Sport
Watch cruiserweight champ Jai Opetaia take 44 PUNCHES to stomach in brutal training routine ahead of Jack Massey fight
JAI OPETAIA took 44 punches to his stomach in a brutal training routine ahead of his blockbuster bout this weekend.
The IBF cruiserweight champion, 29, is set to defend his belt against Britain’s Jack Massey in Saudi Arabia this weekend.
Aussie Opetaia has been stepping up his preparation for the fight with intense training sessions.
In footage filmed by SunSport, the southpaw can be seen taking 44 shots to the stomach in quick succession.
Throughout the 34-second sequence, Opetaia makes no attempt to fight back or defend the blows.
The 25-0 bruiser was last in action in May against Mairis Briedis.
On that occasion he earned back his IBF title, having previously vacated the belt.
Massey, 31, will attempt to dethrone Opetaia in Saturday’s much-anticipated bout.
The Cheshire-lad spent 2022 scaffolding with his brother, before a narrow points loss to heavyweight Joseph Parker the following year got his career moving again.
In an emotional chat with SunSport, Massey recounted his experiences working alongside his dad at a brake pad factory.
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He said: “My dad has worked at the same brake pad factory for 40 years.
“When I was there he would always say to me: ‘Do you want to be stuck here like me for the rest of your life – or do you want to make something of yourself in boxing?’
“When I used to work with my brother, he would say ‘do you really want to be doing this s***?’
“They both told me I could make something of my life through boxing and that has stuck with me.
“It’s been a bit like that Matt Damon film where he is really intelligent and his mate tells him the best thing that could happen was that he drives to collect him for another day on site and Damon has gone.
“They always told me it would be offensive to them if he didn’t go on and make something of himself. And that sticks in my mind.
“The fellas on sites and in factories are the boxing fans in our country – so it means a lot and it reminds me why I do it.”
Sport
Does Gerrard have more caps than Lampard? Play our England quiz
Who has more caps – Steven Gerrard or Frank Lampard? Does Bukayo Saka have more England goals than Phil Foden? Have a go at our England higher or lower quiz.
Sport
Jude Bellingham set for shock position change for England as Lee Carsley experiments with new formation in training
LEE CARSLEY could opt to play Jude Bellingham in a new position for England’s Nations League clash with Greece tonight.
Interim boss Carsley has been experimenting with using Bellingham as a STRIKER in training this week, according to the Mail.
Bellingham, who normally forms part of a midfield trio for the Three Lions, has reportedly been tested as a deep-lying striker in the training session’s building up to tonight’s game.
The news comes after it was confirmed that Harry Kane wouldn’t be starting against the Greeks after picking up a knock with club Bayern Munich.
Carsley even hinted that there may be a different look to how his team sets up as a result.
He said: “Along with a few of the players who can play at No.9, we’ve got plenty of options in that position.
“Harry’s been the outstanding player for so long for us now, but I feel like we’ve definitely got a Plan B.”
Carsely isn’t short of options if he did want to play a conventional striker, having called both Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke up the squad.
However, Bellingham could be a viable option with the 21-year-old occasionally playing in a more advanced role for Real Madrid last season.
While the former Birmingham City star has certainly proved he has an eye for goal, netting 23 times for Madrid last term.
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The absence of Kane won’t just leave a gap up top, but also means Carsley has to find a new man to wear the captain’s armband this evening.
The former England U21 boss has decided that role will be filled by John Stones.
On being given the honour of captaining his nation at Wembley, Stones said: “It’s everything I dreamed of as a kid. It’s a special moment and I cannot thank Lee enough.
“It was a great conversation but I didn’t know what to say. I was a bit speechless.”
Fans will be also eagerly watching on across both tonight’s clash against Greece and Sunday’s face-off with Finland to see if Carsley can find a way to play Bellingham, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer in the same squad.
Carsley is expected to start Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Anthony Gordon from the off under the arch this evening.
While Chelsea defender Levi Colwill is reportedly in line to partner John Stones at centre-back.
Football
Nile Ranger: ‘I’d still be playing in the Premier League if I had behaved’
Ranger’s promising career was almost over before it had even started.
He signed for Crystal Palace at the age of 10 but was released two years later for bad behaviour at school.
Aged 15, he was sentenced to 11 weeks in a young offenders’ institute for his part in an armed robbery in north London.
“We weren’t going around shooting or stabbing people,” he says. “We wanted to get some quick money so we said ‘let’s just take phones off people’.
“One of our entourage had a knife but I don’t know why because he wasn’t using it. We were acting like idiots.”
There is regret for the hurt he caused.
“Armed robbery is terrible. I wasn’t wanting to hurt them,” adds Ranger. “I was just thinking about getting the goods and running off.
“Now I’m older I do think I must have caused people trauma. At times I was a lunatic. I don’t know what else to call it.”
Ranger was a highly-promising £110-a-week player at Southampton’s academy when he was sentenced but the club supported him following his release and moved him into a flat with his mum, Karen, so she could keep an eye on him.
“My mum has had to come to meetings at every club I have been at to discuss my behaviour,” he says. “It’s been like that since my schooldays.”
Ranger was eventually kicked out of Southampton when he stole boots, training kit and even a staff member’s box of chocolates.
Where was his dad when all this was happening?
“He was around but I lived with my mum. Dad was in my life but what is he going to do? Punch me in the face? He could only speak to me.
“I’m my own man and he used to try to talk sense into me but I just didn’t listen.”
Ranger joined Swindon Town on trial before Newcastle came calling with a two-year contract and a £20,000 signing-on fee.
The 17-year-old headed to the north east hoping to put his troubled past behind him and make a name for himself playing alongside the likes of Fabricio Coloccini, Andy Carroll and Alan Smith.
“I went from nothing to something,” he says.
Sport
F1 in 10 Years: Stefano Domenicali’s vision for the future of F1
Stefano Domenicali has been president and CEO of Formula 1 since January 2021. Born in the Italian motorsport heartland of Imola, he oversaw huge successes at Scuderia Ferrari as team principal from 2008-14.
Leading F1 in to a new era of commercial opportunities, the 59-year-old spoke to BBC Sport’s Matt Warwick as part of the F1 in 10 Years series, about how “keeping the attention of the sporting action on the track” is crucial when competing in a crowded global entertainment marketplace.
Read more: F1 in 10 Years: Is the cost cap leading to better racing?
Sport
George Baldock’s heartbreaking summer farewell message to Sheffield Utd fans re-emerges after star found dead aged 31
GEORGE BALDOCK’S heartbreaking summer farewell message to Sheffield United fans has re-emerged after the star’s tragic death on Wednesday.
Baldock, 31, was found dead in a swimming pool at his home in Greece after joining Panathinaikos over the summer.
Police are now investigating the cause of Baldock’s death after his wife, who lives in England, alerted his landlord while struggling to contact him.
Baldock’s passing has come as a huge shock to the world of football, especially for former side Sheffield United.
He spent seven seasons playing for the Blades between 2017 and 2024, scoring six times in 219 games,
And in that time Baldock helped United get promoted to the Premier League on two separate occasions.
Indeed, the defender had only recently departed Bramall Lane for his new adventure in Greece.
And Baldock’s farewell message to fans has now re-emerged in the wake of his tragic death.
After agreeing a free transfer to Panathinaikos in May, Baldock said on the Blades’ X account: “To all you Sheffield United fans, it’s a huge thank-you from me.
“You’ve been absolutely amazing. Your support has been so much more than I ever expected. Like I said, you’re the best around.
“Keep supporting the team and the staff and hopefully the club can get back to where we all want it to be.
“I leave here as a massive fan of the club. Good luck and thank you.”
George Baldock career stats
George Baldock has tragically died aged 31
2009-2017 – MK Dons 125 games (2 goals)
2011 – Tamworth (loan) 3 (0)
2012 – IBV (loan) 18 (1)
2012 – Tamworth (loan) 15 (1)
2015-16 – Oxford United (loan) 47 (3)
2017-2024 – Sheffield United 219 (6)
2024 – Panathinaikos 4 (0)
Following the news of Baldock’s passing, United posted a tribute online.
It read: “Sheffield United Football Club is shocked and extremely saddened to learn of the passing of former player George Baldock.
“The defender left the club in the summer after seven years at Bramall Lane and was extremely popular with supporters, staff and teammates who pulled on a red and white shirt alongside him.
“The sincere condolences of everyone associated with Sheffield United are extended to George’s family and friends.”
United’s owner Prince Abdullah added: “Devastating news, speechless — my condolences to his family and to all of us who loved him.”
Sport
Jamie Reid: ‘I felt a pain in my calf – it was a blood clot’
Now fully recovered, Reid says he is “absolutely delighted” to be back with Northern Ireland.
Somewhat of a late bloomer to the international stage, Reid scored on his debut against Romania in March at the age of 29, and has now won four caps.
After missing September’s matches as he recovered from the blood clot, he says he can “put it behind me”.
“I haven’t really had a pre-season, so it’s like I’m playing League One games to get fit, which isn’t ideal.
“But I’m feeling better with each game and each training, so hopefully I can get back to a place where I was.”
Northern Ireland travel to Hungary to face Belarus, a game that will be played behind closed doors due to Uefa restrictions, on Saturday before Bulgaria visit Windsor Park on Tuesday.
“I love it here and being in this set up. It’s a real privilege,” said Reid.
“I don’t have a lot of international experience, these young boys probably have more than me. But I’ve played a lot of games, through the lower leagues and up to League One, and I feel like I’ve adapted everywhere I’ve gone.”
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