Sports

12:03 PM BST Bethan Clargo For the first two months of her new job, Lisa Neumann had a 200-mile commute. She didn’t mind the four-hour drive down the M6 from Manchester to the National Centre of Excellence in Cardiff. It was a journey she had made hundreds of times in the past few years to

12:00 PM ET Curtis Blaydes was riding high in the UFC’s heavyweight division a little over a year ago. He had won four fights in a row, and the only defeats of his career had come against the champion, Francis Ngannou. But then, in February 2021, Blaydes ran into a Derrick Lewis uppercut, and his

7:45 AM ET Timothy Bradley Jr. There are 17 weight divisions in men’s boxing, and in each one there is a champion determined by each of the four major sanctioning bodies: the WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF. Some of these organizations also have a secondary titlist or an interim titlist, and all four have rankings

8:52 PM ET Associated Press HAMPTON, Ga. — William Byron had a freight train in his rearview mirror. A sitting duck, it seemed. Fortunately for him, all those challengers started jostling against each other rather than working together to take down the leader. While Byron cruised to the checkered flag for the third victory of

10:00 AM ET ESPN Betting Insiders The 2022 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play is the first World Golf Championships event of the season and the only match play tournament on the PGA Tour. The round-robin tourney with feature 64 golfers from Wednesday to Friday with the top 16 advancing to the knockout stage over the weekend.

8:00 AM ET While the Los Angeles Lakers are in the middle of a disappointing NBA season, LeBron James continues to be the lone bright spot. James passed Karl Malone on Saturday night, moving into the No. 2 spot on the all-time scoring list. Though James racked up another individual milestone, his team fell to

1:50 PM ET ATLANTA — After 14 seasons and becoming the best quarterback in franchise history, Matt Ryan is moving on from the Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta traded Ryan on Monday to the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for a 2022 third-round draft pick, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Chris Mortensen and Dianna Russini. Ryan will become

7:00 AM ET It’s possible Oklahoma State was just “inches short” of the College Football Playoff last fall — but it’s also a rather grand assumption that had Dezmon Jackson managed to grow a few inches on a desperate fourth-down dive against Baylor in the Big 12 title game, the selection committee would have chosen

10:37 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Rafael Nadal standing behind him and a captivated audience intently listening to his every word, Taylor Fritz finished his speech on the court at Indian Wells, his voice breaking as he looked toward his family and team in the stands. “Winning this tournament is one of those crazy childhood dreams

7:00 AM ET Now is when it gets good. With teams playing their third and fourth games of the tournament, depth and talent usually win out. We’re down to 16 teams (AKA the Sweet 16) in ESPN’s 2022 fictional NCAA football tournament. The early rounds have already provided some memorable moments, including game-winning field goals,

7:39 PM ET The Philadelphia Flyers traded Claude Giroux, a fifth-round pick in 2024, along with prospects Connor Bunnaman and German Rubtsov to the Florida Panthers on Saturday, in exchange for Owen Tippett, a first-round pick in 2024, and a third-round choice in 2023. The Flyers are also retaining 50% of Giroux’s $8.275 million cap

11:10 AM ET Talk about March madness. Front offices dream of executing the perfect offseason plan, but those aspirations rarely come to fruition because of the complexities of free agency and trades and the need to adjust on the fly. With the signing of shortstop Carlos Correa, this year’s top free agent, to a three-year,

9:05 AM ET The path to the Champions League final in Paris on May 28 is now clear following the draw for the last eight and semifinals of the competition and the prospect of a heavyweight clash at the Stade de France remains alive with favourites Liverpool and Manchester City, and Real Madrid and Bayern

2:59 AM ET NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Jesse Iwuji credits his Nigerian parents for his discipline and success, which has seen him play D1 college football, serve in the US Navy for seven years, and become co-owner of Jesse Iwuji Motorsports. Lieutenant Commander Iwuji, who will race in the Emmett Smith-co-owned number 34 Chevrolet at

5:49 PM BST England coach Eddie Jones has brought in George Furbank to play fullback, switching Freddie Steward to the wing, in the team announced on Thursday for England’s final Six Nations game against France in Paris on Saturday. Steward has been impressive at fullback but Jones no doubt feels that by selecting him on

2:33 PM ET Associated Press FRANKFORT, Ky. — Attorneys for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert argued in a Kentucky court Thursday that a 90-day suspension imposed by the state’s racing commission would essentially end his career. Baffert is asking a judge to delay the suspension for a failed postrace drug test by Medina Spirit

9:00 AM ET Tom Aspinall is a young star in the making in the UFC’s heavyweight division. At age 28, he is 4-0 in the Octagon, 11-2 overall in his MMA career. On Saturday, the fighter from Manchester, England, who now fights out of Liverpool, will be competing on home turf when he headlines UFC

10:15 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN As Vasiliy Lomachenko works to help defend Ukraine from Russia’s ongoing invasion, efforts are being made by his team to allow him to leave his native country to train for a proposed fight against undisputed lightweight champion George Kambosos, sources told ESPN on Tuesday. Lomachenko, 34, joined a territorial defense

1:15 PM ET ORLANDO, Fla. — The Brooklyn Nets still have no idea exactly when Ben Simmons will be able to make his season debut as he continues to deal with a back injury, but coach Steve Nash said after the shootaround Tuesday that he has “extremely high hopes that we’ll see him in the

7:29 AM ET Australian Open champion Rafa Nadal said he felt sorry for Naomi Osaka after she was rattled by a heckler during her second-round loss on Saturday night at Indian Wells, but added that tennis players needed to be ready to deal with adversities. Osaka, who sparked a conversation about mental health in sports

5:12 PM ET The Los Angeles Chargers are giving former New England Patriots cornerback J.C. Jackson a five-year, $82.5 million deal that includes $40 million guaranteed, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Monday. Jackson, who just concluded his fourth NFL season with the Patriots, earned his first Pro Bowl selection in 2021. His eight

7:43 PM ET PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Around 4 p.m. ET on Monday, after rain started falling again at the Players at TPC Sawgrass, Sepp Straka was the leader in the clubhouse with a 72-hole total of 7 under. For a tournament that stopped and started more than the traffic on state highway A1A,

7:00 AM ET FLORIDA STATE DEFENSIVE end Jared Verse owes his future to the transfer portal. It is a simple but truthful statement, one that helps illustrate the positive impact the portal can have for players. “Honestly,” Verse said during a recent phone conversation, “it was life changing.” Verse is not exaggerating. In three short

9:45 PM ET Associated Press AVONDALE, Ariz. — Chase Briscoe jumped out of his car and was obviously emotional, kneeling by his No. 14 for a few seconds before a couple of voice cracks during his postrace television interview. The 27-year-old Briscoe took his lumps last season as a NASCAR Cup Series rookie. Now, he’s

7:00 AM ET The 2022 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, March 21, at 3 p.m. ET. It’s an annual event shrouded in uncertainty, whose preceding hype rarely matches its actual action. But there are a few teams and individuals that could really start the party this season. Are the Dallas Stars playoff contenders,

7:00 AM ET Last winter, Steve Cohen’s shopping spree was frantic and expensive – and even the lockout didn’t stop it. The New York Mets owner grabbed a general manager (Billy Eppler), the most expensive starting pitcher ever (Max Scherzer, for a record annual salary of $43.3 million), a center fielder (Starling Marte), a third

7:57 PM ET Associated Press AVONDALE, Ariz. — Noah Gragson shook off some frustrating finishes over the past few weeks to race to his first victory of the season Saturday in a dominant performance in the Xfinity Series at Phoenix Raceway. Gragson passed Brandon Jones with 14 laps left and pulled away for his sixth

3:17 PM ET Shock waves reverberated across the soccer world over the weekend when images of horrifying violence emerged from a Liga MX match between Queretaro and Atlas. In the second half of Saturday’s game at Queretaro’s Estadio Corregidora, play was stopped when fans began to pour onto the pitch after fights between barras supporters’

1:12 PM GMT Tom Curry will feature at open-side flanker for England against Ireland in their must-win Six Nations encounter at Twickenham on Saturday, while No. 8 Alex Dombrandt is among the replacements after he tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday. Coach Eddie Jones selected a pack he thinks can counter the Irish, who he

9:00 AM ET Thiago Santos and Magomed Ankalaev meet in the light heavyweight main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas. It is a crossroads fight in some respects, as the 38-year-old Santos is nearly three years removed from an unsuccessful challenge for the UFC’s 205-pound title and Ankalaev, 29, is one

3:19 PM ET ESPN’s divisional boxing rankings highlight the best in the sport at every weight class. They will change often based on recent results and performances. Rankings are based on what a fighter has accomplished in the weight division in which he is ranked. A fighter who has announced he is moving up or

9:18 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com The potential for a Rafael Nadal vs. Daniil Medvedev semifinal showdown. A blockbuster Naomi Osaka–Sloane Stephens first-round matchup. A full-capacity crowd. And a relaxed desert vibe to go with it all. It’s been three years (!) since the BNP Paribas Open has been played during its normally scheduled slot on

7:36 PM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com World No. 2 Novak Djokovic was announced in the draw for the BNP Paribas Open on Tuesday, despite his status to enter the United States still uncertain due to being unvaccinated. “Novak Djokovic is on the tournament entry list, and therefore is placed into the draw today,” the California tournament