6:34 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN LAS VEGAS — Even during those hot summer days spent in a trailer park outside Nashville, Tennessee, Caleb Plant knew he was meant for so much more. Personal tragedy served to strengthen that steely resolve. His daughter, Alia, died three months shy of her second birthday. Just over four years
Boxing
7:51 AM ET The final two months of 2021 offer a range of big fights for women: Claressa Shields returns to the ring. Katie Taylor fights again. Mikaela Mayer and Maiva Hamadouche fight on Friday night (8 p.m. on ESPN+) to start to unify the junior lightweight division and a week later, Dina Thorslund and
3:49 PM ET NEW YORK — Kamaru Usman has one of the top fighters in the world in his crosshairs. It just so happens that it’s not a fellow MMA fighter. The UFC welterweight champion and ESPN’s No. 1-ranked pound-for-pound mixed martial artist said Wednesday at UFC 268 media day that he is targeting a
4:03 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Nonito Donaire and Reymart Gaballo have agreed to a deal for a 118-pound title fight on Dec. 11 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, sources told ESPN. Undefeated prospect Brandun Lee will meet Juan Heraldez at 140 pounds in another bout on the Showtime tripleheader, sources said. Donaire
10:58 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Rolando Romero is on the verge of being pulled from his Dec. 5 fight with Gervonta Davis, multiple sources told ESPN on Saturday. On Thursday, a woman posted on Twitter accusing Romero, 26, of sexual assault. She did not say when the alleged incident occurred, but tweeted Friday that she
2:15 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Jaron “Boots” Ennis is a can’t-miss fighter, and Saturday’s performance was the best proof yet. The Philly welterweight needed less than two minutes to dispatch veteran gatekeeper Thomas Dulorme by knockout in the first round Saturday in Las Vegas, a PBC on Showtime co-feature. Ennis, 24, dropped Dulorme (25-6-1, 16
Oct 31, 2021 Mike CoppingerESPN A weigh-in fracas on Friday led to the New York State Athletic Commission barring Jose Zepeda’s brother Rene from his corner. As it turns out, Zepeda never had the opportunity to go back to his corner anyway. Zepeda eviscerated Josue Vargas, a 23-year-old prospect, with a first-round TKO on Saturday
11:39 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Jose Ramirez and Jose Pedraza have agreed to terms for a 140-pound bout on Feb. 5 that will headline Top Rank Boxing on an ESPN platform, sources told ESPN. The fight pitting top-10 junior welterweights will be held at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California, Ramirez’s hometown. Ramirez, ESPN’s
1:01 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN The IBF middleweight title eliminator between Esquiva Falcao and Patrice Volny will serve as chief support for the Terence Crawford-Shawn Porter welterweight title bout Nov. 20 on ESPN+ pay-per-view, sources tell ESPN. Janibek Alimkhanuly, ESPN’s No. 8 middleweight, will fight former titleholder Hassan N’Dam in another undercard bout in Las
3:16 PM ET One of the knocks on Jake Paul has been that he has not fought a “real boxer.” That criticism will be mostly addressed at the end of this year. Paul, the YouTube-star-turned-prizefighter, will fight fellow undefeated boxer Tommy Fury on Dec. 18 in Tampa, Florida, it was officially announced Friday. The bout