Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has a new sentencing date.
Initially scheduled for Friday in Santa Clara County (Calif.) court, Velasquez’s hearing was continued to a later date. Court records now reveal that date will be Jan. 24.
At the hearing, Velasquez will go before Judge Arthur Bolcanegra, who will determine what penalties he will receive, as he faces a handful of charges including attempted murder for a February 2022 shooting in the San Jose area.
Bolcanegra is the same judge who granted Velasquez bail after nearly nine months of incarceration and multiple denials by other judges.
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Velasquez, 42, has been out on bail since November 2022. A full list of charges includes attempted murder (one count), shooting at a motor vehicle or aircraft (one count), assault with a firearm (three counts), assault with a deadly weapon (three counts), willfully discharging a firearm from a vehicle (one count) and carrying a loaded firearm with intent to commit a felony (one count).
Goularte faces a felony charge of lewd acts with a minor and has a trial setting and motion hearing scheduled for Nov. 13. There is also a coinciding civil lawsuit by the Velasquez family against Goularte, his family, and their businesses.
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“I don’t think there’s any question in anybody’s mind that I will be in the lineup for Game 1,” he said Tuesday during a Zoom news conference.
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By Game 1 on Friday, Freeman will have had a week since running on his sprained right ankle in NL Championship Series Game 5 against the New York Mets.
Of course, the final lineup decision rests with manager Dave Roberts after discussions with the front office.
The All-Star first baseman missed Games 4 and 6 of the NLCS. Freeman was 3 for 18 against the Mets after hitting .286 in the NL Division Series against San Diego.
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Freeman said he can hit and walk comfortably but his ankle flares up when he takes the first step to run. He’s been receiving hours of treatment for the first sprained ankle of his long career.
“I want to get this thing as calmed down as I possibly can, to give my best self and be ready to go by Game 1,” he said.
Freeman hurt his ankle on Sept. 26 against the Padres while trying to avoid a tag at first base by San Diego’s Luis Arráez and missed the Dodgers’ last three regular-season games.
The rankings take into account a fighter’s wins/losses, quality of competition, finishing rate/dominance and frequency of fights.
Fighters are no longer eligible to be ranked after they’ve been inactive for 24 months, either due to injuries, drug/conduct suspensions, contract disputes or self-imposed hiatuses.
Fighters serving drug/conduct suspensions are eligible to be ranked, so long as they’re not inactive for more than 24 months.
To the best of our ability, fighters will be ranked in their primary weight class. Catchweight fights and bouts outside the fighter’s primary weight class can have a positive or negative impact on the ranking. However, non-titleholders can be ranked in only one weight class at a given time, and in most cases, they won’t be ranked in a new weight class until they’ve had their first fight at that weight.
Former Barcelona boss Xavi holds discussions with Manchester United, Sevilla are interested in taking Tottenham defender Archie Gray on loan, Chelsea tell teenager Josh Acheampong he will not play again until he signs a new deal.
Former Barcelona boss Xavi has held talks with Manchester United about the possibility of replacing Erik ten Hag as manager. (Mail), external
Chelsea have told 18-year-old England Under-20 defender Josh Acheampong that he will not play for the club at any level again until he signs a new contract. (Athletic – subscription required), external
Tottenham have placed an £80m price tag on 25-year-old Spanish right-back Pedro Porro, who is being tracked by Manchester City. (Football Insider), external
Arsenal Under-18s coach Jack Wilshere, 32, will join Norwich as first team coach this week after the two clubs agreed a compensation fee for the former Gunners midfielder. (Standard), external
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Graham Potter, David Moyes and Gareth Southgate are potential candidates to succeed Oliver Glasner if he is sacked by CrystalPalace. (Guardian), external
Former BorussiaDortmund boss Edin Terzic is a candidate for the WestHam job if the Hammers sack Julen Lopetegui. (Florian Plettenberg), external
Dortmund want to sign a left-back in January with Chelsea’s 27-year-old England international Ben Chilwell and Bournemouth’s Hungary international Milos Kerkez, 20, on their shortlist. (Teamtalk), external
Top players in Europe could refuse to promote the newly-expanded Club World Cup as part of a dispute between player unions and Fifa over the congested football calendar. (Times – subscription required), external
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Everton’s takeover by the Freidkin Group remains on track to be completed by December, but the new owners will not sanction significant January spending because of PSR restrictions. (The i – subscription required), external
Embiid and George will miss Wednesday’s season opener against Milwaukee and could miss more games as the All-Stars expected to try to lead Philadelphia to its first championship since 1983 return from injuries.
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George was set to make his Sixers debut after he left the Los Angeles Clippers and signed a four-year, $212 million contract as a free agent this summer. But the 34-year-old George got a bone bruise when he hyperextended his left knee during a preseason game.
The Sixers did not say Tuesday how many more games George could miss; his return to play will be assessed later in the week.
The Bucks also lost a dose of star power ahead of the game as the NBA opens this week.
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Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said Tuesday that Bucks forward Khris Middleton also isn’t expected to play in the opener. The three-time All-Star hasn’t had any 5-on-5 work in the preseason as he recovers from offseason surgeries to each of his ankles.
“It’s pretty 100% to 99,” Rivers said of the likelihood that Middleton won’t play.
A nine-time All-Star, George was injured when his knee buckled on a defensive play in the second quarter of a game last week against Atlanta.
George has dealt with injuries for much of his career before he played 76 games last season, the first time he played more than 56 since 2018-19.
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He discussed the bone bruise this week on his “Podcast P with Paul George.” A six-time All-NBA selection, George said his knee was stable with no major damage, nor did it cause any long-term concern over his health.
“My leg literally just got stuck. I don’t even know what else to call it. Just my knee locked up, my leg locked up,” George said on his podcast. “When I went to go push off, all my momentum is going forward and my leg, it just caused it to go inwards. I know I’m thinking of when I seen it immediately I was like, ah, this don’t feel right, this don’t feel right.”
The Sixers’ schedule also includes games Sunday at Indiana and home games Wednesday and Saturday.
“I’m going to be good. I’m going to be good,” George said. “I should be back hopefully sooner than later, but it won’t be a long timetable I would imagine.”
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The Sixers are down a familiar road with Embiid.
He did not play in the preseason because of a sore left knee.
The Sixers said Embiid was “responding well” to his individualized rehab plan and was scheduled to scrimmage this week. Embiid also will miss Friday’s game against Toronto and will be reevaluated this weekend.
“There’s been no setbacks,” coach Nick Nurse told reporters at the 76ers’ complex in New Jersey. “He’s really active. He’s lost some weight. He’s out on the court. Just kind of sticking with our plan of making sure we’re getting into a really, really good place before we play him live.”
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The 30-year-old, who won an Olympic gold medal in Paris with Team USA, signed a $193 million contract ahead of training camp. The 76ers have failed to advance out of the second round of the playoffs since 2001, in large part because Embiid has failed to stay healthy for an entire postseason.
Embiid has never played more than 68 games in a season and was limited to 39 last season in large part because of knee surgery. He tore the meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 30 and had surgery on Feb. 6.
“We’ve got to do whatever it takes to make sure that in the postseason I’m healthy,” Embiid said in September. “It’s whatever it takes to make sure I get to that point and I’m ready to go. Basically, every single year of my career I’ve been hurt in the playoffs. That’s the goal, doing whatever it takes to get there.”
The 76ers finished 31-8 last season season with Embiid — about a 65-win pace — and a woeful 16-27 without him.
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Embiid revealed ahead of training camp that he dropped about 25 to 30 pounds over the summer to stay in better condition for the long grind of the season. That includes not rushing back from any further issues with the knee.
“Until I’m at that point where they feel like I’m ready to go, I’m sure they’re going to hold me back,” Embiid said at the team’s media day. “I believe with the guys that we have, and what I can bring to the table, we have a pretty good chance (at a title).”
He has five All-NBA Team honors, seven consecutive All-Star selections from 2017-24, three All-Defensive Team nods and twice has been the NBA scoring champion.
With George joining the 2023 NBA MVP in Embiid and All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey, the 76ers were expected to boast one of the most formidable trios in the league as they try to put together a nucleus that can compete with the defending champion Boston Celtics.
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Maxey is expected to play after the guard suffered a bruised right thumb in the preseason.
As for the Bucks, Rivers said Middleton’s injury is more of a day-to-day issue and shouldn’t keep him out long. A variety of injuries limited Middleton to 55 regular-season games last year and 33 in 2022-23.
“I’d say if this was a playoff game, he’d probably be playing, or close to it,” Rivers said.
Taurean Prince has been starting in Middleton’s place during the preseason.
ABU DHABI – Arman Tsarukyan thinks the UFC lightweight division is trending toward a championship rematch between himself and Charles Oliveira in 2025.
Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) expects to claim the 155-pound belt from Islam Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) during their expected meeting in January or February of next year. Before that happens, though, Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) will have a rematch of his own with Michael Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) at UFC 309 on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
There has been no love lost between Tsarukyan and Chandler in recent months. Tsarukyan was one of the harshest critics of Chandler waiting nearly two years for a Conor McGregor fight to materialize, and Chandler has clapped back on multiple occasions.
Chandler claims his fight against Oliveira is a title eliminator and the winner will get whoever emerges with the belt between Tsarukyan and Makhachev. There’s potential for a fun build for a Tsarukyan vs. Chandler fight, but the current top contender just doesn’t see it happening.
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“Michael Chandler is going to lose for sure,” Tsarukyan told MMA Junkie. “He’s the No. 1 easy fight for Charles Oliveira. He’s going to choke him out or knock him out. He’s easy money for Oliveira, so I’m so happy for him.”
Tsarukyan said if both he and Oliveira get the job done, they would run it back. Their first meeting took place at UFC 300 in April with Tsarukyan taking a split decision. He thinks the UFC brass would have no problem running it back.
“After the fight Oliveira is going to be the next after me,” Tsarukyan said. “I’m going to fight with Islam and then after that fight he’s for sure going to fight for the title. He has a big name, he was the champion and UFC loves him.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.
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The UFC 308 fight card, start time is for the UFC pay-per-view Saturday afternoon from the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
In the main event, Ilia Topuria will put his UFC featherweight title on the line against former UFC champion Max Holloway. Topuria has won all seven of his UFC fights en route to a 15-0 career record, while Holloway (26-7) has won four of his past five fights.
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