LONDON: Britain’s Anthony Joshua believes his long-awaited clash with fellow world heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder will take place as it would be “silly not to.”
But promoter Eddie Hearn has warned a deal must be agreed quickly if the American is to be Joshua’s next opponent.
Joshua successfully defended his International Boxing Federation, World Boxing Association and World Boxing Organization belts with brutal a seventh-round stoppage of Alexander Povetkin at London’s Wembley Stadium on Saturday.
He is already booked in to box again at Wembley on April 13, but the question of an opponent has still to be resolved.
Joshua has repeatedly stressed he wants to fight fellow undefeated champion Wilder, who holds the World Boxing Council version of the heavyweight title, next.
“We have to fight, it would be silly not to” Joshua told reporters after inflicting the first stoppage-loss of Povetkin’s professional career.
Wilder, however, is next due to face Britain’s former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury on December 1.
Talks between the Joshua and Wilder camps have stalled and Hearn is worried a fight that will be worth far more than the “peanuts” of an initially offered $50 million could be derailed.
If Fury beats Wilder, the American’s re-match clause would likely be activated, delaying both boxers from facing Joshua, the London 2012 Olympic champion who now has a professional record of 22 wins from 22 fights, with 21 knockouts.
“Being British, we’d like Fury to win, but for April, Wilder must win if that’s going to happen,” said Hearn.
“We’re not willing to wait until December to see. A deal must be done in advance of that, subject to him winning.
“But now, after 80,000 (the estimated crowd at Wembley) and the worldwide exposure and after the finish (against Povetkin) that offer (made previously, by the Wilder camp) will look like absolute peanuts when this fight is made.”
“That is the biggest fight in boxing; Wilder-Fury is a really good fight to see who’s the second best heavyweight in the world. Joshua-Wladimir Klitschko was the biggest fight in British boxing history, and Joshua-Wilder would eclipse that. We want that now.”
Hearn insisted: “We’re not waiting for time-wasters; we understand if they lose we’ll have to find another opponent, but if you win, we’re not waiting until December.
“These aren’t negotiations that will take 24 hours, and Joshua’s career is not being slowed down. If they don’t want to do that, we’ll fight someone else.”
Fury has previously said on social media that Joshua will never fight him but Hearn witheringly added: “Tyson Fury is the least entertaining fighter I’ve ever seen.
“He’s never been in a good fight, apart from against Steve Cunningham (in 2013), when he got knocked down.”
Meanwhile the 28-year-old Joshua said he too had no intention of being messed about by Wilder.
“If Wilder’s not serious, there’s other people out there; when he’s ready, we’re ready.”
Joshua added: “Good luck to them both (Wilder and Fury) — boxing needs it.
“I’ve had the burden of the heavyweight division on my back for some years, because it was all about me fighting Wilder, Fury, Klitschko, Dillian (Whyte), Povetkin. That’s all they were interested in — me fighting them all.
“So I’m happy those two are fighting. April 13 is booked, so whichever heavyweight is serious, we can look at making a deal. I have no interest in who wins; I’m not fussed.”
Joshua was rocked by Povetkin, the 2004 Olympic champion, in the first round. But he insisted the 39-year-old Russian had not broken his nose.
“These guys the last thing they lose is their power, but it was a good way to wake up,” Joshua said.
As for what lay behind his own public appeal, Joshua added: “The appeal is losing — who is going to be the man to beat me? Sometimes you have to go in there and really earn your money.
“Povetkin was a tough challenger for sure, but I knew how to break him down.
“I wasn’t looking for the knockout but the instinct told he was hurt. I knew how to tidy up and I knew it was time to get out of there.”
Anthony Joshua ready for Deontay Wilder but promoter wants no more delay
Anthony Joshua ready for Deontay Wilder but promoter wants no more delay
- Joshua successfully defended his International Boxing Federation, World Boxing Association and World Boxing Organization belts
- Joshua has repeatedly stressed he wants to fight fellow undefeated champion Wilder
Paris Saint-Germain win Ligue 1 title after Monaco defeat
- Monaco’s defeat gave PSG an unassailable 12-point lead at the top
PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain were confirmed as Ligue 1 champions on Sunday without playing after closest challengers Monaco lost 3-2 away to Lyon.
Monaco’s defeat gave PSG an unassailable 12-point lead at the top of the table with three games remaining and means they are champions for a French record-extending 12th time.
PSG could have clinched the title on Saturday with a win at home to struggling Le Havre, but in the end they needed a 95th-minute equalizer to snatch a 3-3 draw.
However, after that game coach Luis Enrique insisted his side had won the league “without any doubt,” as they were 12 points clear with only 12 points left to play for, and also boast a far superior goal difference to that of Monaco.
The principality club’s loss in Lyon nevertheless makes PSG’s coronation official, and sets them up for Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal first leg away to Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
Monaco had taken the lead inside the opening minute in Lyon thanks to a Wissam Ben Yedder goal, but Alexandre Lacazette equalized for the hosts and Said Benrahma put them ahead before the half-hour mark.
Ben Yedder struck again to bring it back to 2-2, only for substitute Malick Fofana to net a late winner for Lyon, who are still hoping to qualify for Europe.
PSG have won 10 of their 12 titles in the last 12 seasons, a record which goes to show how the Qatari takeover of the club in 2011 has utterly transformed them and the face of French football as a whole.
They are on course for a clean sweep of trophies this season, with the French Cup final against Lyon to come on May 25 and the French Champions Trophy already in the bag.
Luis Enrique’s side are also hoping to see off Dortmund and win through to the final of the Champions League on June 1.
India’s Kohli slams strike-rate talk and pundits ‘from the box’
- Called “King Kohli” for his prolific run-scoring, the star batter has a strike rate of 147.49 in 10 IPL innings
- In contrast, Australia’s up and coming batter in Jake Fraser-McGurk has made 247 runs at 237.50 strike-rate
AHMEDABAD: India’s Virat Kohli on Sunday hit back at critics taking aim at his hitting prowess in T20 cricket after he slammed a match-winning unbeaten 70 off 44 balls in the Indian Premier League.
The in-form Kohli set up Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s chase of 201 before his younger partner Will Jacks blew away Gujarat Titans with his 41-ball 100 in Ahmedabad.
Kohli, who has now passed 500 runs in this edition, and England batsman Jacks put on an unbeaten stand of 166 to see Bengaluru home by nine wickets with four overs to spare.
But despite Kohli’s flowing form ahead of the T20 World Cup in June, pundits have raised concerns over his strike-rate as compared to a new breed of T20 batters, who deal in sixes.
“All the people who talk about strike rates and me not playing spin well are the ones talking about this stuff,” Kohli said in response to looking at his season stats.
“For me, it’s about winning the games for the team and there’s a reason why you’ve done it for 15 years. You’ve done this day in and day out, you’ve won games for your teams, I’m not quite sure that if you haven’t been in that situation yourself, to sit and talk about the game from the box.”
Called “King Kohli” for his prolific run-scoring, the star batter has a strike rate of 147.49 in 10 IPL innings. In contrast, Australia’s up and coming batter in Jake Fraser-McGurk has made 247 runs at a strike-rate of 237.50 for Delhi Capitals.
Kohli’s 51 in the previous match came in 43 balls, a contrast to teammate Rajat Patidar’s 20-ball 50 and former India quick RP Singh said the veteran batter was “slow.”
“For me, people can talk about their assumptions day in and day out, but those who have done it day in and day out, they know what’s happening and it’s a kind of muscle memory for me now,” said the 35-year-old Kohli.
Kohli struck the first century — his eighth in the IPL — of this edition earlier this month in 67 balls but the knock ended in a losing cause after Rajasthan Royals Jos Buttler hit 100 in 58 balls.
“I don’t want to be over-aggressive, want to keep the bowler guessing. They want me to go hard and get me out,” Kohli said after the knock on April 6.
“It’s just experience and maturity. I play the conditions and have the game ready.”
Bengaluru, who remain bottom of the 10-team table with just three wins in 10 matches, and Kohli still await their first IPL title.
Rippers win LIV Golf Adelaide, Brendan Steele takes individual title
- Hometown team beats all-South African Stinger GC to claim ‘dream’ victory
ADELAIDE: LIV Golf’s first team playoff has been long overdue. But after two-and-a-half seasons and 28 tournaments, it finally happened on Sunday at LIV Golf Adelaide — and resulted in an epic storybook ending for the hometown Ripper GC.
The all-Australian team, captained by Cameron Smith, beat the all-South African Stinger GC on the second playoff hole to capture a victory that the entire country had been hoping to experience, with more than 90,000 fans attending the three rounds of competition at The Grange Golf Course.
“This is unreal,” said Smith, standing on the 18th green and draped in an Australian flag with his teammates Marc Leishman, Matt Jones and Lucas Herbert. “It’s a dream come true for us.”
Another dream was experienced by Adelaide individual champion Brendan Steele, who won the first trophy of any kind for his HyFlyers GC team. The 41-year-old American shot a gritty 4-under 68 to finish at 18 under, one stroke better than Stinger captain Louis Oosthuizen.
“Really surreal,” said Steele, whose win was the 11th of his professional career, but the first since 2017.
“I’m pretty overwhelmed, but to win this event is really special. I can’t say enough good things about the fans and the golf course and the whole experience this week.”
Steele entered the final round with a one-stroke lead and produced a string of five consecutive birdies on Sunday to give himself enough of a cushion against the hard-charging Oosthuizen, who shot a 7-under 65. Five players tied for third, two strokes back: HyFlyers teammate Andy Ogletree (65), Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm (64), the Stingers duo of Charl Schwartzel (64) and Dean Burmester (67) and Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann (66), the season-long individual standings leader.
Steele was able to hold off all challengers, and the Rippers appeared to be doing the same for most of the final nine holes, riding the support of the Adelaide fans to the top of the leaderboard. At one point, they led by as many as five strokes until the Stingers started to whittle away at the lead.
When Smith bogeyed his last hole of the day, the 18th, while Oosthuizen birdied his next-to-last hole, both teams finished at 53 under for the week — a record-low counting score in LIV Golf history.
That set up LIV Golf’s first team playoff, with Smith and Leishman representing the Rippers, while Oosthuizen and Burmester represented the Stingers, with the scores for all four players counting for their respective teams on each playoff hole.
The Stingers appeared to have the advantage on the first playoff hole, with Oosthuizen and Burmester hitting similar tee shots and approaches, leaving them within makeable but a challenging birdie range above the 18th hole pin. Meanwhile, Smith was in trouble off the tee and found the bunker with his approach, while Leishman’s approach came up short and rolled back toward the fairway.
As he walked toward the green, Leishman estimated his chances of extending the playoff at 25 percent — and that is being optimistic, he added. But each Ripper managed to save par, while the Stinger duo each missed their birdie putts, Oosthuizen’s lipping out.
“How we got out of that, I don’t really know,” Leishman said. “We were done and dusted by the looks of it.”
Given a reprieve, the Rippers took advantage on the second playoff hole. Leishman was on in two and made par, while both Stingers found the back greenside bunker, eventually suffering bogeys. Smith had two putts for a bogey to win and needed both of them to set off a raucous celebration.
“You couldn’t have staged a better place to do the first playoff,” said a gracious Oosthuizen in defeat. “Probably couldn’t script it better with the Rippers winning. We had chances. We had two putts on the first hole. And I hit a good putt on the second playoff hole as well. Some days they go in, some days they don’t.”
For the Australian quartet, it was the dream ending for a week of incredible support. For Smith, it was the reason he joined LIV Golf in 2022, shortly after winning the Open Championship at St. Andrews.
“This week has far exceeded my vision for what was ahead,” Smith said. “I think I always knew internally that Australia would really embrace LIV with the culture, with the music, with the entertainment, everything that goes on around it. I always felt like this was the place where it was going to make it big, and how it’s been the last couple of years has been just insane.
“Last year I said, I’m biased, this is the best tournament I’ve ever played. I think this year it’s done it again.”
Final team standings
Standings and counting scores for Sunday’s final round of the team competition at LIV Golf Adelaide. The three best scores from each team count in the first two rounds while all four scores count in the final round. The team with the lowest cumulative score after three rounds wins the team title. (won in playoff)
1. RIPPER GC -53 (Herbert 65, Leishman 65, Jones 68, Smith 70; Rd. 3 score -20)
2. STINGER GC -53 (Schwartzel 64, Oosthuizen 65, Burmester 67, Grace 68; Rd. 3 score -24)
3. HYFLYERS GC -48 (Ogletree 65, Steele 68, Mickelson 70, Tringale 71; Rd. 3 score -14)
4. TORQUE GC -46 (Niemann 66, Muñoz 69, Pereira 69, Ortiz 73; Rd. 3 score -11)
5. LEGION XIII -42 (Rahm 64, Hatton 67, Surratt 68, Vincent 70; Rd. 3 score -19)
6. IRON HEADS GC -41 (Kozuma 68, Na 69, Lee 71, Vincent 73; Rd. 3 score -7)
7. CLEEKS GC -40 (Kaymer 64, Meronk 66, Bland 69, Samooja 69; Rd. 3 score -20)
8. CRUSHERS GC -40 (Lahiri 67, Casey 68, DeChambeau 70, Howell III 71; Rd. 3 score -12)
9. RANGEGOATS GC -38 (Pieters 67, Wolff 69, Uihlein 71, Watson 71; Rd. 3 score -10)
10. FIREBALLS GC -35 (Ancer 64, Garcia 66, Chacarra 67, Puig 69; Rd. 3 score -22)
11. SMASH GC -31 (Koepka 66, Kokrak 69, Gooch 70, McDowell 71; Rd. 3 score -12)
12. 4ACES GC -30 (Perez 68, Johnson 69, Reed 72, Varner III 72; Rd. 3 score -7)
13. MAJESTICKS GC -11 (Westwood 69, Horsfield 71, Stenson 71, Poulter 74; Rd. 3 score -3)
AlUla Camel Cup concludes with record prize money
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Interior Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif Al-Saud were in attendance
ALULA: After four fierce days of competition, the second annual AlUla Camel Cup ended with the prize pool for Saturday’s two concluding races amounting to SR24 million ($6.4 million) — a record in the history of camel racing.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Interior Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif Al-Saud were in attendance and presented the trophies to the winners.
The prize pool for the 16 races across the four days of racing reached more than SR80 million.
The four-day event, organized by the Royal Commission for AlUla as part of the AlUla Moments calendar, was hosted in partnership with the Saudi Camel Racing Federation.
The Mughayra Heritage Sports Village was filled with spectators.
The final day saw the Hail and Zmoul races, both 8 km long.
The big winners was Qatari stable Hijin Alshahaneyah, which claimed the competition’s two main trophies and a total of SR15 million — with SR7.5 million for each victory.
In the Zmoul race, Sarmad won with a time of 13 minutes, 34 seconds. In the Hail event, Hijin Alshahaneyah’s camel Risalah won with a time of 13 minutes, 18 seconds.
Heritage Village, a stone’s throw away from the race tracks, showcased live performers and local vendors as well as family activities.
“Like our inaugural edition last year, our celebration of the camel at this year’s event went beyond sport; highlighting culture, history, arts, craft, music and more, and how the ‘ships of the desert’ represent an integral part of our identity,” Abeer Al-Akel, acting CEO of the Royal Commission for AlUla, said.
She added: “The AlUla Camel Cup has welcomed thousands of visitors from near and far, successfully weaving tradition and modernity, as well as sport and culture, into an event leaving memories to last a lifetime. In just two years, the AlUla Camel Cup has not just become a prominent feature of our AlUla Moments calendar, but also Saudi Arabia’s annual event calendar. We look forward to welcoming everyone to the third edition of the AlUla Camel Cup in 2025, in what we promise will be an even bigger and better event.”
On the final day of the races, Arts AlUla announced the culmination of the AlUla Design Award Al-Ajilah special edition. The AlUla Design Award has been dedicated to finding exceptional design within the region and beyond — inspired by the heritage, landscapes and artistic legacies of AlUla. Since the UN and the Saudi Ministry of Culture designated 2024 as the Year of the Camel, the designs were based on that theme.
“The competition witnessed innovations from creative designers who participated in a unique and inspiring collection of camel cover designs. The winners were Maryam Al-Hamid from Qatar and Ismail Huteit from Lebanon,” a statement said.
Selected via an open call, the awards invited established as well as emerging designers to come forward with a conceptualized design. The jury was made of recognized local design leaders: Princess Nourah bint Mohammed Al-Faisal; Burak Cakmak, CEO of the Saudi Fashion Commission; Abdullah Al-Shammari, the director of Heritage Sports; Basma Bouzo, the CEO of &bouqu; and Najla Al-Otaibi of the RCU.
The winning proposals will be commissioned, produced and promoted within AlUla.
Espanyol club welcomes Saudi Future Falcons in Barcelona
- Young Saudi team defeats La Liga’s club’s reserve team 3-2 at Dani Jarque Sports City
- Saudi Future Falcons program seeks to provide experience, skill development for teams and players from the Kingdom
RIYADH: Espanyol became the latest Spanish club to welcome a delegation of the Saudi Future Falcons program, with a friendly match between the La Liga reserve team and the Falcons.
The Falcons have returned home after a successful trip which saw them win the match 3-2 at the Dani Jarque Sports City on Wednesday.
The Saudi Future Falcons program is overseen by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, and aims to provide experience and skill development for teams and players from the Kingdom
CEO of Espanyol Club, Mao Yi Wu, welcomed the Saudi delegation led by the program’s General Manager, Ghassan Felemban.
The meeting between the representatives of both sides marked the first step in a relationship. Espanyol Club, known as a developmental club, nationally and internationally, is looking to generate new avenues of growth through this relationship.
Felemban said that this step is one of the Future Falcons program’s initiatives to enhance relations with Spanish and European clubs.
The program has several partnerships in Spain with clubs such as Real Sociedad, Valencia, and Nastic Tarragona, as well as cooperation with Almeria and Leganes.
It aims to prepare and develop young talents born in 2005 to serve the Saudi U-19 national team, under the supervision of the technical director of the federation, Nasser Laghari, and the program’s technical team led by the Croatian Romeo Gozak.
