Head coach Rudy Hernandez has recalled the exact moment that Junto Nakatani revealed the level of power he experienced from Naoya Inoue’s punches.

The two Japanese stars squared off in an eagerly-awaited showdown earlier this month, which took place at a sold-out Tokyo Dome in front of roughly 55,000 fans.

As a sizable favourite, many expected Inoue to retain his undisputed super-bantamweight crown, yet his sheer dominance in the early rounds nonetheless came as a surprise to most.

In the end, ‘The Monster’ claimed a clear unanimous decision victory, but was forced to overcome a Nakatani onslaught between rounds seven and 10.

At this point, ‘Big Bang’ suddenly sprang to life after taking a far more measured approach in the previous rounds, appearing to no longer respect the power of his opponent.

According to his trainer, Hernandez, this was a pivotal moment which, if only it had arrived sooner, may have been enough to pinch a razor-thin victory on points.

In any case, the experienced coach has told BoxingScene what Nakatani thought of Inoue’s power, whilst believing that a potential rematch with Inoue would surely go their way, so confident in Nakatani’s ability that he has promised to retire if he is proven wrong.

“If we don’t beat [Inoue] in the rematch, I will never train fighters again. I will retire. I will quit, because I really believe in the rematch we are going to kick Inoue’s butt.

“The moment Junto told me that [Inoue] doesn’t hit that hard, that was a game-changer. I wish he had told me that in the second or third round.”

Hernandez adds that, irrespective of their prior head collision, an Inoue uppercut in round 11 was what ultimately broke Nakatani’s orbital bone.

From there, the three-weight world champion was fighting an uphill battle to even complete the full 12 rounds, let alone pull off a sizable upset.

Nuno Espirito Santo apologised to West Ham fans after relegation was confirmed but refused to commit to staying as manager or comment on the future of their high-profile players.

The Hammers needed a victory against Leeds and for Tottenham to lose at home to Everton to stay up and send Spurs down instead.

They kept their side of the bargain as second-half goals from Taty Castellanos, Jarrod Bowen and Callum Wilson sank Leeds 3-0.

But Spurs, who had not won at home in the league this year, beat Everton to survive by two points.

“It’s a moment of deep sadness for all of us at the club,” said Nuno. “It was a tough day, we had a tough mission, we lost the privilege of deciding our own future.

“If you ask me now about the past and the future, I don’t think it’s the best days to understand the moment of sadness of our fans, of ourselves, of the club, and apologise and thank them for all of the support they gave us.

“It was a strange season in terms of points, normally 39 I think in the last 10 years or so has given the teams enough to keep safe. We improved, but it’s not enough.”

So ends West Ham’s 14-year stay in the top flight, with relegation coming a decade after the controversial move to the London Stadium and the hollow promises from the owners that came with it.

Their brief revival under Nuno, who replaced Graham Potter as manager in September, began too late and fizzled out too early.

“We sold our soul, for this ****hole” rang around the former Olympic Stadium as fans turned their anger towards chairman David Sullivan.

The Leeds fans were in no mood to be sympathetic, chanting “Millwall away ole ole”, a fixture which could keep the Metropolitan Police busy next season.

West Ham released a statement after the game, calling relegation “a sad and painful moment” after “an extremely difficult and disappointing season”.

The statement added: “We must now face the consequences of that failure with honesty, transparency and a determination to repair, refocus and rebuild.

“As we have done before, we will fight with everything we have to return to the top division of English football at the first time of asking. The hard work to make that goal a reality begins immediately.”

Hammers captain Bowen did not rule out staying to help West Ham get out of the Championship next season.

However, the likely fire sale at the club to make ends meet and the fee he and players like Mateus Fernandes and Crysencio Summerville would command means that is probably not going to be his decision to make.

“I’m under contract here,” Bowen told Sky Sports. “There’s going to be rumours, there’s going to be talk, but ultimately what I see is getting this club back in the Premier League.

“I’ve had some really good moments here. This is a really hard moment. You never know what the future holds, but I want to see this club back in the Premier League and right now my vision is to get this club back in the Premier League.”

Leeds had long since secured their survival with room to spare, and boss Daniel Farke said: “Commiserations to West Ham.

“It’s always a sad day when a club with so many years in the top flight goes down. It was a strange atmosphere in the stadium and you could feel it today.

“We were not at our best. But we’ve played a fantastic season as a promoted side. To finish 14th on 47 points is massive, especially given how difficult it was for promoted sides last season.”

Rangers International were crowned champions of the Nigeria Premier Football League after a hard-fought 2-1 win against Ikorodu City in a tense final-day clash in Lagos.

The Flying Antelopes ended the 2025/2026 season with 68 points, winning a record-equalling ninth league title to draw level with Enyimba International as the most successful club in NPFL history.

Rangers started the game strongly and created the first chance through Kelvin Briggs, whose flicked header from a long ball went over the crossbar.

The match struggled to settle in the early stages, with both sides finding it difficult to create clear opportunities.

Rangers believed they had taken the lead midway through the first half when Daniel Itodo’s long throw caused confusion inside the Ikorodu City penalty area, but the referee ruled the goal out.

The breakthrough finally came in the 31st minute after Ikorodu City lost possession close to their box. Rangers captain Obinna Nwobodo drove forward before calmly firing past goalkeeper Derrick July to give the visitors the lead.

Ikorodu City tried to respond quickly, but Rangers continued to press aggressively. Defender Chidozie Iwundu attempted a long-range effort, but it failed to trouble the goalkeeper.

Itodo remained Rangers’ biggest attacking threat throughout the game with his dangerous long throws.

One of his deliveries won a corner before another effort found Itodo himself, but his header drifted wide.

The hosts also threatened from set-pieces, with captain Folarin Temitope sending an effort over the bar after a loose ball fell kindly for him.

Rangers nearly doubled their lead before half-time when another long throw from Itodo found league top scorer Godwin Obaje, but his flick rolled narrowly wide.

The visitors eventually got their second goal shortly after the break. Wisdom Ebirim’s shot was pushed into the path of Nwobodo, who reacted quickest to score from close range.

Ikorodu City pulled one back through Moses Bada after goalkeeper Lucky Jimoh parried Temitope’s cross into the striker’s path for a simple finish, setting up a nervous ending at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena.

Rangers continued searching for another goal, but Waheed Adebayo missed a good chance inside the box after a knockdown from Ebirim.

Iwundu also tested the hosts again with another ambitious strike from distance as Rangers battled to protect their lead in the closing minutes.

The final whistle sparked wild celebrations among Rangers supporters as the club secured its second league title in three seasons under General Manager Barrister Amobi Ezeaku and Technical Adviser Fidelis Ilechukwu.

Last week, golf’s best battled “dicey” pin locations and treacherous greens at the PGA Championship at Aronimink. This week was a little different.

The CJ Cup Byron Nelson introduced players to the newly renovated TPC Craig Ranch, and the world’s best promptly tore it apart. Jordan Spieth shot a 62 in the second round and his playing partner Sungjae Im carded a 61.

“I was hurting my head trying to figure out what our best ball was,” Spieth said after he and Im finished on Friday. “I think it was 57, which is pretty good.”

That afternoon, Si Woo Kim flirted with a 59, but settled for a (somewhat disappointing) 60 to take a five-shot lead into the weekend.

“I hit it great and putted great,” Kim said of his second-round 60. “So everything was perfect, other than the last hole. I’ll still take it. 60 is hard, but I was a little bit of thinking about the 59 after I [made birdie on] 17. It was a little bit of like adrenaline. … I’ll still take 60.”

Scottie Scheffler and Wyndham Clark trimmed Kim’s lead to two entering Sunday, setting up a final round that promised more drama than Scheffler’s runaway win at last year’s edition.

It was a final round that Clark took control with a blistering hot putter.

The 2023 U.S. Open champion went out in 4-under 32 to stay within arm’s reach of Kim. Then, Clark stuffed it to six feet on No. 11 for birdie and poured in a 15-foot eagle putt on 12 to take the outright lead. He made an easy birdie at the short par-4 14th and then rolled in a 45-foot birdie putt on 15 to stay one ahead of Kim. A birdie at the par-3 17th gave him a two-shot lead, and then Clark stuffed it to kick-in range on the 18th hole to shoot a final-round 60 — including a back-nine 28 — to claim his first title since the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am.

Here is the complete payout breakdown for this week’s CJ Cup Byron Nelson played at TPC Craig Ranch. The total purse is is $10.3 million, with the Clark taking home $1.854 million.

How much every player made at the 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson  

Win: Wyndham Clark, $1,854,000

2. Si Woo Kim, $1,122,000

3. Scottie Scheffler, $710,700

4. Jackson Suber, $504,700

5. Keith Mitchell, $422,300

T6. Tony Finau, $347,625
Tom Hoge, $347,625
Zach Bauchou, $347,625

T9. Johnny Keefer, $260,075
Jesper Svensson, $260,075
Max Greyserman, $260,075
Sungjae Im, $260,075
Stephan Jaeger, $260,075

T14. Brooks Koepka, $187,975
Blades Brown, $187,975
Taylor Moore, $187,975

17. Ben Silverman, $167,375

18. SY Noh, $157,075

T19. Jordan Spieth, $100,593
Erik van Rooyen, $100,593
Steven Fisk, $100,593
Kensei Hirata, $100,593
Ryo Hisatsune, $100,593
Rico Hoey, $100,593
Rasmus Neegaard-Petersen, $100,593
Peter Malnati, $100,593
Pierceson Coody, $100,593
A.J. Ewart, $100,593
Seamus Power, $100,593
Garrick Higgo, $100,593

T31. Mark Hubbard, $58,930
Chris Kirk, $58,930
Eric Cole, $58,930
Luke Clanton, $58,930
Sam Ryder, $58,930
Doug Ghim, $58,930
Mac Meissner, $58,930

T38. Emiliano Grillo, $47,895
Chan Kim, $47,895

T40. Neal Shipley, $39,655
Adrien Saddier, $39,655
Tyler Duncan, $39,655
Matthieu Pavon, $39,655
Luke List, $39,655
Austin Eckroat, $39,655
Camilo Villegas, $39,655

T47. Dan Brown, $26,971
Fabian Gomez, $26,971
Taylor Pendrith, $26,971
John Parry, $26,971
Justin Lower, $26,971
Patrick Fishburn, $26,971
Patrick Rodgers, $26,971

T54. Troy Merritt, $23,999
Tom Kim, $23,999
Adam Svensson, $23,999
Charley Hoffman, $23,999
Jeffrey Kang, $23,999

T59. Chad Ramey, $23,175
Jordan Smith, $23,175
Jonathan Byrd, $23,175

The Los Angeles Rams already have the deepest tight end room in the NFL with five players who are a lock to make a 53-man roster, whether it’s L.A. or somewhere else, but it turns out that Sean McVay’s obsession with the position doesn’t stop there. As details emerged about the Rams’ undrafted signing bonuses on Sunday, it was revealed that tight end Dan Villari received $45,000 guaranteed, the most of any undrafted player on the team.

That’s three times as much as the second-highest paid undrafted player on the Rams in 2026, but also the second-most for any UDFA signed by the team ever, behind only Josh Wallace in 2024. Wallace made the Rams roster in each of the last two seasons, so does that mean the Rams are going to keep six tight ends?

Minnesota Vikings training camp is less than 10 weeks away, and during that event, the coaching staff will shave the roster from 90 men to 53. Accordingly, it’s time to start defining some of the overlooked players entering the summer.

Minnesota’s roster has several quieter names who could become useful pieces before the regular season.

Minnesota’s roster is more than capable of returning to the postseason in 2026. The following players will quietly assist in that endeavor.

Depth Players Will Affect Key Summer Battles

The annual underrated pecking order of Vikings, ranked in ascending order (No. 1 = most underrated).

5. Gavin Bartholomew | TE

Minnesota drafted Bartholomew in 2025 from Round 6 — and then he didn’t do a damn thing as a rookie because of injury. Undrafted tight end Ben Yurosek swiped his job.

Now, though, Bartholomew is presumably healthy, so he’s basically another rookie for the Vikings this season. He and Yurosek will duke it out for the TE3 job this summer, and there’s a chance that Bartholomew prevails, building on the plan from the 2025 NFL Draft.

Who knows? Perhaps Bartholomew is just plain good. There’s no way to tell until he steps foot on a regular season field. The Vikings drafted him for a reason 13 months ago.

4. Ryan Van Demark | OT

The 2025 numbers for Van Demark, a newcomer in free agency, are quite phenomenal, especially for a guy who projects as a backup tackle on the Vikings’ 2026 depth chart.

Here are the Pro Football Focus grades with snap counts

• 2025: 74.4 (312 snaps)
• 2024: 53.3 (199 snaps)
• 2023: 60.2 (47 snaps)

The pass-blocking:

• 2025: 65.6
• 2024: 51.8
• 2023: 27.2

And the run-blocking:

• 2025: 74.9
• 2024: 51.4
• 2023: 64.4

Fans hope that Christian Darrisaw’s ACL has finally healed. If Darrisaw encounters more troubles, inserting Van Demark into the lineup shouldn’t spell doomsday, based on his performance in Buffalo last year.

3. Jay Ward | S

Ward’s path to increased playing time is now clear. With Harrison Smith’s departure, ample safety snaps are available. The Vikings further emphasized this by passing on Dillon Thieneman and Emmanuel McNeil-Warren in the draft, despite Thieneman frequently appearing in mock drafts as a Minnesota-bound player. This leaves Ward, Theo Jackson, and 3rd-Round rookie Jakobe Thomas as the primary contenders for those roles.

Ward already demonstrated his potential late in 2025. He quietly began taking snaps from Jackson, bringing a grittier, more aggressive style to the secondary as Brian Flores relied on him down the stretch.

With only one year left on his contract, this upcoming season is crucial for Ward to prove he can be more than a rotational defensive back. Ward played 250 defensive snaps last year and banked a 70.4 PFF grade. His aggression and playmaking were noteworthy.

2. Blake Brandel | OL

Brandel consistently elevates the importance of a backup role, so much so that he usually wiggles his way into a starting job.

Last season, Brandel played in all 17 games, starting nine and logging 64% of Minnesota’s offensive snaps. The vast playing time was largely due to the Vikings’ injury-plagued offensive line, for which Brandel provided crucial stability.

His greatest asset is his versatility; Brandel can play guard, tackle, and center. It made him one of the Vikings’ most valuable depth players in 2025, stepping in to steady an offensive line frequently disrupted by injuries.

It’s his work at center, however, that truly sparks interest for the 2026 season.

Brandel played 383 snaps at center, showing steady improvement throughout the season. What began as a longshot opportunity to start at the position evolved into a genuine discussion. While his 61.4 PFF grade indicates solid rather than superstar-level play, it represents valuable consistency for an offensive line that often lacked it.

Brandel is on deck to start at center in Week 1, too. Whoodathunkit?

1. James Pierre | CB

Pierre logged a magnificent 86.8 PFF grade in 2025. If that mark translates to 2026, well, Pierre should actually start over Byron Murphy Jr. or Isaiah Rodgers. That won’t happen because the coaching staff loves Murphy Jr. and Rodgers, but Pierre has the spine to start.

That’ll be vital to remember if injuries beset either starter — Murphy Jr. and Rodgers somehow played 17 games apiece in 2025, which is rare for two starting corners.

Pierre is the real deal, and at CB3, he has a chance to be the Vikings’ best third corner since the Mike Zimmer era.

His 41.5 passer rating allowed in Pittsburgh last year was just to die for.

Dustin Baker is a novelist and political scientist. His second novel, The Invaders , is out now. So is … More about Dustin Baker

Coach Chot Reyes (middle) leads the on-court celebration for TNT after upset Game 3 win over Meralco. —MARLO CUETO

In a twist to its import situation, TNT is bringing a familiar, tested name to fill the big shoes left by the injured Bol Bol.

Chris McCullough arrived on Sunday as Bol’s replacement and had a preview of what he hopes would be a fruitful stint when he witnessed the Tropang 5G fight it out despite playing all-Filipino in slipping past Meralco, 77-75, at the Mall of Asia Arena.

That gave TNT a 2-1 lead in their best-of-seven series in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals, as McCullough will be tasked to try and replicate his role in San Miguel Beer’s run to the 2019 title of the same conference where he and the Beermen brought down TNT.

“It’s sad to see an injury like that, but hopefully he can get back home and get surgery,” McCullough said, first expressing his well-wishes to his fellow ex-NBA player.

“I just want to help this team win as [much as] possible, do what I got to do, just play basketball,” he added as TNT now begins the process of getting him integrated into the way things are run before Wednesday’s Game 4.

His Tropang 5G debut is at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, where he’ll be tasked to lead his new squad to a commanding 3-1 lead.

McCullough’s signing ends a whirlwind 48 hours for TNT after Bol went down in Friday’s 87-76 Game 2 loss with a partial Achilles tear, as team manager Jojo Lastimosa immediately got the lines burning.

The first Game 3 option was actually to suit up Malick Diouf, the former University of the Philippines star, before naming a permanent fix.

Pogoy drains winner

But with government agencies required in order for Diouf to be given the okay to play closed for the weekend, the Tropang 5G were left with no choice but to go with an all-local crew.

“They called me around Friday night and they told me if I’m available and I said yes,” Diouf said. “I was really excited for it because I thought it was a great opportunity to show people that I can play here. But hopefully I can play soon.”

With both Diouf and McCullough on the sidelines as spectators, TNT’s locals had to weather out the disadvantage, as well as an 11-point deficit, to squeak past Meralco and move two wins away from a fifth consecutive Finals appearance.

Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser came up with crucial plays down the stretch, while RR Pogoy knocked down the go-ahead three with seven seconds left before TNT saw CJ Cansino and Javee Mocon miss point-blank attempts as time expired.

“It’s really disappointing losing Bol, losing our teammate, losing our brother,” said Ganuelas-Rosser. “Coach said that he (Bol) messaged him and said he really wanted to be out there. So we wanted to go out here and dedicate the game to him and play for him.

“You know, he carried us here, so hopefully we can bring (ourselves) across the finish line and we can finish the job,” he added. INQ

NEW DELHI: The tension was clearly visible on Rajasthan Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara’s face during his side’s must-win IPL 2026 clash against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

Sangakkara remained glued to his seat till the very last ball, repeatedly wiping sweat off his face with a towel and barely showing any expression throughout the game.

But the moment the final ball was bowled and Rajasthan Royals confirmed their playoff qualification with a 30-run win over Mumbai Indians, a visibly relaxed Sangakkara stood up, applauded his players and exchanged handshakes with members of the support staff and team.

While Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders were dependent on complicated qualification scenarios and net run-rate equations, Rajasthan Royals entered the game with a simple task – win and qualify for the playoffs.

RR delivered under pressure, riding on Jofra Archer’s brilliant all-round performance to seal the fourth and final playoff berth in style.

“During the last timeout it was just about sticking to plans and holding your nerve. When you go to the back end it’s all about who responds better under pressure. All the bowlers did a brilliant job. And on the field we were pretty tidy. It’s always guesswork isn’t it (Archer’s promotion while batting). It’s great when it works and pretty ugly when it doesn’t,” Sangakkara said after Rajasthan Royals’ victory.

Jofra Archer shines with bat and ball

Archer first made a crucial impact with the bat, smashing 32 runs off just 15 deliveries to help Rajasthan Royals post 205 for eight.

The England pacer hammered three sixes and a four during his quickfire cameo that changed the momentum of the innings.

He then backed it up with an outstanding spell with the ball, returning figures of 4-0-17-3 to earn the Player of the Match award.

“We know what Jofra can do with the bat. Wanted him to go out there and take a bit of risk. And then let Ferreira and Dubey handle the later overs when the bowlers were tired in the sun. Unfortunately Donovan did get out but Jofra kicked on and then Jaddu coming in at the end with a bung elbow got us over the line,” Sangakkara said.

“From where we were, looking at only 180, 206 was a fantastic effort. He has been like that in every single game (Archer being fired up). Very invested in the team, helping everyone. Has been our spearhead right from the start. Very proud of him.”

Sangakkara praises young spinner Yash

The Rajasthan Royals coach also reserved special praise for young spinner Yash Raj Punja, who impressed against a strong Mumbai Indians batting line-up. Punja claimed 2/44.

“Yash has been an interesting choice for us. He’s tall, has got good revs on the ball, turns his leg spinner and the googly. This is a good wicket to bat on but the way he bowled to those seasoned batters was outstanding. We don’t pick age, we pick ability,” Sangakkara added.

Rajasthan Royals will now face Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Eliminator of IPL 2026 on May 27 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, New Chandigarh.