7:59 PM ET Steve KimESPN A light heavyweight bout between Eleider Alvarez (25-1, 13 KOs) and Joe Smith Jr. (25-3, 20 KOs) has been finalized for July 16 at the MGM Grand Convention Center in Las Vegas, Top Rank director of boxing operations Carl Moretti confirmed to ESPN, though he noted that the date “could
Boxing
3:39 PM ET Boxing champion Kim Clavel, who left the ring to return to nursing during the coronavirus pandemic, will receive the Pat Tillman Award for Service at The ESPYS on June 21. “It is an honor to receive the Pat Tillman Award on behalf of all the health care workers battling COVID-19 on the
7:50 AM ET THE ASSIGNMENT WAS simple: Catch up with Andy Ruiz Jr. ahead of the anniversary of his stunning upset over Anthony Joshua last June. Maybe relive that fight, and the spiritless loss to Joshua in the December rematch. Pretty wild year, right? His arrival as the first Mexican-American heavyweight champion and his departure
6:09 PM ET Steve KimESPN Floyd Mayweather will be paying for the funeral services for George Floyd, who was killed in an incident with Minneapolis police on May 25 that has sparked outrage and protests across the country, according to a Mayweather representative. “He’ll probably get mad at me for saying that, but yes, (Mayweather)
1:06 PM ET Nick Parkinson Close •Reports on boxing for ESPN.co.uk, as well as several national newspapers•Has been reporting on British boxing for over 15 years•Appears on BoxNation’s Boxing Matters show Bouts between British boxers have garnered international attention in recent years, and Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua is now the sport’s most sought after
9:59 AM ET Steve KimESPN Despite being one of the most desired matchups among boxing fans around the world, a title unification showdown between WBC/IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. and WBO titlist Terence Crawford has not yet become a reality. When it does, a welterweight legend of the past, Sugar Ray Leonard, promises, “I’ll
8:21 PM ET Associated Press DALLAS — Curtis Cokes, the Hall of Fame welterweight who became Dallas’ first world champion in 1966, has died. He was 82. Erwin “Sparky” Sparks, Cokes’ partner at Dallas’ Home of Champions gym, told The Dallas Morning News that Cokes died Friday after a week in hospice. Cokes took the
4:18 PM ET Steve KimESPN With boxing set to resume in the United States in the month of June, Top Rank has put forth an early summer schedule of bouts, the majority of which will take place at the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas, and will be televised on ESPN platforms. “The goal
May 28, 2020 Steve KimESPN The Dominican Republic government called off a boxing card scheduled for Saturday night at the Coliseo Carlos “Teo” Cruz in Santo Domingo. The six-fight event was to have taken place without fans in attendance. Efforts to reach promoters Shuan Boxing were unsuccessful. Sports Minister Danilo Diaz said Thursday that the
May 29, 2020 Associated Press PARIS — Hassan N’Dam, former middleweight boxing champion of the world, wanted to repay the French hospital that cared for his father-in-law through his bout with the coronavirus. Perhaps with Champagne? Or chocolate? No, N’Dam thought: “These are things that won’t last. I wanted to leave something quite memorable.” It