Boxing

7:49 AM ET The new year can bring some of the biggest fights boxing can offer, and add more undisputed champions to its rankings — if the stars (meaning, promoters, networks and fighters) align. From Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk for all the heavyweight titles in the men’s side, to a rematch of one of

8:06 AM ET Jake Paul is moving into mixed martial arts and will do so with the Professional Fighters League. The entertainer and social media influencer-turned-professional boxer announced Thursday that he has signed an MMA contract with PFL. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but PFL chairman and co-founder Donn Davis told ESPN it

10:52 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Murodjon Akhmadaliev will defend his two 122-pound titles against Marlon Tapales after the sides struck a deal, sources told ESPN. The unified junior featherweight championship bout is slated to take place in early spring, likely outside the U.S., sources said. Akhmadaliev (11-0, 8 KOs) has made three defenses of the

9:51 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez will meet Cristian Gonzalez for the WBO’s vacant flyweight title on April 8 in San Antonio, sources told ESPN on Tuesday. Rodriguez is ESPN’s No. 3 boxer at 115 pounds but revealed plans to move down one weight class following his September victory over Israel Gonzalez. At

8:27 PM ET Mike CoppingerESPN The 147-pound bout between Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Eimantas Stanionis is slated to take place on March 18 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, sources told ESPN. Oritz’s promoter, Golden Boy, won the rights to the WBA “regular” welterweight title fight at last month’s purse bid with a commitment of $2.3

8:19 AM ET At long last, four years after their second bout, archrivals Canelo Alvarez and Gennadiy Golovkin met for a third time, but the September trilogy fight fell far short of the first two battles. It’s no surprise, of course, after boxing failed to deliver this matchup when both fighters were at their peak.

12:54 PM ET WBA strawweight champion Seniesa Estrada will make her first appearance of 2023 when she fights in a unification bout against WBC champion Tina Rupprecht, sources told ESPN on Sunday. The fight is expected to take place in the United States with a targeted date of March 25 as a cofeature fight, sources

11:26 AM ET Former WBO and IBF junior lightweight champion Mikaela Mayer will make her debut at lightweight against Christina Linardatou, a source confirmed to ESPN. A date and location for the fight have not been determined. This will be Mayer’s first fight since a split-decision loss to Alycia Baumgardner in October that unified the

8:14 AM ET Mike CoppingerESPN Gervonta Davis allegedly struck a woman on the right side of her head with a “closed hand type slap,” leading to his arrest this week in Florida, according to a Broward County Sheriff’s Office incident report. According to the incident report, the woman, who doesn’t live with Davis and whose

5:59 AM ET SAITAMA, Japan — Manny Pacquiao will return to the ring again in 2023. The boxing legend announced Saturday that he has a deal in place with Japan’s Rizin Fighting Federation to compete next year. Pacquiao made the announcement in the ring during Rizin’s New Year’s Eve card at Saitama Super Arena outside