Sports

1:49 PM ET ANAHEIM, Calif. — A highly anticipated battle between the two top heavyweights in the world — who also happen to be former teammates — is now official. Francis Ngannou weighed in at 257 pounds and Ciryl Gane was 247 pounds Friday morning. The two giants will compete to unify the UFC heavyweight

7:00 AM ET After two weeks in Hawaii to start the year, the PGA Tour returns to the mainland with The American Express this week at La Quinta Country Club in La Quinta, California, beginning Thursday. Additionally, it marks the four-feed debut of PGA TOUR LIVE on ESPN+. Get ESPN+ here | Download the app

1:46 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Sergey Kovalev and Meng Fanlong are finalizing a 185-pound catchweight fight on March 12 in Los Angeles, sources told ESPN on Wednesday. The Triller Fight Club headliner will be Kovalev’s first bout since November 2019, when Canelo Alvarez brutally knocked him out to capture a light heavyweight title. Kovalev, a

1:12 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Taylor Fritz advanced to the third round at the Australian Open on Thursday with a dominant 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (5) victory over fellow American Frances Tiafoe — but it was what happened after the final point had been won that really got everyone talking. After Fritz sealed the win in

10:45 AM GMT Owen Farrell has retained his England captaincy for the 2022 Six Nations while George Ford, Elliot Day, Sam Underhill and Mako and Billy Vunipola miss out on the squad. Manu Tuilagi was also not named in the 36-man squad announced by coach Eddie Jones on Tuesday but he is expected to join

12:15 AM ET The Denver Nuggets are acquiring San Antonio Spurs guard Bryn Forbes in a three-way deal with the Boston Celtics, sources told ESPN on Tuesday night. The Nuggets will send Bol Bol and P.J. Dozier to the Celtics, and the Spurs will acquire Boston forward Juancho Hernangomez and Denver’s 2028 second-round pick, sources

6:45 AM ET NFL NationESPN Six NFL playoff games down, and seven to go. The offseason is nearly here — and for 24 teams, it already is — bringing the opportunity for every team to get better and make changes as they prepare for the 2022 season. There are question marks surrounding current quarterbacks —

1:00 PM ET Alabama football coach Nick Saban was among a handful of sports figures from West Virginia to sign a letter urging Sen. Joe Manchin to support the passage of the Freedom to Vote Act. The letter, which was made public on Monday, also was signed by NBA Hall of Famer Jerry West, former

7:00 AM ET Shane Wright remembers the first arm he was asked to autograph. “It was a forearm. I’ve signed a couple of them, actually,” he said. “Signing people’s skin has been a little weird for me.” Wright, 17, is a center for the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League. He’s also the consensus

7:00 AM ET NEW YORK — Three days into the MLB lockout, when New York Yankees fan Ray Sbarra checked Reddit for his baseball fix, he came up empty. So, with the lockout leaving the hot stove freezing cold and no end in sight, he decided to fill in the gap. “I just figured, let

10:26 AM ET MANCHESTER, England — It was a goal worthy of winning the Premier League title, even if it is only January and there are still four months of the season to play. But with Kevin De Bruyne‘s stunning 70th-minute goal sealing Manchester City‘s 1-0 win against Chelsea, the reality is that the title

7:50 AM ET On. Jan. 22, Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane will square off in the main event of UFC 270 (10 p.m. on ESPN+ PPV), with the heavyweight title on the line. That fight will shape the course of three fighters in the top 10 of ESPN’s MMA Rank, an effort to project which

Apr 8, 2021 Mark KriegelESPN Editor’s note: This story was originally published ahead of Joe Smith’s win over Maxim Vlasov. Joe Smith. A search on Boxrec.com reveals seven and a half pages — almost 200 professional fighters — who go, or have gone, by “Joe Smith.” The name itself is a generic suggestion: just a

10:19 AM GMT Sale Sharks have confirmed they have suspended one of their players after they were arrested on suspicion of rape. The player has since been released on bail. The player, who has played for England, was arrested on Sunday morning. “Sale Sharks have been made aware of an allegation against one of its

8:10 AM ET The PGA Tour remains in Hawaii this week for the first full-field event on the tour schedule in 2022. The Sony Open, which Kevin Na won a year ago, will be played at Waialae Country Club. The event begins Thursday, Jan. 13. With PGA Tour Live in 2022, you can follow all

5:01 AM ET Former Formula One champion Jacques Villeneuve will join Netherlands based outfit Team Hezeberg in a bid for a spot on the Daytona 500 starting grid, NASCAR said on Wednesday. The 50-year-old Canadian, winner of the 1995 Indianapolis 500 and the 1997 F1 drivers crown, took part in preseason testing at the famed