Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is one of 11 political leaders in The Great North mayoral-led collaboration calling for an Olympic Games across Northern England
The mayor of Greater Manchester believes another London bid “wouldn’t be fair or right”. Burnham is one of 11 political leaders, alongside London 2012 gold medallist and current Mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire, Luke Campbell, backing the proposal.
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Sir Brendan Foster, founder of the Great North Run and former Olympic long-distance runner, is another ex-athlete supporting the politicians’ cause. A mayoral-led initiative named ‘The Great North’ has penned a letter to Lisa Nandy, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, who was in Italy this weekend for the Winter Olympics.
Northern leaders are now expressing their desire for any future Summer Games to be outside the capital. The Sunday Times claims their letter says: “A northern-based Olympic Games is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to accelerate regeneration, rebalance the economy, and reset international perceptions of England.”
It continues: “This is also a question of fairness and credibility. If the UK is serious about rebalancing growth, a Games hosted in and across the north would send a clear signal – domestically and internationally – that opportunity, ambition and national pride are shared.”
The Times also cites a source involved in the bid, who stated: “It’s time that people stop thinking about the north as a post-industrial bleak landscape. It’s not.
“It’s full of vibrant, amazing cities, and beautiful settings and landscapes, which could be used to host the biggest sports event on earth and showcase the north of England to the world.”
North East mayor Kim McGuinness is chair of The Great North. She said: “The North of England has a sporting history and prowess like no other place, and we are united in our belief that our region could host a box office, world-leading Olympic Games.”
Burnham also commented: “A lot of work and thought has gone into this, and it feels very of the moment. There has been some suggestion that the country was looking at another London bid, but that wouldn’t be fair or right.
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“And that’s nothing against the capital. It hosted an unforgettable Olympics, and I look back at it quite wistfully, actually, remembering what the country used to be like and how much it has changed.
“It’s about recapturing that for the north of England, that vibrancy and positivity. That’s what Britain needs right now. If you set this ambition, the north will rise to it in the most breathtaking way.”
Campbell holds a similar view, recalling how London 2012 “brought the country together”. The former bantamweight boxer stated: “Everything in this country is so focused on London, but England isn’t just about red buses and telephone boxes; this is our chance to show us off to the world.”
Foster, who secured bronze in the 10,000 metres at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, agrees. He said: “It’s time the north stops getting the crumbs and gets the cake instead.”
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South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard also also backing the move. He claims: “The north can put on a show, we can take on the world’s biggest cultural festival and make a success of it.”
Dubliner Comerford launched Team Ireland’s Olympic campaign on Saturday as he became Ireland’s 34th Winter Olympian, while Maloney Westgård finished his first race of three on Sunday.
Cormac Comerford competed in the Men’s Downhill on the iconic Stelvio Slope, with the Alpine skier recording a time of 2:04.40 to finish 34th.
The Glenageary skier was the final athlete to start in the downhill field. Starting last brought added pressure, with the track heavily worn by the time Comerford pushed out of the gate, but he successfully negotiated the course to bring his Olympic debut safely to the finish.
Olympic debut
Commenting on his Winter Olympics debut, the 29-year-old said:
“It’s an incredible feeling to make my Olympic debut today in this weather, on this slope. To bring it down Stelvio is a huge achievement, coming from the artificial slope back home. There’s a huge sense of pride. I made a few mistakes in the run, it felt smoother in training, but that’s racing and I’m really proud to have brought it down.”
Really challenging course
Olympic veteran Norwegian-born Thomas Maloney Westgård finished his first race of three with a 35th place in the Men’s 10km + 10km Skiathlon in a time of 49.24.6.
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Competition took place in relatively mild conditions creating a tough course for the athletes in the event which involves skiers competing 10km using classic skis before transitioning to a 10km free skating finish. Wearing bib 36 off the start, in what is his least preferred discipline, Maloney Westgård stuck with the opening hectic pace.
Speaking afterwards, the thirty-year-old three-time Olympian said:
“That was a tough one. Soft conditions and quite icy and tricky in the downhills and crusty corners. So it was a really challenging course for sure. Just like it should be in the Olympics. I was a bit anxious on some of the downhill. So, yeah, I’m happy to have started the Olympics.”
Back in action on February 11th
The next competition for Team Ireland is the Men’s Super-G in Alpine Skiing, with Cormac Comerford racing in his second event on the 11 February in Bormio. Following that action, attention moves back to Predazzo, when Thomas Maloney Westgård switches his focus to the 10km Free.
The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks meet in Super Bowl LX tonight at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, with an 11.30pm (Irish time) kick-off.
TV coverage in Ireland
The game, which will mark the first Super Bowl since the 1970 merger between teams that each ranked in the top four in scoring offense and scoring defence during the regular season, will be live on Virgin Media (11pm), Sky Sports NFL (10pm), Channel 5 and DAZN.
The Patriots, who ended the season 17-3, make their 12th Super Bowl appearance, the most among all teams.
Tonight, New England can become the first team to win seven Super Bowls and surpass San Francisco (40 wins) for the most postseason wins by a franchise in NFL history.
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Seahawks bid for second Super Bowl win
The Seahawks, with a 16-3 season record, will appear in the Super Bowl for the fourth time, and can secure the second Super Bowl victory in franchise history, previously winning Super Bowl XLVIII following the 2013 season, when they defeated the Denver Broncos 43-8.
New England and Seattle are the 10th pair of teams to meet in multiple Super Bowls, previously facing off in Super Bowl XLIX in Arizona following the 2014 season, with the Patriots winning 28-24 on that occasion.
The Head Coaches: Vrabel v Macdonald
Mike Vrabel, in his first season as the Patriots head coach, can become the first head coach to win 18 games, including the playoffs, in his first season with a team in NFL history. He can also become the fifth person in NFL history to win the Super Bowl as both a player and a head coach, joining Mike Ditka, Tony Dungy and Tom Flores as well as Doug Pederson. As a player, Vrabel won three Super Bowls (XXXVI, XXXVIII and XXXIX) with New England.
The Seahawks head coach, Mike Macdonald, can become the third-youngest head coach, at 38 years and 227 days, to win the Super Bowl if successful tonight.
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The Quarterbacks: Maye v Darnold
New England quarterback Drake Maye can become the youngest starting quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl. He can also become the fifth quarterback to win the Super Bowl in his first or second season.
Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold aims to become the fourth quarterback to win the Super Bowl in his first season with a team, joining Tom Brady (Super Bowl LV with Tampa Bay), Trent Dilfer (Super Bowl XXXV with Baltimore) and Matthew Stafford (Super Bowl LVI with the Los Angeles Rams).
Players to watch
Seattle wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba can become the fourth player (fifth occurrence) to lead the NFL in receiving yards during the regular season and win the Super Bowl in the same year. If he achieves the feat, he will join Drew Pearson (1977) and Jerry Rice (1989 and 1994) and Cooper Kupp (2021).
Including the postseason, Smith-Njigba has 1,965 receiving yards – the most receiving yards by a player under the age of 24 in NFL history – and can become the third player ever with at least 2,000 receiving yards in a season, including the playoffs. He can also become the second player with 90-or-more receiving yards in 15 games in a season, including the playoffs.
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Seattle wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who was named Super Bowl LVI Most Valuable Player with the Los Angeles Rams, can become the eighth wide receiver to be on the active roster and win the Super Bowl with two different teams.
Seattle linebacker DeMarcus Lawrence, who has a sack and forced fumble in both Seahawks wins this postseason, can become the first player since 2000 with a sack and forced fumble in three consecutive playoff games within the same postseason.
Consecutive Super Bowl wins for Milton Williams?
New England defensive tackle Milton Williams, who won Super Bowl LIX last season with Philadelphia, can become the sixth player to be on the active roster and win the Super Bowl in consecutive seasons with different teams.
If successful, he will join LeGarrette Blount (2016 with New England, 2017 with Philadelphia), Chris Long (2016 with New England, 2017 with Philadelphia), LeSean McCoy (2019 with Kansas City, 2020 with Tampa Bay), Ken Norton (1993 with Dallas, 1994 with San Francisco) and Deion Sanders (1994 with San Francisco, 1995 with Dallas).
Arizona football played its inaugural season in 1899, spending the first 32 years as an independent before joining the now-defunct Border Conference in 1931.
Along with rival Arizona State (ASU), the Wildcats joined the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in 1962. In 1978, both Arizona and ASU joined the Pac-12 Conference (then known as the Pac-10).
They were placed in the Pac-12 South Division when the conference realigned in 2011. Pac-12 divisions were eliminated in the 2022 season.
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Arizona joined the Big 12 in the 2024–2025 academic year on August 2, 2024, as part of a more extensive NCAA conference realignment.
The Wildcats have won at least a share of six conference championships, as well as a Pac-12 South division title in 2014. UA has made 21 bowl appearances, including an appearance in a New Year’s Six bowl.
Arizona has compiled a record of 646-511-33 (.557) through the 2025 season.
The program ranks 59th on the all-time FBS win list and 57th in all-time winning percentage.
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The table below provides an all-time season rundown with Conference, W-L record, win percentage, coach, and bowl game, if any, for each year.
American skiing legend Lindsey Vonn’s bid for a fairytale Olympic comeback ended in dramatic fashion on Sunday after she crashed out of the women’s downhill in Cortina d’Ampezzo, leaving the race won by her US teammate Breezy Johnson overshadowed by fears the 41-year-old’s career may be over.
Tom Kitten’s spring was marked by challenges for his connections, but the autumn has launched impressively at Caulfield for the Group 1 graduate.
Back from a let-up, the gelding captured the Group 3 Kevin Heffernan Stakes (1400m) on Saturday, easing concerns for Anthony and Sam Freedman after a problematic previous preparation.
The five-year-old, once trained by James Cummings at Godolphin, bypassed the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield last spring due to a barrier scratch, hampering his progress.
The Freedmans expended considerable effort to rebuild Tom Kitten’s fitness.
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Contrastingly, this campaign featured a progressive conditioning phase, crowned by a well-judged effort from Craig Williams.
The $3 market elect edged Feroce ($6) by a short-head in the dying strides, as Veight ($6) trailed by 3-¾ lengths for third.
“Craig and I had a chat before the event, and I really wanted to see him not have a gut buster and not have to circle the whole field and make a long run,” Sam Freedman said.
“You see when they got going, he kept him back, he made his run at the perfect time and it’s great to get the horse back in the winners’ stall.
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“When you take on a horse like this that has been to the top of the mountain, there’s always a bit of pressure.
“Ultimately, we felt that he’d been running well in the spring but didn’t get the rub of the green.
“We’re not getting carried away as it is a fair step down from the level that he has been to, but on his times at home and the way he is carrying condition, he can hopefully get to the level he has been at again.”
Freedman explained the shift in training methods, noting improved condition on the gelding.
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Arriving fresh with moderated work suited Tom Kitten ideally.
“We were a victim last prep of missing a run when he was scratched at the gates,” Freedman said.
“We were chasing our tail going to the mile first-up and we were concerned that he was racing too keenly and we had to work to make him settle, which didn’t work.
“He pulled his head off in a sedate tempo in the Makybe Diva and then he gradually got better. He had a fitness run at The Valley, and then he was back on track in Sydney.”
Sam Curran revealed his mind drifted back to Ben Stokes and the 2016 T20 World Cup final before his last-over heroics rescued England from humiliation in Mumbai on Sunday.
Following the Ashes debacle and Harry Brook’s off-field drama, England’s miserable winter threatened to take another downturn as minnows Nepal required just 10 off the last six balls to claim a shock win.
But Curran, thinking about Stokes being thumped for four successive sixes by Carlos Brathwaite in the final over as the West Indies snatched a famous victory a decade ago, held his nerve by nailing his lines and lengths.
Roared on by thousands of Nepalese fans at a raucous Wankhede Stadium, Lokesh Bam had to hit a six off the last ball after being frustrated by Curran but could only hit a single as England won by four runs.
Curran said at the presentation ceremony: “I said to Brook ‘I’m backing six yorkers here and I’ll take the hit if I don’t execute’. I think you’ve got to think like that.
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“I weirdly thought of the 2016 final when Carlos got a hold of Stokesy and I was thinking ‘if I execute, he’s not going to hit me for six’.
“(At the) top of my mark I just watched his feet and thankfully I executed. Those games are great to win but wow, it would have been a horrible one to lose.
“It just shows how competitive this World Cup’s going to be. We knew it was going to be full of Nepal fans. I played a lot of cricket in India and I’ve never had an atmosphere quite like that.”
England starting their tournament with a win – their 11th in 12 completed T20s – was built on a total of 184 for seven, underpinned by fifties for Brook and Jacob Bethell, plus Will Jacks’ cameo 39 off 18 balls.
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But the ultra-reliable Adil Rashid failed to take a wicket for the first time in 25 T20s and was uncharacteristically expensive with figures of 3-0-42-0, while Jofra Archer’s final over disappeared for 22.
Liam Dawson, playing his first World Cup match, impressed with two for 21 before Curran had the final say in a back-and-forth contest, leaving Bam on his haunches after making 39 not out off 20 balls.
Jacks, who also took one for 17, said: “Winning ugly is a great trait. It’s incredibly difficult to replicate that experience.
“Hopefully when we get in that situation in the rest of the tournament – which we definitely will at some stage – we’ll be able to look back on this experience and take that with us.
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“I was very nervous, my heart was thumping on the boundary. But I had confidence in Sam, he’s done that job quite well. Credit to him, it was brilliant how he nailed his yorkers and held his nerve.”
England began their campaign 16 years ago with a shock loss to the Netherlands but captain Brook and head coach Brendon McCullum have avoided that ignominy, with both of their jobs under scrutiny.
McCullum has been criticised for how England planned and prepared for the 4-1 Ashes defeat but he was shown relaying instructions on to the field during Nepal’s chase on a walkie talkie – a practice that Jacks said started earlier this winter.
Jacks added: “It’s so messages can get run out to the captain or to the guys who are batting in the middle. It’s just an easier way of spreading the message.”
Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah speaks with Paul Allen during a radio appearance discussing multiple team topics, with October 22, 2024 falling in the buildup to a Week 8 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. The conversation came amid a dominant 14–2 regular season that positioned Minnesota as an NFC contender. Mandatory Credit: YouTube
Minnesota Vikings misses and myths are actually quite hot and heavy this week, mainly because of misinformation regarding Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s termination. Here’s a glance at the Nopedy Nopes.
A quick truth check on three Vikings talking points that picked up steam heading into Super Bowl week.
Our weekly publication chronicles all the false and outlandish takes in the Vikings’ orbit — or stuff that simply didn’t work out.
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Kwesi Rumor, Maye Trade Talk, and Cine’s Latest Detour
The Nopey Nopes of Super Bowl week are here.
Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah speaks with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine inside the Indiana Convention Center, with the session taking place on Feb. 27, 2024, as Minnesota weighed offseason priorities, roster flexibility, and long-term planning while setting the framework for free agency and the upcoming draft cycle. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports.
The Nopedy Nope: Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was fired, in part, because he took paternity leave in 2023.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero joined KFAN this week and, among several items, dispelled the fictitious paternity leave theory.
He told the Power Trip Morning Show, “To pin it on ‘He took paternity leave three years ago,’ even if you’re bringing it up to say, ‘But that wasn’t it,’ you’re introducing a topic that had not been a topic. Sure, is there a level of frustration that comes when you feel like you’re having to do more because your co-worker is out? You don’t fire a guy three years after he took paternity leave. Like, what are we even talking about? It’s just wild. Like, we all knew that.”
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“Yeah, he wasn’t around in the summer of 2023. He missed chunks of the spring and missed part of training camp. But I never got any sense that it was some long-standing thing. It was well known that that happened and that there was some frustration from the people in the building about it, but it never changed the relationship. So, this idea that it was this toxic environment is, frankly, complete and utter nonsense.”
The paternity leave situation was mentioned by reporters covering the Vikings, and some fans then chose to make it the smoking gun for Adofo-Mensah’s termination.
Pelissero added, “I will say this, there is a habit for certain people, if they get beat on a scoop, to immediately lend additional details to the story that may or may not be 100 percent grounded in fact. So, you ended up with a bunch of tweets thrown out there into the universe, that suggested things, that based upon all my knowledge of the situation are not entirely accurate.”
“The idea that this was a toxic environment, there was tension between — Kwesi and Kevin are friends, personally. They have always been good. There was not a fight. There was not a blow-up. It was not, quite frankly, like it was at the end of the Mike Zimmer-Rick Spielman era, two guys that I like a lot, but they weren’t talking. It was never like that.”
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It may be true that paternity leave is uncommon in the NFL, but the Wilfs didn’t fire Adofo-Mensah for it — three years later.
The Verdict: Nopedy nope on Adofo-Mensah losing his job for taking two weeks of paternity leave while working from home.
The Nopedy Nope: The Vikings had a trade in place for Drake Maye in 2024, but they backed out.
SI.com‘s Albert Breer published a piece this week chronicling Sam Darnold’s rise in Seattle, laying out the broader takeaways from that arc.
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Buried inside the article was a revealing detail about Minnesota’s quarterback ambitions in 2024. Breer wrote, “There’s the one caveat to all of this, which is that the Vikings tried with all their might to trade up for Drake Maye in 2024. O’Connell loved him. Maye was coached in high school by Vikings assistant Josh McCown and was a teammate of McCown’s son.”
“Minnesota offered both of its first-round picks in 2024 (Nos. 11 and 23) and its 2025 first-rounder to the Patriots, with later-round pick swaps favoring Minnesota to move up to the third pick.”
North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye warms up on the field at Hard Rock Stadium prior to kickoff, with the scene unfolding on Oct. 8, 2022, as the Tar Heels prepared to face Miami while Maye went through pregame throwing drills and movement work ahead of the ACC matchup. Mandatory Credit: Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports.
Despite that, a segment of the fan base has spent the time since the 2024 NFL Draft insisting Minnesota simply walked away from the deal. That belief doesn’t align with what actually happened.
Breer added, “O’Connell pushed them to go further. It wouldn’t matter, because the Patriots weren’t moving, sitting there as convicted in Maye as Minnesota was in the former North Carolina quarterback.” The resistance came from New England, not hesitation from Minnesota.
“But if the Vikings had somehow gotten the Patriots off their spot with Maye, all of this might look different, and the aforementioned rumblings probably would have stopped.” The entire trajectory hinged on a pick that was never available.
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There’s a meaningful gap between claiming the Vikings backed off a deal and acknowledging that the Patriots refused to move. One version reflects how draft negotiations actually unfold; the other rewrites events to paint Minnesota’s front office as recklessly incompetent. That’s just not the case.
The Verdict: Nopedy nope on the Vikings backing out of the Maye trade; Robert Kraft cancelled the deal.
The Nopedy Nope: Lewis Cine would catch on in the UFL.
Cine is out — and the UFL league that was supposed to offer a reset.
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Minnesota Vikings safety Lewis Cine observes practice activity at the TCO Performance Center during training camp, with the moment captured on July 27, 2022, as the rookie acclimated to NFL routines, team drills, and coaching instruction following his first-round selection earlier that offseason. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports.
UFL writer Michael Heilman wrote over the weekend, “The D.C. Defenders released wide receiver Jalen Virgil, offensive linemen Elijah Ellis and Silas Dzansi, and defensive back Lewis Cine on Saturday according to the UFL Transactions page. Lewis Cine is six foot two and weighs 199 pounds. The 26-year-old from Cedar Hills, Texas, was drafted by the D.C. Defenders in the 2026 UFL Draft.”
“The Minnesota Vikings drafted Cine in the first round (32nd pick) of the 2022 NFL Draft. He spent three seasons in Minnesota with one tackle (1 solo) in 10 games. In 2024, he made 16 tackles (8 solos, 8 assists), one sack, one interception, and one pass breakup in three preseason games. The Vikings released him on August 27, 2024.”
For Cine, this is another miss on a resume that no longer has room for them. The UFL was supposed to be a proving ground. Cine couldn’t even make the cut there.
The Verdict: Nopedy nope on Cine’s football career — in general. He’s probably done.
Chris Waller bolsters his Golden Slipper lineup once more, parading unbeaten colt Fireball to claim a sophisticated first-up prize in the $2 million Inglis Millennium at Randwick.
Back after resting post his Rosehill debut win in November, the $4.60 favourite owned by James Harron drove externally to thwart Ghana’s Akan ($17) by a narrow half-length margin, Alibaba ($26) trailing by another head for third.
Saturday’s feat impressed Waller most for Fireball’s demonstration of untapped prowess, hinting at untapped speed ahead.
“He will get stronger, and he’ll get faster. He’s got the frame, he is well bred,” Waller said of the son of Snitzel.
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“He hasn’t been wound up to get to today. He wasn’t even going to run unless he drew a nice barrier. I was more than happy to wait and just bide our time.”
In addition, Waller’s stable features Hidrix, Canonbury Stakes conqueror, bound for the $5 million Golden Slipper (1200m), likely via the Silver Slipper (1100m) on February 21, leading Waller to plan distinct paths for the colts.
Fireball merits a tailored approach, positioning him as a legitimate aspirant for the top juvenile event.
“We’re starting to work them out, which is good,” Waller said.
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“The Silver Slipper is in two weeks and we’re in no rush. We got a few colts we can now sit back and split up a little bit and 1200 metres, I think will suit him better, so one of those (1200 metre) ones coming up.”
James McDonald applauded the Waller team’s confidence in Fireball ahead of the testing Inglis Millennium (1100m) with its substantial lineup.
“I’ve been saying all week to Chris that the colt is a bit of a ‘dummy’ and I wasn’t sure if he was ready for a test like this,” McDonald said.
“But great credit to Chris, he had faith in the colt and said, ‘he is a very nice horse, as you will see when he is put under pressure’.”
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“He was put under pressure today and we saw how well he responded.”
Craig Newitt praised Alibaba’s bold Sydney introduction as Blue Diamond Preview winner, storming late with intent.
“He was unbelievable. On his Melbourne leg the whole race,” Newitt said.
“We were strung up in traffic, and he smashed the line. He’s a genuine Group One colt. The racing betting markets offered plenty for the Inglis Millennium excitement.
Shakur Stevenson’s win over Teofimo Lopez has seen him recognised as one of the greatest fighters on the planet, with the Newark slickster now showing interest in moving up in weight again to take on fellow pound-for-pound star Devin Haney.
Having ruled at featherweight, super-featherweight and lightweight, Stevenson stepped up to super-lightweight with the opportunity to become the third-youngest four-division world champion in boxing history.
After the fight, Stevenson threatened a possible move to welterweight, calling out Britain’s Conor Benn in the ring during his post fight interview.
Now, speaking to Cigar Talk, Stevenson has says he is willing to face any of the champions at 147lbs, where Haney is the current WBO belt holder, but only if a strict 10lb rehydration clause is in place.
“I’m going to tell you again, if you want me to come to 147lbs, I am coming there with a rehydration clause. I don’t even do that, but why am I going up to these guys’ weight classes if I am not planning on going there [permanently].
“So any of y’all, you wanna fight me at 147lbs? 10 pounds [is the max you can rehydrate].”
Shakur went on to praise Haney but insisted his fellow American would not stand a chance in the ring.
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“Devin is a tremendous fighter but do I think that Devin Haney can beat me? Hell no, hell no.”
Haney captured his welterweight title after an impressive performance against Brian Norman Jr back in November.
