A day after turning 20, D Gukesh rediscovered both his spark and his smile, defeating compatriot R Praggnanandhaa in a gripping classical battle to pocket three full points and reignite his campaign in Norway Chess here.

Reigning champion Magnus Carlsen’s woes deepened as he lost to American Grandmaster Wesley So, leaving the world No. 1 at the bottom of the six-player standings after five rounds.

The victory lifted So to second place on 8.5 points, behind tournament leader Alireza Firouzja, who maintained his grip on the top spot with 10 points and has so far dominated the field.

For Gukesh, now on 6.5 points and in sole third place, the victory seemed to breathe life back into the venue.

Fans, who had packed the arena, flocked around the world champion for autographs, selfies and photographs, while Gukesh himself appeared far more relaxed after a difficult few days in which he had often slipped quietly out of the playing hall following disappointing results.

Praggnanandhaa, on six points, remained fourth, while German Grandmaster Vincent Keymer was fifth on five points. Carlsen, meanwhile, found himself in the unfamiliar position of last place with 4.5 points.

For Gukesh, another classical victory in Round 6 and a Firouzja loss could put him within striking distance of the lead.

The all-Indian showdown was a roller-coaster, with momentum swinging repeatedly between the two players. Both enjoyed winning chances, but in the end it was Gukesh who held his nerve when it mattered most.

The game, arising from a Ragozin Defence, initially appeared to favour Praggnanandhaa despite the engines showing little separation.

Yet Gukesh remained unfazed, even making his first visit to the confessional booth and displaying little concern about his position.

A tense battle turned into a time scramble as both players raced through the critical phase around move 40 with only seconds to spare. Amid the mounting pressure, Praggnanandhaa’s made a costly blunder and handed Gukesh the opening he needed.

The world champion pounced decisively, converting the opportunity into a swift checkmate attack.

Gukesh summed it up as “just a very complex game,” adding with a smile, “Luckily, the tricks kind of worked out for me.” 
“I felt a lot of pressure and was very tense from the start, but I’m lucky to have come through. I’m surely doing much, much better than I was a couple of months back. I feel much sharper. The results are improving, though they are still not where I want them to be. But I believe that if I continue playing good chess, success will come,” said Gukesh.

“When you’re happy, you feel good about yourself. You feel confident and sharp over the board, and you automatically trust yourself to make quick, good decisions. They may seem like minor things, but at the end of the day, they make a big difference,” added the world champion.

By toppling Carlsen, So kept the title race alive — another such win would make him the only player capable of drawing level with the leader.

Divya Deshmukh emerges leader in women’s section 
After a day spent on a speedboat, young Indian women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh brought the same pace to the board, outplaying China’s Zhu Jiner in a classical game to claim three points and surge to the top of the six-player standings for the first time on 8.5 points.

Divya appeared to be on the back foot after Zhu introduced a fresh idea in the opening, but the game soon veered into uncharted territory.

Trusting her instincts, the Indian repeatedly found resourceful moves to stay in the fight as the balance gradually shifted. Zhu failed to seize a key opportunity to force a draw, allowing Divya to seize the initiative.

With both players eventually scrambling on the 10-second increment, Divya’s relentless pressure paid off, culminating in a hard-earned 84-move victory that propelled her into sole lead.

Results after Round 5: 
Open: Alireza Firouzja (FRA) 10 bt Vincent Keymer (GER, 5); Magnus Carlsen (NOR, 4.5) lost to Wesley So (USA, 8.5); R Praggnanandhaa (IND, 6) lost to D Gukesh (IND, 6.5).

Women: Zhu Jiner (CHN, 5) lost to Divya Deshmukh (IND, 8.5); Anna Muzychuk (UKR, 7) bt Bibisara Assaubeyeva (KAZ, 8); Ju Wenjun (CHN, 5) lost to Koneru Humpy (IND, 4.

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez looks to reclaim a share of the super-middleweight crown this September when he faces WBC champion Christian Mbilli.

Canelo lost all four belts to Terence Crawford in 2025, suffering his first defeat at 168lbs and only his third overall after coming up short to Floyd Mayweather and Dmitry Bivol.

When Crawford retired, the belts scattered, and interim WBC title holder Mbilli was one of the first to benefit. Having been elevated from interim to full champion, Mbilli now finds himself in the biggest fight of his career against one of the sport’s modern greats.

Speaking to FightHype, Hall of Fame fighter Tim Bradley said that he only sees the fight going one way, believing Mbilli’s aggressive style will provide the perfect opportunity for Alvarez to remind the boxing world of his quality and result in a comprehensive comeback win.

“He’s gonna piece Mbilli’s ass up. I like Mbilli – tough guy, come and bring the pain. It’s gonna be a hell of a fight, but Canelo’s gonna catch and shoot on his ass all night long. Uppercuts, hooks… Oh it’s gonna be bad.

“Canelo look like he’s He-Man. He’s gonna look like he’s back.”

The fight tops a card branded ‘Mexico vs the World’ in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on September 12. Though the undercard is not set, former Canelo rival turned training partner and new WBA super-middleweight champion Jaime Munguia could feature.

If Alvarez wins, he will not face Munguia to unify, but there will be no shortage of opponents. Fellow champions Osleys Iglesias and Hamzah Sheeraz have both made it clear they want a shot at the man many still regard as the face of boxing, setting up several intriguing options at 168lbs. Mbilli, of course, intends to stop those plans before they begin.

For the fifth time in its six years as a NASCAR Cup Series race, the Cracker Barrel 400 is a sellout, Nashville Superspeedway director of marketing Alan George said on May 31.

The 2026 race reached capacity at 38,000 before its 6 p.m. CT start. It was the fourth time in the last five years the race sold out ahead of the scheduled race time. A sellout was announced during the second stage of the 2024 race after a rain delay.

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The 2023 race, formerly known as the Ally 400, sold out a week in advance along with the inaugural race in 2021, which was the first NASCAR Cup race in the Nashville area in 37 years.

CRACKER BARREL 400 LIVE UPDATES: NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville live updates, highlights, leaderboard

The only year the race did not sell out was in 2022, when attendance was slightly over 30,000.

Fans attending the 2026 race have come from all 50 states and 26 countries, according to track officials.

Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Cracker Barrel 400 NASCAR Nashville race sold out

A huge crowd of jubilant PSG supporters gathered near the Eiffel Tower on Sunday to celebrate their team’s second Champions League title victory. Thousands of people celebrated across France throughout the night but the parties were blighted by incidents, clashes with police, vandalism, a deadly road accident and hundreds of arrests, according to authorities.

Tim Tszyu has fired back at Terence Crawford, promising to prove him wrong when he locks horns with Errol Spence Jr on July 25.

The pair will collide at a catchweight of 158lbs in Australia, where both former world champions hope to reignite their careers.

For Tszyu, this represents a chance to secure his first significant victory since 2023, back when he claimed the WBO super-welterweight title against Brian Mendoza.

After that, the Australian lost a split decision to Sebastian Fundora in 2024, before suffering a more punishing third-round stoppage defeat to Bakhram Murtazaliev that same year.

Tszyu’s relevance at world level was then further diminished by a seventh-round stoppage loss to Fundora last July, with the 31-year-old now hoping to re-join the world scene at 154lbs.

In order to do so, he must first defeat Spence, who has not fought since getting stopped in nine rounds by a masterful Crawford in July 2023.

Prior to that, ‘The Truth’ was considered among the welterweight elite but, now, at the age of 36, it remains to be seen exactly what he has left to offer.

Yet despite the American returning from a three-year layoff, Crawford still believes his former foe has what it takes to defeat Tszyu.

In response, Tszyu has told Jai McAllister that, while he respects Crawford’s opinion, he ultimately intends to prove the former three-division undisputed champion wrong.

“Everyone’s got something to say – I respect that. Crawford knows his boxing but, unfortunately, when that fight [with Spence] does happen, it’s not going to go down that path.”

With a home advantage and a greater run of activity, Tszyu certainly has several reasons to be confident ahead of his showdown with Spence.