DISCLAIMER: This article is reviewing the main event ONLY.
Anthony Joshua defeated Wladimir Klitschko via 11th round knockout to retain his IBF Heavyweight title and win the vacant IBO and WBA titles.
The fight was one of the greatest Heavyweight bouts of all-time, with Klitschko coming out and surpursing Joshua with a combination of quick jabs and hard uppercuts.
The fifth round came and providing one of the most intense rounds in Boxing.
Joshua dropped Klitschko with a flurry of punches and it looked as if the Urkian was done for.
However, the former multi-time Heavyweight champion rallied in the sixth round and delivered a stunning overhand right to down Joshua for the first-time in his career.
The Briton answered the count at eight and came back to knockout Klitschko with a vicious uppercut in the 11th round.
After the fight, Joshua said to BBC Radio 5 Live "I knew it was possible to hurt him, but I am learning round by round. I'm learning under the bright lights. I don't come to box, I come to hurt people. With all due respect, I came to hurt him. "At the end of the day, I figured out what I had to do and got him done. I'm coming back to Wembley. I'll look forward to seeing you here again. "There's been many a time in training when we go into the 11th round and I'm tired but I know I have to keep it up because I have to go the distance. I showed tonight that fights are won in the gym. It gets tough and boxing isn't easy. You have to have the whole package."
Joshua also called out suspended Tyson Fury post-fight for a potential British Heavyweight clash and the out-spoken 'Gyspey King' responded on Twitter.
It's been oddly refreshing to have a fight not being swamped by heated verbal exchanges and press-conferences turning into a scene from a nightclub in the early hours of the morning.
This respectful but focused atmosphere around the build-up added to the best fight of the year so far and it will take something truly spectacular to top it.
DISCLAIMER: This article is previewing the main event ONLY.
The Biggest Heavyweight fight in recent memory is here.
IBF Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua takes on former WBA, IBF and WBO Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko for Joshua's IBF title, as well as the vacant IBO and WBA Heavyweight titles, in front of a sold-out 90,000 crowd at Wembley Stadium.
Being announced in the immediate aftermath of Joshua's third-round knockout win over Eric Molina back in December 2016, and Tyson Fury being stripped of his WBA, WBO and IBO titles two months prior, this fight has been billed as Joshua's potential launch as the greatest Heavyweight fighter of this generation and Klitschko's potential launch back as the master of the Heavyweight division.
So, without farther ado, let's preview the fight.
Tale of The Tape Name: Anthony Joshua Age: 27 (D.O.B 15 October 1989) Height: 6 foot 6 inches (198 cm) Reach: 82 inches (208 cm) Professional Boxing Record: 18 Wins (18 via KO) Name: Wladimir Klitschko Age: 41(D.O.B 25 March 1976) Height: 6 foot 6 inches (1.98 cm) Reach: 81 inches (206 cm) Professional Boxing Record: 64 Wins (53 via KO), 4 Losses Coming into the fight, it's clear that both men respect each other and know they have an extremely tough fight on their hands.
Joshua said "I will always stand up to the competition," said Joshua. "There is no fear at all which trembles through the body. "You can talk about experience but even when I faced guys with less experience I took them as world championship fights. I have prepared since day one for this. April 29 is just another stepping stone towards greatness." Klitschko said in the build-up that he was obsessed with becoming the winner of his upcoming fight. Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn commented on rival American TV stations Showtime and HBO coming together to broadcast the fight and that the Urkian is his client's toughest test yet.
"Only twice before have they done it - Lennox Lewis versus Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather versus Manny Pacquiao," said Hearn.
"He has the ultimate test," added Hearn. "A test which should come maybe after 27 or 28 fights. Why risk it now? He wants to challenge himself. Is he the guy everyone talks about as the future of boxing?"
The major point ahead of the fight is whether or not Kiltschko will be able to cope with Joshua in the first six or seven rounds. The Urkian has the experience and knowledge ahead of his young opponent but it only takes one uppercut or right hand to floor even the greatest of the fighters.
PREDICTION: I predict that Kiltschko will win via ninth round knockout.
I know that this prediction is left-field from the majority but I just think Kiltschko has too much experience for Joshua and will overcome the early rounds that Joshua is aiming for.
DISCLAIMER: All stats accurate at time of publishing.
The 2016/17 Premier League season is, sadly, coming to a close.
We've seen the champions (Leicester) fall from grace, Manchester United cling onto sixth with the most pointless winning streak in Premier League history and Chelsea regain their place among the league's elite.
Around this time of the year, players are nominated for the Player of the Year award, Young Player of the Year award and the prestigious Team of the Year, which was announced on Thursday.
With this in mind, I will be putting together my Team of the Year.
The official PFA Team of the Year.
Before this though, I'm going to detail my picks for Young Player and Player of the Year.
PFA Young Player of The Year Nominees: Dele Alli (Tottenham),Harry Kane (Tottenham),Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Michael Keane (Burnley),Jordan Pickford (Sunderland) and Leroy Sane (Manchester City).
My Pick: Romelu Lukaku.
As of writing, Lukaku is the Premier League top goalscorer, with 24 Premier League goals.
Romelu Lukaku at Goodison Park in 2017 across all competitions:
Whilst his goalscoring have captured the headlines and linked him to Bayern Munich, Borrusia Dortmund, Chelsea and many others, it's not just him finding the back of the net that should land him the PFA Young Player of the Year.
He's a completely different player from 12 months ago and has massively improved his link-up play to double up as a target-man as well as the marksman that he's renowned for being.
Many will say that he's not a complete striker and whilst I agree with this, he's definitely the most improved striker in the league and if he is going to be moving on from the Premier League this summer should be given an award for his improvement over the past season and how crazy it is that he's become Everton's top goalscorer in the Premier League a few months before his 24th Birthday.
Romelu Lukaku has now scored as many Premier League goals (84) as Cristiano Ronaldo. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rDLN4Lxgci
PFA Player of The Year Nominees: Eden Hazard (Chelsea), N'Golo Kante (Chelsea), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal). Harry Kane (Tottenham) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Manchester United).
My Picks: N'Golo Kante.
N'Golo Kante has been the absolute rock of the past year and a half.
From winning the league last season with Leicester, which still baffles me almost a year later, the Frenchman has gone from an under-the-radar signing by then Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri to the best defensive midfielder in the league.
When trying to sum up how good Kante is, without referencing a meme or bombarding you with stats, the best way I can summarise it is that Leicester plummeted it after he moved to Chelsea for £30 million.
In an age when defending is sort of dying in Football, Kante has single-handily reminded everyone how important a defensive midfielder can be in a team's overall performance.
He deserves to be the PFA Player of The Year due to his insane consistency for both Leicester and Chelsea over the past two seasons. He's the backbone of Chelsea's midfield and I'm sure I'm not the only one that wished they had Kante at their club.
PFA Team of the Year
Goalkeeper: Tom Heaton (Burnley)
Burnley have had a good season and a major reason for this is Tom Heaton.
The England international has made 125 saves in a season in which Burnley have solidified themselves as a mid-table Premier League team. He's also a well-rounded keeper and deserves to be included ahead of rivals such as Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois and Manchester United's David De Gea.
Right-Back: Seamus Coleman(Everton) The Everton defender has been vital in Ronald Koeman’s first season at Goodison Park, constantly getting forward and making solid tackles, and whilst he won’t play the start of next season in August (due to his leg break that he suffered back in March), there’s no doubt that he’s been quality this season.
Centre-Back: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham) This season hasn’t really seen many top defensive performances, as counter-attacking and fast-paced Football, but Toby Alderweireld has been solid at the back of the best team in the league, in my opinion at least. Though he may not be the most prominent name when thinking about the Team of the Year.
Centre-Back: Michael Keane (Burnley)
A second Burnley player in my Team of the Year. Didn’t think I’d be writing that back in August.
Michael Keane is a promising young defender who does the basics right and has the potential to become a top-class overall defender and despite not being the most dominate figure this season, with David Luiz and Gary Cahill being preferred in the official team of the year, he’s my pick for centre-back of the season.
Left-Back: Marco Alonso(Chelsea)
Earlier in the season, Nathan Ake played really well for Bournemouth early into his loan spell from Chelsea.
So well that Antonio Conte recalled Ake from his loan spell.
Then Marco Alonso turned up.
The Spanardiard suddenly became the best left-back in the league, bombing forward with precision and became the catalyst for Conte’s 3-4-3 formation. His importance was proven by his absence in Chelsea’s 2-0 away loss to Manchester United and it’s slightly baffling how Rose was selected ahead of him.
Right-Winger: Sadio Mane (Liverpool)
Liverpool have had a good first season under Jurgen Klopp, despite where they finish, and a big part of this has been down to Sadio Mane.
Whilst the Merseyside club do have Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino, the Senegal international has been instrumental for Liverpool this season and made an average side look brilliant at certain points of the season. Despite not been ruled for the season after sustaining a knee injury in the Merseyside Derby, Mane has been class.
Midfielder: Dele Alli(Tottenham)
Pre-November, Dele Alli wasn’t great.
Post-November, Dele Alli has been amazing.
The England international went on a fantastic run of form, including three braces in a row against Southampton, Watford and Chelsea. He’s currently scored 16 league goals and if he had been on top form from mid-August, there’s no doubt he would have been my choice for Player of the Year.
Midfielder: N'Golo Kante (Chelsea)
I've already mentioned Kante once in this article so I'll keep it short and sweet: Best defensive midfielder in the league (and maybe the World?...) and should win Player of the Year.
Left-Wing: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
Hazard had a shocking season last year. It was so bad that his only memorable moment was equalising against Tottenham at Stamford Bridge around this time last year to win the league... for Leicester.
Anyway, the Belgian has drastically returned to form this year and currently has 14 league goals and five assists.
He might not be favourite to win Player of the Year but he's definitely improved under Conte and will be a force to be reckoned with next season.
Striker: Romelu Lukaku (Everton)
Like with Kante, I've already mentioned Lukaku once before in this article so again I'll keep it short and sweet: Most clinical finisher in the league and will most likely move away from the Premier League in the summer.
Striker: Harry Kane (Tottenham)
Harry Kane was dubbed a one season wonder by many fans.
Yet three seasons, Kane is still on banging with 20 league goals as of writing.
The England international has blossomed as Spurs' focal point and has proven he can score any type of goal to make him arguably the best striker in the league.
Game on game, Kane looks to have grown even more intelligent with his passing and shooting in order to get the most out of every attacking opportunity.
It's likely that he'd be top goalscorer in the league if it wasn't for a recent foot injury but Kane has undoubtedly had a remarkable season in cementing Tottenham among the top two teams in the country,
DISCLAIMER: The article is reviewing the co main and main event,
UFC 210 was an interesting night.
There was a controversial ending to the co main event, one fighter becoming a free agent after being very outspoken about his UFC pay, and another fighter retired,
With this in mind, here's my UFC 210 review.
Gegard Mousasi defeats Chris Weidman via second-round Technical Knockout (Knees)
The opinionated Gegard Mousasi beat the All-American Chris Weidman by controversial technical knockout in the last fight of Mousasi's current UFC contract.
Mousasi (now 13-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) struggled in the first round against Weidman's striking but struck Weidman with a series of knees in the second round, one of which referee Dan Miragliotta deemed illegal. A doctor was then sent into the Octagon to give Weidman medical attention and a scheuled five minute rest. However, on seeing replays, Miragliotta overturned the decision and said the knee was legal due to Weidman having both hands on the mat when the knee was landed. The decision was then deemed a TKO win for Mousasi. Speaking in the post-fight press conference, Weidman, who has now on a three fight losing streak, said: “Pretty much for the whole time, Miragliotta was telling me ‘illegal knee.' “I thought I was going to win because of the illegal knee. Then they looked at a replay, they left the Octagon and looked at the replay and see the legal knee, but in the state of New York, you’re not allowed to look, there’s no replays. It’s a crappy situation.” He added “I knew what I was doing, “He kneed me in the head once when I had the hands down, so I said, ‘alright i’ll put the two hands down, so he can’t knee me,’ then he kneed me and the ref stopped it saying it’s an illegal knee. That’s as clear as I was with it. “At the end of the day, the people of New York got screwed,” Weidman said. “I got screwed, and it sucks.” Mousasi (now 42-6-2 MMA, 9-3 UFC) commented in the post-fight press conference “At the end of the day, I’m fighting,” “I have a lot of respect for Weidman. I don’t want to badmouth him. But if you want to play smart and take advantage of the rules, that’s not my fault. I’m fighting. If you want to put your hands down so I cannot knee you — you’re fighting, don’t try to take advantage of the rules. I’m fighting, and at the end of the day, it was legal. That’s what everyone says now, it was legal." In reference to a rematch, the Iranian said “If he wants his rematch, I can give it to him, “But at the end of the day, I’m chasing the title. If I fight Michael Bisping, I think I would be the favourite. “It’s up to UFC. If they want to make a rematch, make it in Holland. Sure, why not? The crowd was on his side this time. He fights me in Holland, the crowd would be on my side. So, yes. He tried to play it smart, take advantage of the rules and get me disqualified. I think everyone saw that. Don’t blame me. That’s all I can say.” Rounding off on his fifth win in a row, the former DREAM and StrikeForce champion added: “I wasn’t in a happy mood. It’s not the way I want to win,” “But at the end of the day, it’s a win. Some soccer games, they score with a penalty kick and they win. It’s a win. At the end of the day, I’ll take it. But like I said, he didn’t want to fight. That’s not my fault.” Whether he will resign or not is just something we'll have to see.
Daniel Cormier beats Anthony Johnson via second-round rear-naked choke to retain the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
In the rematch from their UFC 187 fight for the then vacant Light Heavyweight title, Daniel Cormier beat Anthony Johnson via rear-naked choke, this time in the second round.
Anthony Johnson (now 22-6 MMA, 13-6 UFC) then announced his retirement from MMA.
It was shocking and Johnson added to it in the post-fight press conference: “It’s just business, “I want to do something besides going to the gym everyday punching and kicking and rolling around with another dude. That sh*t gets old. I’ve been doing this for so long, I’ve been in sports since I was 8, it’s just time to move on to something different. I won’t say better, but just different. On how he'd like to remembered, Johnson was frank in saying: “Just a guy who went out there and went all out and just never gave up, “Even when I was down and was getting stepped on and kicked and things like that, I still kept going. I didn’t win all of my fights, obviously, but I went out there and did my best, and I think people appreciated what I did for them and what they saw in me out there. I hope that I made a lot of people happy and excited to see me fight. Not many people can go through hell and back like I did and still rise to the top. I didn’t win a title, but I was still knocking at that door. “ The toughest fight I can possibly think of was always with myself,” Johnson added. “That’s just what it is. That’s everybody’s fight. You always battle yourself and not the opponent.” With Johnson gone, Cormier (now 19-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) looks set to fight either Jimi Mamiwara (now 17-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) or Jon Jones (22-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC). In the post-fight press conference, Cormier said “It’s like you take a table and you put a bunch of kitchen appliances, and at the end of one side, there is a pot and at the other end there is a kettle, “And the pot starts yelling ‘you’re dirty,’ while you're sitting there with a steroid needle. That's my opinion on that, you sit over there pot with your Cialis or whatever it’s called, and you throw it at the kettle, so sit over there pot in detention, Cialis boy." He rounded off by talking about his controversial weigh-in incident “I made the weight, that’s how you put it to rest, “I fought tonight, defended my championship. I knew that the scale wasn’t weighing what I weighed upstairs. I’ve been checking my weight all week. “If I was holding the towel, I was just trying to hide myself. Because when I got off the first time, my ass was showing. It’s on Ariel’s (Helwani) website (MMAFighting.com), I saw it. My entire ass — moon landing. So I just wanted to cover myself.” Who he'll fight next is up to himself and the UFC but it looks likely that we could get Jones vs Cormier 2 sometime this summer.
DISCLAIMER: This article is previewing the co main and main event.
On April 8th, the UFC will become the first promotion to hold a professional MMA card in the city of the Buffalo. It will also be the second UFC card to happen in the state of New York, after the historic UFC 205 card.
The attractions of this card come in the co-main event, a blockbuster fight between top ranked Middleweights Chris Weidman and Gegard Mousasi, and the main event, which sees Light Heavyweight Daniel Cormier face Anthony Johnson in a rematch from their May 2015 fight at UFC 187, were Cormier won via third-round rear naked choke.
Chris Weidman vs Gegard Mousasi (Middleweight Bout) As the Middleweight division looks more and more stacked by the month, this fight has huge implications not just for the two fighters but for the division as a whole.
Even though it's clear that Yoel Romero (13-1 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who KO'd Chris Weidman ( 13-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC) with a stunning flying knee back in November at UFC 205, is clearly the Number 1 contender to the winner of champ Michael Bisping (30-7 MMA, 26-7 UFC) and the returning George Saint-Pierre (25-2 MMA, 19-2 UFC), the winner of this fight will feel that they could even challenge Romero in the meantime and the true Number 1 contendership.
A post shared by Chris Weidman (@chrisweidmanufc) on
Whilst Weidman is coming off back-to-back losses to Luke Rockhold and Romero, at UFC 194 and UFC 205 respectively, Mousasi (41-6-2 MMA, 8-3 UFC) is on a four fight win streak, with his last three coming via TKO.
The Iranian, now living in the Netherlands, has really come into his own of late and will look to beat Weidman in order to back up his recent frustrations at the Middleweight division (via Fight Society Podcast): “I deserve [a title shot]. ‘Jacare’ has deserved a shot already. Yoel Romero deserves his shot. Why aren’t we getting our title shots? What can I say. They’re just stalling or whatever. Now they’re saying GSP may not want to fight until January or whatever. Make GSP fight Anderson Silva. If they want to have a super fight, make GSP vs. Anderson." In reference to other fighters' pay, the former DREAM and StrikeForce Middleweight champion added; “I just see that Vitor Belfort is making tons more money than me. I defeated Dan Henderson, he’s making tons more money than me. I defeated Mark Hunt. He’s making $800,000 a fight. I can beat Michael Bisping and even before he was champion he was making a lot more than me. Why don’t I deserve to make some money? . . . How is it possible Mark Hunt is making $800,000 with a record of 10-10? He has a record of 10 wins, 10 losses. Look at my record. How the f**k is that possible?” He rounded off by saying “It comes all down to this fight. That’s why I trained so hard for this fight. It’s not because I want to beat Chris Weidman. It’s because I need to get paid, and I’m going to get paid. That’s what I’m going to do.”
When it comes to the fight itself, Weidman will be wary of the KO after his last fight against Romero. This fight may result in a wrestling contest, which will be interesting as Mousasi is an underrated wrestler and Weidman is one of the best when it comes to takedowns, but I think that Mousasi will adapt well if Weidman looks to take it to the ground. PREDICTION: Mousasi wins via unanimous decision.
Daniel Cormier (C) vs Anthony Johnson (For the Light Heavyweight Championship)
Back at UFC 187, a man was crowned the UFC Light Heavyweight champion.
That man was Daniel Cormier (18-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC).
By submitting Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson (22-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) in the third round, Cormier became only the second UFC Light Heavyweight champ after former champ Jon 'Bones' Jones (22-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) was stripped of the title and replaced by Cormier after Jones was involved in a hit-and-run incident.
The fight was explosive, with Johnson dropping Cormier in the first round but ultimately gassed out midway through the second round. Cormier was vicious on the ground and badly busted up AJ.
The third round consisted of Cormier grinding Johnson down and subsequently transitioned into a rear-naked choke.
Following this, Rumble went on a three fight win streak, all by knockout, with his last fight at UFC 202 against Glover Teixeira (26-5 MMA, 9-3 UFC) lasting thirteen seconds.
A rematch was then set up for UFC 206 but was cancelled when Cormier withdrew with a foot injury.
With the rematch set for tonight in Buffalo, New York, it seems that all is set to go ahead as planned.
Well, that is after Cormier had a very mysterious and controversial weigh in.
The UFC Light Heavyweight champ weighed in at 206.2 pounds, meaning that the fight wouldn't have been for his title.
A few moments later, Cormier came back and successfully weighed in again, which is acceptable under the New York State Athletic Commission, and hit his target of 205 pounds.
There have been many theories has to how Cormier lost 1.2 pounds in a matter of minutes but this isn't the place for theories about the UFC and state commissons.
When looking at the fight, it's clear that the pressure is on Johnson to change his stragerty going into the rematch. He can't do the same first round he did last time, were he threw endless combos in looking for the knockout, He'll have to pace himself and see if he can match Cormier on the ground, if it gets to that point.
PREDICTION: Cormier wins via fourth-round rear-naked choke.
