starc aggressively through the middle and with Zampa coming to the fore as he has throughout the World Cup, but were careless in their plans at the death and fed Fakhar Zaman’s strengths. Finch fell three balls into the chase during a wild first over from Shaheen Shah Afridi and their plan to be ultra-positive against Shadab Khan – informed by their batting depth – nearly backfired spectacularly, with Smith and Marsh top-edging sweeps against the spin towards the bigger boundary, David Warner given out caught behind and Maxwell reverse-sweeping to deep cover.

But Stoinis and Wade did not look to consolidate. “When Marcus Stoinis, the ball after Maxwell’s wicket, hit six off Shadab Khan – I mean, that’s what you call fearless cricket,” Langer said on Friday. “if we’re going to win this tournament, we’ve got to continue on with the way we played from Bangladesh [onwards]. Bat first or second, that fearless and aggressive batting is going to be crucial.”

Two of their key middle-order players have all but gone missing. Maxwell’s T20 career has been a story of failing to convert his international form into IPL success but after his stunning season for Royal Challengers Bangalore he has 36 runs and a strike rate of 78.26 in this tournament. At least he has contributed with the ball; Smith, by contrast, is in the side as a “problem-solver” but his record of 69 runs off 71 balls for three dismissals has become a problem in itself.

And yet the cushion of extra batting has meant that has not been a problem. Warner has removed any doubts about his enduring quality while Marsh has been a rare beneficiary of the West Indies and Bangladesh tours, improving his range against spin from No. 3. Wade had not batted at No. 7 since January 2016 before this tournament but the role has worked, shielding him from his kryptonite of spin through the middle overs. Stoinis has belatedly embraced the chance to become a finisher and has benefitted from Ricky Ponting’s backing at Delhi Capitals, giving him experience in a role once seemed alien.

The IPL has had a role in other players’ revivals too: Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, key fast bowlers in their Test attack, had never previously played together in a T20I before this tournament and might have shelved the format altogether but for its financial pull, and have gone on to hone their short-form skills at Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings. It has certainly had more of an impact on Australia’s fortunes than their own domestic league: five of the team that played in the semi-final do not hold contracts for the upcoming Big Bash season.

Their average age is high, with Cummins the youngest player in their XI against Pakistan at 28. “It’s interesting how the narrative can change really quick,” Finch laughed before the semi-final. “About 10 days ago our team was too old and now we’re an experienced team.” Dan Christian, a travelling reserve, espouses the view that “old blokes win stuff” and this is a squad built for the here and now, not the long term.

Australia winning this World Cup might seem to undermine the vision of modern T20 cricket as a structured, hyper-strategic game but the format is played by real people and talent, confidence and luck are all crucial. They may not be the world’s most data-driven team but Australia have never lacked for excellent cricketers; at a short tournament in a format that lends itself to volatility, that can be enough.

Australia’s T20 side is a complex cocktail of aggression and talent which has overcome its own contradictions and defied low expectations to reach the final of this World Cup. All that’s left is to do that for 40 more overs.

Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98

Inside Line: Ferrari-McLaren battle, who cares?

F1

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November 13, 2021

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Inside Line: Ferrari-McLaren battle, who cares?

Ferrari mclaren pits lane parc ferme

Much is being made about the battle between Ferrari and McLaren as they square up at the 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, with third place in the Formula 1 World Championship standings at stake.

Sure, the matter of prize-money for third compared to fourth is substantial but does anyone really care?

As a long-standing McLaren fan, I can say that it does not enamour me at all. My team were serial winners in their heyday, podiums aplenty and the top step many a time, making it the second most successful F1 team of all time with 183 Grand Prix victories to their credit.

So, as a die-hard McLaren-ista I can only frown at third-place. Sure it’s better than where we were not long ago, and I am proud of what Zak Brown and his team have accomplished.

Although I have not had the pleasure of meeting Zak, by all counts he likes a winner. His incredible race car collection all have one common denominator: winners.

Thus if he talks up the third-place battle it must rile him because that’s not where winners hang out, and he must be itching for the day when he can talk about his team’s chances of winning on a regular basis.

As for the Tifosi, I know it irks them to be living this age of accepted mediocrity with little to celebrate for far too long. Trust me, the Ferrari fans, at least the ones I know, are equally disinterested in whether their team finishes third or fourth.

These are people that have 238 Red victories to harp on about. Tifosi watch F1 these days with one sad eye on their underperforming team, wishing for better days that seem so far away, in the ‘third is okay’ era of the invisible ‘leadership’ of Ferrari president John Elkann.

For me, second place – in anything – is first of the losers; and that on every Grand Prix Sunday, there is one winner and 19 losers. So making a noise about third-place is a hard ask when there is so much to report at the very sharp end of this glorious championship.

But I will give it a bash:

Ferrari have found of rush of good performance, while McLaren’s has fizzled down after the heady mid-season form including victory at Monza.

As the season draws to a close Ferrari have edged a lucky 13.5 points ahead of their rivals before today’s Sprint race in which neither team is expected to feature in the top three points-paying positions, according to the form book. But as Murray Walker said, “In F1 anything is possible.”

The Reds are going through an interesting patch, as newcomer Carlos Sainz increasingly betters his teammate Charles Leclerc, the chosen one, and again out-qualified the Monegasque, as they ended the session fifth and sixth respectively.

The two Charlies are making the most of what is clearly an improved package.

At McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo’s early-season woes are subsiding as he finds his groove with this new team this first year, but Lando Norris, who has been stellar all season, again out-qualified the Australian. However, they’ve been more subdued in recent outings, suggesting that right now they have lost the edge relative to Ferrari.

Both McLaren boys look frustrated.

The form book suggests that at Interlagos the Red cars should be ahead of the Papaya ones come the end of today’s Sprint race and in the race on Sunday too. Unless, of course, as Murray says…

That’s about all that can be said about the contest between the two great teams down on hard times. Even so, who really cares?

In closing, I am in the camp that looks forward to the new F1 and will join the chorus trumpeting that 2022 will be a good year. They’re all saying it Lewis, Seb, Fernando; that the next-gen cars are going to be racy and the lopsided playing field should straighten.

I am going to believe them.

Thus I dream of next year, reporting at this stage of the game, Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull all in the ring flinging everything they have to win, when predicting victory will be almost impossible as half-a-dozen drivers, from these great teams, have a chance to win the title.

Now that would be cool and no one will give a damn about who finishes third.

Boxing tonight: Schedules, live streams, fight time for Kid Galahad, Terri Harper, Munguia | Boxing | Sport

Boxing

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November 13, 2021

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Boxing tonight: Schedules, live streams, fight time for Kid Galahad, Terri Harper, Munguia | Boxing | Sport

Kid Galahad returns to action on Saturday night when he defends his IBF featherweight world title against seasoned veteran Kiko Martinez in his hometown of Sheffield. The 31-year-old, who appears to be approaching his fighting price, was last out in August when he delivered a statement stoppage of Jazza Dickens at Matchroom’s Fight Camp in Essex.

This will be Galahad’s first fight back in front of a real crowd since the pandemic as he headlines Eddie Hearn’s latest card.

Galahad has continued to impress since his controversial split decision defeat to Josh Warrington in the summer of 2019.

And with the Leeds Warrior still yet to avenge his brutal knockout defeat to Mauricio Lara back in February, the division has been blown wide open as a potential all-British unification with Leigh Wood awaits.

But first, Galahad must take care of business against Martinez, who knows a thing or two about boxing on British shores having faced Warrington, Zelfa Barrett, Scott Quigg and Carl Frampton among others.

Terri Harper and Chris Billam-Smith also feature on the card.

Elsewhere, Shakan Pitters takes on Reece Cartwright in a 10-round light-heavyweight bout.

In the United States, David Benavidez returns to action against Kyrone Davis as he eyes a shot at Canelo Alvarez’s four super-middleweight titles.

Jaime Munguia is also in action as he looks to avoid an upset against journeyman Gabe Rosado, who comes into the bout full of confidence following his stunning knockout of Bektemir Melikuziev.

Here are all the important details…

Full Schedule

Sheffield

Kid Galahad vs Kiko Martinez (IBF Featherweight Title)

Terri Harper vs Alycia Baumgardner (WBC Super-Featherweight Title)

Chris Billam-Smith vs Dylan Bregeon (European cruiserweight title)

Khalid Ayub vs Stanko Jermelic

Raven Chapman vs Karina Kopinska

William Cawley vs Stephen Jackson

James Flint vs Dom Hunt

Donte Dixon vs Jordan McCorry

Birmingham

Shakan Pitters vs Reece Cartwright

River Wilson-Bent vs Tyler Denny

Arizona

David Benavidez vs Kyrone Davis

Jose Benavidez Jr vs Francisco Emanuel Torres

Rock Dodler Myrthil vs Ladarius Miller

Jonathan Javier Fierro vs Victor Ruiz

Keenan Carbajal vs Josean Figueroa-Bonilla

Elijha Lorenzo Garcia vs Todd Manuel

California

Jaime Munguia vs Gabriel Rosado

Alexis Rocha vs Jeovanis Barraza

D’ Mitrius Ballard vs Paul Valenzuela

William Zepeda vs John Vincent Moralde

Arley Muncino vs Jacky Calvo

Diego De La Hoya vs Jose Santos Gonzalez

Alejandro Reyes vs Osmel Mayorga

Jorge Chavez vs Gilberto Aguilar

Live Stream and Fight Times

Matchroom’s Sheffield show will be shown live on DAZN from 6pm.

The subscription price is now up to £7.99 per month and you can watch the fight via the app on phones, tablets and laptops.

Galahad vs Martinez is expected to get underway at around from 10pm with the main card due to start at 7pm.

Shortly after, Shakan Pitters vs Reece Cartwright will be shown on Channel 5 from around 11pm.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, DAZN will also be showing Munguia vs Rosado while Benavidez’s scrap will not be aired in the UK but is available on Showtime in the US.

Sports minister charges Super Eagles to “go for victory over Liberia today” | The Guardian Nigeria News

Football

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November 13, 2021

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Sports minister charges Super Eagles to “go for victory over Liberia today” | The Guardian Nigeria News

Youth and Sports Development Minister, Sunday Dare, has charged the Super Eagles to go all-out for a win later today against Liberia in a 2022 World Cup qualifier.

The Lone Star of Liberia host the Super Eagles in Tangier, Morocco in today’s crucial clash.

Nigeria won the reverse fixture 2-0 in Lagos earlier in the year and currently lead Group C, two points ahead of Cape Verde.

With only one game to go after today’s fixture against the Lone Star, a win for the Super Eagles will see them requiring only a draw in next week’s game against Cape Verde, who will be hosting the Central African Republic (CAR) today.

If the Super Eagles beat Liberia, and Cape Verde fail to replicate same against the CAR, then Nigeria will be through to the playoff round of the Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifiers before next Tuesday’s game in Lagos.

And Dare, in a statement to the team on Saturday, urged them to do the nation proud and brighten their chances of qualifying for the final stage of the 2022 World Cup African qualifiers.

“The whole of Nigeria is behind you,” Dare opened up in his statement to the team, made available to The Guardian. “I believe the leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation has worked hard to provide the coaches, players and support staff with all you need to soar over your opponents today.

“I know the entire team is fired up for this. So, go and do us proud. Do not take anything for granted. Give your 100 per cent on the pitch to get a win today and then we wrap things up in Lagos next Tuesday,” Dare said.