FOOTBALL ⚽️ MEME | PEANUTS | SNOOPY

 

⚽ This Peanuts comic strip was published on January 8, 1999.

MOST LE MANS 24 HOUR STARTS | BY AN INDIVIDUAL DRIVER

 

Circuit de la Sarthe legend Henri Pescarolo started in an incredible 33 Le Mans 24 Hours - 30 of those being consecutively between 1970 and 1999 😲

The Frenchman won Le Mans four times outright in 1972-4 and 1984, with a further two class wins in 1976. and 1992.

Pescarolo also started 57 F1 world championship grands prix between 1968 and 1976.

#LeMans24 #MotorSport

"PRESIDENT TRUMP COULD MAKE THE TRIP TO NEW YORK": PRESIDENT TRUMP COULD ATTEND NBA FINALS WHEN NEW YORK KNICKS RETURN HOME (REPORT)

The New York Knicks are in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999. They lost to the San Antonio Spurs that season. New York last won the NBA title in 1973. Could a drought be ending for the Knicks soon? Well, New York will be on the road for Game 1 and 2 either against San Antonio or the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Knicks will have Game 3 and 4 at Madison Square Garden on Monday, June 8 and Wednesday, June 10. Is there a chance that President Donald J. Trump will be attendance for the NBA Finals like he has been with other major sporting events in the past? It remains to be seen.

President Donald J. Trump Could Be In Attendance For NBA Finals When New York Knicks Return Home

Oct 27, 2019; Washington, DC, USA; President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trumo watch game five of the 2019 World Series between the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Nicholas McEntyre of nypost.com wrote about the latest reports about Trump potentially making an appearance at the NBA Finals in New York City. McEntyre said, 

“DJT at MSG.

President Trump could make the trip to New York to watch his hometown Knicks play in the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden.

The 79-year-old president is considering attending the monumental matchup when the Knicks host Game 3 and 4 of the championship series scheduled for June 8 and June 10, the New York Times reported.

Trump – who has made appearances at multiple large sporting events over the past year, including the Daytona 500, the US Open, a Yankees game and countless UFC fights – would be the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game.

The commander in chief had originally planned on a surprise visit to Midtown for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals before the red-hot Knicks trounced the Cleveland Cavaliers to sweep the series in four games, according to the outlet.”

It would not be a surprise to see Trump make an appearance at the NBA Finals when it returns to New York. He also visited the New York Yankees locker room over the past year as well. Trump being in the crowd for a Knicks NBA Finals game would be interesting. The Knicks have won 11 straight games. What if New York wins the first two games on the road, but Trump shows up to Game 3 at the Garden and lose?

There is no doubt that a lot of Knicks fans and other Trump haters would blame him for the team losing. Well, it will be interesting to see if Trump is even going to show up to the NBA Finals to begin with here.

- Glenn Kaplan

TONY HAWK'S 1999 X-GAME BOARD FETCHES $1.15M AT AUCTION

 

SPORTS LEGENDS | THIS PICTURE WAS TAKEN IN 1999

 

MR. BEAN MADE $11.3 PROFIT ON HIS 1997 MCLAREN F1 AFTER CRASHING IT TWICE

 

British actor Rowan Atkinson, famously known as Mr. Bean, once owned a rare 1997 McLaren F1 — and his journey with the supercar was anything but ordinary. He bought the car in 1997 for around £640,000 (roughly $1M at the time), drove it regularly, and even racked up over 41,000 miles.

Surprisingly, Atkinson crashed the car twice — once in 1999 and again in 2011. The second crash was severe, leading to one of the UK’s highest car insurance payouts, reportedly around £910,000 (approximately $1.4 million).

Despite the accidents, the car was fully restored by McLaren’s Special Operations division. In 2015, Atkinson sold the F1 for a staggering £8 million (around $12.2 million), earning him an estimated profit of $11.3 million.

 #carsadvisor #mclaren #mclarenf1 #mrbean #rowanatkinson #mclarenauto

- Car Advisor

JOHN CENA PAYS TRIBUTE TO R-TRUTH

 

On Sunday, R-Truth made the unfortunate announcement that he was being released by WWE. The move came as a shock to everyone, as Truth had been considered a “lifer” by many. He had been with WWE for the past 17 years, and also had another run in the company from 1999 to 2001, with a successful run in TNA in-between then.

Many of R-Truth’s peers, including Rhea Ripley and Kevin Owens, shared their support for Truth after they heard the news about his WWE departure. Another very important figure in Truth’s career, John Cena, also acknowledged Truth’s status by posting a message on his Instagram account. Normally, Cena shares “cryptic” images without captions, which he says is a chance for the fans to interpret themselves. However, it doesn’t seem like anything is up for debate here:.

John Cena and R-Truth recently worked together

John Cena was R-Truth’s final opponent in WWE. The pair wrestled each other at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event on May 24. Truth had a long-running bit where he referred to Cena as his “childhood hero.” This was despite being five years older than the current WWE Champion. (An in-character) John Cena said acknowledged that this didn’t make any sense, either.

Truth was disappointed in his hero’s recent heel turn, and said he might not be successful, but wanted to try and bring back the Cena everyone knew and loved. For the match, R-Truth adopted a “babyface” Cena look, changing his name to “Ron Cena” for the night.

 - BILL PRITCHARD

GARY LINEKER QUITS BBC AND WILL NOT REPRESENT AT WORLD CUP AFTER ANTI-SEMITISM ROW

Gary Lineker is reportedly expected to announce he will leave the BBC on Monday.

His final show will be next Sunday's Match of the Day and he will not present the broadcaster's coverage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Lineker will depart the BBC earlier than scheduledCredit: Getty Images - Getty

The Sun reports Lineker will bring an early end to his BBC tenure via mutual agreement, days after he apologised for sharing a post which led to accusations of anti-semitism.

"It is a heartbreaking end to an extraordinary broadcasting career," a source told the publication.

Lineker came under fire for re-sharing a pro-Gaza video which likened supporters of Israel to rats.

The image of rats has historically been used as part of anti-semitic propaganda, including in Nazi Germany during the 1930s.

The post was soon deleted but not before it was widely viewed and sparked calls for the BBC to part ways with Lineker.

The 64-year-old issued an apology the following day and said: “On Instagram I re-posted material which I have since learned contained offensive references.

“I very much regret these references. I would never knowingly share anything anti-semitic. It goes against everything I believe in.

“The post was removed as soon as I became aware of the issue.

“Whilst I strongly believe in the importance of speaking out on humanitarian issues, including the tragedy unfolding in Gaza, I also know that how we do so matters.

"I take full responsibility for this mistake. That image does not reflect my views.”

Lineker's post on social media sparked major backlashCredit: Alamy

But Lineker has now taken the step of leaving his position earlier than scheduled.

A source told The Sun: “Gary acknowledged his position at the BBC, anchoring the most prestigious ­tournament in world football, was untenable, and he will not be hosting the World Cup.

“He offered to step down at the end of the season, and did not want the BBC — an organisation he still holds in the highest of esteem — dragged into any further controversy.

“He remains absolutely devastated by the recent turn of events and is deeply regretful about how his post was interpreted.

"His last Match of the Day will air on Sunday now and he won’t be back.”

It was announced last October Lineker would depart flagship show Match of the Day at the end of the 2024/25 season.

Lineker was the highest earner among the BBC's presentersCredit: Getty

The former England international had presented the highlights show since 1999.

In the announcement, it was revealed Lineker would remain part of the BBC's football coverage for a further 18 months before cutting all ties with the broadcaster.

He had agreed a contract extension to stay on and present next season's FA Cup coverage along with the 2026 World Cup.

But that will be no longer following the expected announcement on Monday.

Lineker's future at the BBC was a hot topic earlier in the season given his contract was due to expire at the end of the 2024/25 campaign.

The 64-year-old also commanded a salary more than £1.3million-a-year at the BBC, the broadcaster's highest declared salary for a presenter.

Lineker had previously come under fire for his social media usage.

In March last year, Lineker was briefly suspended from hosting Match of the Day after a Twitter post about the British government's asylum policy prompted a row about BBC presenters expressing political views on social media.

Lineker's fellow presenters and pundits, including Alan Shearer and Ian Wright, refused to appear on the show in solidarity with Lineker and it was reduced to a 20-minute highlights package, which contained no hosts, pundits or commentary.

The ex-Everton, Leicester, Barcelona and Tottenham star was reinstated to the programme just over a week later.

The 64-year-old replaced Des Lynam in the MOTD role in 1999 after moving into punditry and presenting following his playing career.

- Alex Conrad

WHAT ARE ARSENAL'S AWAY RECORD IN FRANCE AHEAD OF CRUNCH UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMI-FINAL SHOWDOWN WITH PARIS SAINT- GERMAIN

Arsenal.com

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Arsenal will need a big performance if they are to overcome Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League second leg. Ousmane Dembele's goal gave the Parisians a first-leg victory at the Emirates with the Gunners heading to France needing a win to remain in contention. TNT Sports looks at whether history is on their side at the Parc des Princes.

Arsenal are facing an uphill task if they are to reach the UEFA Champions League final for the first time since 2006.

Mikel Arteta’s side put in a lacklustre display in the first leg of their semi-final as they were beaten 1-0 by an impressive Paris Saint-Germain, thanks to Ousmane Dembele's early goal.

And ahead of the second leg, live on TNT Sports and discovery+, the Gunners find themselves in inconsistent form, losing their most recent Premier League outing against Bournemouth leaving them with just three league wins in 10.

Europe remains their last shot at silverware this season and Arsenal will have to produce something special to overturn the first-leg deficit and advance to the final in Munich at the end of the month.

The trip to France may be a daunting one, but it presents an opportunity, and Arteta’s side might look to take inspiration from previous trips to the country.

What is Arsenal’s record against French teams away from home?

Ahead of their latest showdown in Paris, Arsenal have played away in France in European competition a total of 15 times, winning eight, drawing five and losing twice. They have scored 20 times and conceded 14 in that time.

While Gunners fans will be encouraged by the victories, there will be concern that only one of these has arrived by more than a single goal, which would only be enough to force extra time this week.

Another concern would be that, after a run of seven victories between 2000 and 2015, their last two trips to France against Stade Rennes and Lens have ended in defeat.

Winning in normal time would require Arsenal scoring twice, something they have managed five times in total in France, and have only ever failed to score in the country on one occasion.

Defensively, Arsenal know a clean sheet is probably needed if they are to realise their ambitions, something they have managed six times on previous trips to France.

What are all of Arsenal’s results in France?

FC Rouen 1969/70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup third round first leg – 0-0

Arsenal first visited France in the third round of the 1969/70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup – the predecessor to the UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League – taking on FC Rouen in a first-leg stalemate.

The Gunners won an equally tight second leg 1-0 with a last-minute winner from Jon Sammels on their way to lifting the trophy.

Paris Saint-Germain 1994/95 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final first leg – 1-1

Arsenal’s next trip to France in European competition was coincidentally to the Parc des Princes to face PSG back in their successful 1994 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup run.

The leg of the semi-final in France saw Ian Wright put Arsenal in front 10 minutes before half-time, though David Ginola levelled for the home side in the second half.

Kevin Campbell secured a 1-0 win in the return match to send Arsenal to the final.

Auxerre 1994/95 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-final second leg – 1-0 win

The following year saw Arsenal win in France for the first time courtesy of an Ian Wright screamer in the second leg of the Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-final, following a 1-1 draw at home.

Lens 1998/99 UEFA Champions League group stage – 1-1

The Gunners were left frustrated in their opening match of the group as Tony Vairelles’ stoppage-time equaliser denied Arsene Wenger’s side victory after Marc Overmars had given them a second-half lead.

Nantes 1999/00 UEFA Cup third round second leg – 3-3

Leading 3-0 from the first leg, Arsenal were 6-1 up on aggregate by half-time at Stade de la Beaujoire after Gilles Grimandi, Thierry Henry and Overmars cancelled out Antoine Sibierski’s opener for the home side.

Nantes did rally, however, as Sibierski and Marama Vahirua restored pride by salvaging a draw.

Lens 1999/2000 UEFA Cup semi-final – 2-1 win

With a 1-0 lead from the Highbury fixture, Henry’s goal before the break at Stade Bollaert-Delelis doubled Arsenal’s advantage in the tie.

Although Pascal Nouma reduced the deficit, Nwankwo Kanu restored the two-goal advantage late on to book the Gunners’ place in the final.

Lyon 2000/01 UEFA Champions League second group stage – 1-0 win

Henry was once again the scourge of his countrymen with the winning goal in this clash at Stade de Gerland.

Auxerre 2002/03 UEFA Champions League first group stage – 1-0 win

Another hard-fought victory on French soil, with Gilberto netting the only goal of the game at the start of the second half.

Marseille 2011/12 UEFA Champions League group stage – 1-0 win

A now familiar scoreline when Wenger returned to his homeland with Arsenal. This time the Gunners left it late with Aaron Ramsey snatching the winner deep into stoppage time to steal the three points.

Montpellier 2012/13 UEFA Champions League group stage – 2-1 win

An electric start saw Younes Belhanda fire the home side ahead from the penalty spot but within ten minutes, Arsenal were ahead through Lukas Podolski and Gervinho with no further scoring.

Marseille 2013/14 UEFA Champions League group stage – 2-1 win

Theo Walcott volleyed Arsenal into the lead at the Velodrome with 25 minutes to play before Ramsey wrapped up victory with 5 minutes to play.

Jordan Ayew scored a late penalty, but it was ultimately inconsequential.

Monaco 2014/15 UEFA Champions League round of 16 – 2-0 win (3-3 aggregate, lost on away goals)

A seventh successive win on French soil, but there was little cause for celebration as Arsenal crashed out of the competition.

A shock 3-1 home defeat left the Gunners with all to do in the return match, but goals from Olivier Giroud and Ramsey weren’t enough and the Ligue 1 side advanced on away goals.

Paris Saint-Germain 2016/17 UEFA Champions League group stage – 1-1

Edinson Cavani headed PSG in front after three minutes and threatened a rout but wasteful finishing allowed Alexis Sanchez to snatch a late point for the Gunners.

Stade Rennais 2018/19 UEFA Europa League round of 16 first leg – 1-3 defeat

A first defeat in France came against an inspired Rennes side who were eyeing a huge scalp.

Alex Iwobi put the Gunners 1-0 up but a red card for defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos turned the game on its head as Benjamin Bourigeaud, a Nacho Monreal own-goal and Ismaila Sarr compounded Unai Emery’s side to defeat.

The Gunners recovered to blitz their opponents 3-0 in the return leg to advance.

Lens 2023/24 UEFA Champions League group stage – 2-1 defeat

Arsenal’s most recent trip across the channel also ended in defeat despite taking an early lead through Gabriel Jesus.

Goals from Adrien Thomasson and Elye Wahi stunned Arteta’s side.

- IBRAHIM MUSTAPHA

GREGG POPOVICH ENDS LEGENDARY COACHING CAREER AFTER 29 SEASONS

The NBA's all-time winningest coach will transition to the role of Spurs president of basketball operations.

Gregg Popovich, the NBA’s all-time winningest coach, amassed 1,422 wins as head coach of the Spurs.

Gregg Popovich stepped down as coach of the San Antonio Spurs on Friday, ending a three-decade run that saw him lead the team to five NBA championships, become the league’s all-time wins leader and earn induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

“While my love and passion for the game remain, I’ve decided it’s time to step away as head coach,” Popovich said.

He will transition to team president. Mitch Johnson, a Spurs assistant who filled in for Popovich for the season’s final 77 games, becomes the team’s coach.

Popovich, 76, missed all but five games this season after having a stroke at the team’s arena on Nov. 2. He has not spoken publicly since, though he had addressed his team at least once and released a statement in late March saying that he hoped to return to coaching.

That won’t be happening.

“I’m forever grateful to the wonderful players, coaches, staff and fans who allowed me to serve them as the Spurs head coach and am excited for the opportunity to continue to support the organization, community and city that are so meaningful to me,” Popovich said.

Popovich’s career ends with a record of 1,422-869, which does include the 77 games — 32 wins and 45 losses — that were coached by Johnson this season. He also won 170 playoff games with the Spurs, the most by any coach with any one team and the third-most overall behind only Phil Jackson’s 229 and Pat Riley’s 171.

“The best there ever was,” Spurs great Manu Ginobili said last year of Popovich.

Popovich was a three-time NBA Coach of the Year, led the U.S. to a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics and coached six Hall of Famers in San Antonio — Ginobili, David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Dominique Wilkins and Pau Gasol. He went up against 170 different coaches during his time in the NBA and there have been 303 coaching changes made in the league, including interim moves, during the Popovich era.

“I’ve got a video on my phone that’s, like, priceless,” said Chris Paul, who played for the Spurs this past season — going there, in large part, because of the lure of playing for Popovich. “It was us in Oklahoma City, before shootaround, and Pop is doing ballhandling stuff. All these years I’ve always seen Pop coaching in a suit, but I didn’t know how hard of a worker he was when it comes to training.”

That work ethic, Paul said, carried over into this year after the stroke and Popovich’s commitment to his rehabilitation process.

“I was the first one to get to the arena for games, and I would walk past the training room and Pop would be on the treadmill,” Paul said. “I actually had a chance to be in there while Pop is doing rehab or whatnot. So, to see how hard he works, that’s what I’m glad I got a chance to see. It had nothing to do with basketball. It just showed who he is.”

Popovich, in his role as general manager of the Spurs, made the move to fire coach Bob Hill and promote himself into that job on Dec. 10, 1996. The timing seemed, at best, awkward. The Spurs were 3-15 at that point, having played all 18 of those games without Robinson, who was just about to come back from injury. Popovich took over on the day that Robinson returned to the lineup.

“A change in direction was necessary,” Popovich said that day.

The Spurs hadn’t changed direction again since.

“Coach Pop’s extraordinary impact on our family, San Antonio, the Spurs and the game of basketball is profound,” Spurs managing partner Peter J. Holt said. “His accolades and awards don’t do justice to the impact he has had on so many people. He is truly one-of-one as a person, leader and coach. Our entire family, alongside fans from across the globe, are grateful for his remarkable 29-year run as the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs.”

The fortunes changed — Duncan was picked No. 1 overall in the 1997 Draft — but the direction under Popovich always stayed the same. The first championship came in 1999; others followed in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014. In his first 22 seasons as coach, the Spurs had 22 winning records, the first 20 of those seasons winning at least 60% of the time.

His decision to step away now comes with the Spurs having just completed the second year of a rebuild around French star Victor Wembanyama, who arrived touted as the next San Antonio great and has done nothing to suggest he won’t live up to that billing.

Popovich played at the U.S. Air Force Academy, famously wasn’t picked in a bid to make the 1972 U.S. Olympic team — some still say he merited a spot on that team — and wound up becoming a coach who might have been perfectly content to run Pomona-Pitzer, a Division III program in California, for the entirety of his professional life. That school had lost 88 consecutive conference games when he arrived; it didn’t take long for Popovich to deliver a conference championship.

Eventually, the NBA called. In time, Popovich would be paired with Robinson, then the patriarch of a dynasty fueled by Duncan, Parker and Ginobili. And out of that, Popovich put together a career like none other.

“Everyone knows the amazing job he’s done and all the accomplishments,” longtime coach Larry Brown said in 2021. “I wish more people really could know the type of person that he is.”

He was famously grumpy, liked to clash with reporters, rarely offered any details of his basketball or private life other than what was necessary. It was simultaneously real and an act; Popovich has a much softer side as well — he quietly championed causes like the San Antonio Food Bank for years and wasn’t afraid to make his political views known. And those lucky enough to know him find him hilarious.

“He has an amazing sense of humor,” Boston forward Jayson Tatum said while playing for Popovich during the Tokyo Olympics four years ago. “I guess the casual fan sees the person who does those interviews postgame, but that’s not the case of who he is at all. I absolutely love spending time with him.”

A loss in the 2013 NBA Finals crushed Popovich, whose Spurs were in position to close out the Miami Heat in six games, lost Game 6 in overtime after Ray Allen’s 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds remaining in regulation kept the Heat alive, then fell in Game 7. But in the moments after the final horn, as Miami coach Erik Spoelstra embraced his staff, Popovich joined the hug with a wide smile.

"Spoelstra, who became coach of the Heat in 2008, becomes the league’s longest-tenured in his current position.

“He’s always just been an incredible example of class, dignity,” Spoelstra said of Popovich. “To be able to do that after wins or losses, I just think it’s a great example that you can still have class regardless of how the outcome comes during a game.”

When the Spurs beat the Heat for the title in a finals rematch in 2014, it was Spoelstra who felt the sting of losing. And once again, it was Popovich who sent congratulations on a job well done.

“There is no one out there like Pop,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said.

Popovich’s was a tenure like few others. Popovich coached the Spurs for 29 seasons, a span nearly unmatched in U.S. major pro sports history. Connie Mack managed the Philadelphia Athletics for 50 years, George Halas coached the Chicago Bears for 40 years and John McGraw managed the New York Giants for 31 years. Those three tenures — all wrapping up well over a half-century ago — are the only ones exceeding the length of Popovich’s coaching run with the Spurs; his 29-year era in San Antonio was matched by the Dallas Cowboys’ Tom Landry and the Green Bay Packers’ Curly Lambeau.

“It means I’m old,” Popovich said last year."

Popovich broke a gender barrier of sorts in the league when he hired Becky Hammon as the league’s first female full-time paid assistant coach. Hammon, now coach of the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, would also become the first female head Summer League coach in the NBA and first female acting head coach when she replaced Popovich for a game in 2020.

“Basketball is basketball,” South Carolina women’s coach Dawn Staley said when asked about Popovich in 2017. “It doesn’t have a gender. It has a mind. It has an approach. It has a willingness. Given the opportunity, women can excel in this game. As you can see. Becky Hammon is doing a great job. You need more people like Coach Popovich to give them opportunities to learn, to grow, and to embrace it. I don’t think he sees gender. I think he sees someone that has a great basketball mind, that’s tireless. Once you’re given that opportunity, you see great things come out of it.”

Popovich spoke about wine whenever he could and offered his views on politics and current events but rarely offered much insight into coaching decisions or personnel matters. It was almost military-like secrecy, which made sense given that Popovich was a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and was an expert on, among other things, the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.

His love of country led to him taking a small side job during his San Antonio tenure — that being coaching USA Basketball for the 2019 World Cup and the Tokyo Olympics two years later. His World Cup team finished seventh, the worst placing ever for a U.S. team with NBA players. His Olympic team won gold.

“It’s impossible to separate it if you have been in the military,” Popovich said when asked about the parallels of being at the Air Force Academy and coaching the country’s national team. “I’ve had classmates that have fought in wars — I have not — and some of them are no longer with us. You get an appreciation for people who have sacrificed. So, when you have an opportunity to do this for your country, it’s impossible to say no. I love being part of it.”

 - NBA.com News Services

 

ARSENAL LEGEND | NWANKWO KANU | STATS

Arsenal Legend 🤝 Nwankwo KANU

Full name: Nwankwo Kanu

Date of birth: 1 August 1976

Height: 1.97 m

Place of birth: Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria

🏆 UEFA Champions League (Ajax 1994/95)

🏆 UEFA Europa League (Inter Milan 1997/98)

🏆 UEFA Super Cup Winner (Ajax 1995)

🏆 Intercontinental Cup (Ajax 1995)

🏆 Premier League 2x (Arsenal 2001/02, 2003/04)

🏆 English "FA Cup" 3x (Arsenal 2001/02, 2002/03; Portsmouth 2007/08)

🏆 English "Community Shield" (Arsenal 1999)

🏆 Dutch "Eredivisie" 3x (Ajax 1993/94, 94/95, 95/96)

🏆 Nigerian Premier League (Iwuanyanwu Nationale 1992/93)

🏆 Olympic Medalist (Nigeria Olympic Team 1996)

CAREER STATS

1. Iwuanyanwu Nationale (1992 - 1993)

🎬 25 Appearances

⚽️ 15 Goals

2. Ajax Amsterdam (1993 - 1996)

🎬 75 Appearances

⚽️ 27 Goals

🎯 15 Assists

3. Inter Milan (1996 - 1999)

🎬 20 Appearances

⚽️ 1 Goals

🎯 - Assists

4. Arsenal (1999 - 2004)

🎬 197 Appearances

⚽️ 44 Goals

🎯 35 Assists

5. West Bromwich Albion (2004 - 2006)

🎬 57 Appearances

⚽️ 9 Goals

🎯 3 Assists

6. Portsmouth (2006 - 2012)

🎬 166 Appearances

⚽️ 28 Goals

🎯 14 Assists

7. Nigeria (1994 - jul, 2010)

🎬 84 Appearances

⚽️ 12 Goals

🎯 4 Assists

8. Nigeria Olympic Team (jul - Aug, 1996)

🎬 6 Appearances

⚽️ 3 Goals

🎯 2 Assists

ARYNA SABALENKA THROUGH TO FOURTH ROUND OF AUSTRALIAN OPEN AFTER TOUGH BATTLE

MELBOURNE, VIC - JANUARY 12: Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus celebrates during Round 1 of the 2025 Australian Open on January 12 2025, at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. Photo: Jason Heidrich/Icon Sportswire

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka shrugged off a shaky display to fight her way into the fourth round of the Australian Open.

The Belarusian had a 7-6(5) 6-4 victory over Denmark's Clara Tauson.

The day's first match on the Rod Laver Arena at the start of the sixth day of the championships was hardly vintage tennis, but Sabalenka was pleased to come away unscathed after a little over two hours in bright sunshine and challenging conditions.

"She played some unbelievable tennis," Sabalenka said.

"I'm super happy that I was able to close out this match and be in the fourth round."

Aryna Sabalenka is chasing a third straight Australian Open title at the 2025 tournament. Photo: Photosport

Sabalenka has been far from her devastating best in the first two rounds and against Tauson she dropped serve four times in a wobbly opening set, but her opponent was equally profligate as both players struggled with the sun and breeze.

"Conditions are really tough for serving, the balls are heavy and the surface slow so with the breaks," said Sabalenka, who conceded four breaks in the opening set of a match for the first time since San Diego in 2022.

"I was just thinking, just keep pushing through."

The first hold in the eighth game was greeted with a big round of applause as world number 42 Tauson surged to a 5-3 lead, but Sabalenka bounced back.

The top seed stabilised her own delivery and then drew level at 5-5 before Tauson recovered to save four set points and force a tiebreak, where she matched the big-hitting Belarusian punch for punch in the first 10 points.

Novak Djokovic continues his quest for a 25th Grand Slam title. Photo: AFP

Sabalenka shifted up a gear, however, and earned a set point with a stinging backhand winner before closing it out with a big forehand to leave Auckland champion Tauson a tad deflated after 63 minutes of toil.

The Dane gifted her opponent a break early in the second set but continued to carve out chances and made it to 4-4, only to fade away after a marathon game that had seven deuces as the momentum shifted one last time.

Sabalenka completed the win on serve to keep alive her bid to become the first woman to capture three successive titles at Melbourne Park since Martina Hingis from 1997-99.

Novak Djokovic resumes his quest for a record 25th Grand Slam title and 11th at Melbourne Park later in the day and Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev and Coco Gauff will also be in action on the main showcourts.

Meanwhile, Kiwi Erin Routliffe has progressed to third round with doubles partner Gaby Dabrowski.

The second seeds dropped the first set against Anna Sisková and Maia Lumsden, before coming back to claim the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

It was another tough battle for the pair, who were also made to come back from a precarious position in the opening round.

- Reuters

HOW SET PIECE SPECIALISTS ARE THRIVING IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE

Arsenal aren't the only team benefitting from set piece prowess this season, but they've been one of the best. Alex Pantling/Getty Images

André Onana, the Manchester United goalkeeper, was preparing to defend against a free kick in a Premier League game last December when he realized someone was behind him. It was Leon Bailey, the Aston Villa winger. Onana regarded Bailey with confusion. How could Bailey be standing there, between him and the goal, during a free kick?

Then Bailey began to sing. "Ohhhh-na-na, look what you started," he teased -- the chorus of "Na Na," Trey Songz's 2014 hit. "Oh-na-na! Why you gotta act so naughty?" Bewildered, Onana complimented his voice. Bailey responded with a little dance. "The whole point was for me to distract him," Bailey says now.

Bailey's positioning had been choreographed by Austin MacPhee, Villa's set piece coach. Earlier that week, MacPhee had called Jonathan Moss, then the Premier League's supervisor of referees, to ask whether positioning a player behind a goalkeeper during a free kick would be legal. It was, but only if the player didn't physically impede the keeper, remained out of his line of sight, and was uninvolved in the play that followed. MacPhee then met with Bailey at the canteen at Villa's Bodymoor Heath training facility to discuss the role he'd scripted.

Bailey was into it. "I just thought it was something new and interesting," he says. "I said to Austin, 'I'm going to go behind him. And then I'm going to sing a song.'"

As John McGinn approached the ball, Bailey dashed out from behind Onana to remove himself from the play. Simultaneously, Jacob Ramsey ran down the right flank, presumably McGinn's target. Amid the confusion, McGinn bounced a kick a few feet in front of Onana, who flailed at it as it skidded past and into the net. In the coaching box beside Villa manager Unai Emery, MacPhee broke into a grin.

MacPhee is one of several designated set piece coaches who are quietly having a profound impact on the Premier League. For the clubs that use them the most, perhaps only the manager or head coach is more important. Nicolas Jover helped guide Arsenal to 22 goals from set pieces last season -- nearly all in-swinging corners -- to match a Premier League record. In 2022-23, Antonio Conte's Tottenham Hotspur led the Premier League with 19 set piece goals under the tutelage of Gianni Vio, a set piece pioneer who now works at Watford and with the United States men's national team.

At Brentford, Keith Andrews has made a specialty of the opening kickoff as a scripted play. Earlier this season, his club scored from the opening whistle in three consecutive games. The streak ended against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Oct. 5, "but only because we lost the coin toss," insists Thomas Frank, Brentford's manager. When Wolves took the lead in the game's second minute, the Bees scored off the ensuing kickoff. Frank counts that as four in a row.

MacPhee, who played college soccer at UNC-Wilmington from 1999 to 2002, has pushed things the furthest, his set pieces unfolding like touch football plays drawn up in the dirt on Thanksgiving morning. "It's exciting as a player to go into his meetings and see what he has up his sleeve," says AFC Bournemouth's Ryan Christie, who experienced MacPhee's flights of imagination over the past three seasons with the Scotland national team. "You want to work at it, and you want to be part of it."

At one point last season, MacPhee spent long hours plotting how to have someone who began a free kick with his back to the goal end up taking it. When it was ready, he used it against Brighton & Hove Albion.

It unfolded like a typical set piece. McGinn waited on one side of the ball, Lucas Digne on the other. One of the two would take the kick; the other was clearly a decoy. But which was which?

About 10 yards in front of them, Douglas Luiz stood with his back to the goal. He started to drift back upfield, toward his own end. Simultaneously, McGinn and Digne began running forward. Luiz passed them heading in the opposite direction, like cars on a highway. When he reached the ball, he pivoted and lofted a pass to Moussa Diaby, who had snuck through the wall and emerged in front of goalkeeper Jason Steele. Diaby was knocked to the ground and no penalty was called, but the play had led to an opportunity, which is all MacPhee can try to control.

Set piece specialist Austin MacPhee, left, consults with Aston Villa boss Unai Emery midgame. James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images

That set piece didn't lead to a goal, but 25 of MacPhee's did last season. Villa scored more from free kicks and corners than any other team in Europe's five biggest leagues -- more than a quarter of their goals across all competitions. Not coincidentally, they earned a place in the UEFA Champions League for the first time. Then they scored off their first corner in their Premier League opener this year, and scored again in the first corner of their first Champions League game. In Birmingham, the free-spirited MacPhee has become a cult figure. There's even a supporters' song about him at Villa Park.

Free kicks and corners have long been perceived as almost random exercises. The goal is to put the ball near the box, then hope someone is agile or tall enough to get it into the net. These specialists are changing that.

"Until very recently, most teams didn't spend any time practicing set pieces" says Ian Graham, who ran Liverpool's analytics department from 2012 to 2023 and now runs his own consulting firm, Ludonautics. "Maybe you'd do it for 10 minutes before an important game, but it wouldn't necessarily be informed by any kind of analysis."

With the ready availability of data, it has become clear that optimizing set pieces can yield a dozen or more goals annually. But you won't get those goals, Brentford's Frank insists, without hiring someone who concentrates on that and nothing else. Since arriving at Brentford in 2018, Frank has used a dedicated set piece coach. He insists he will never again work without one. "In my opinion, you can't," he says. "Not if you want to be successful."

In 2015, Brentford was playing in the Championship, not long removed from League Two, when the club hired Vio to only handle set pieces. A former banker, Vio had written a treatise on them for his UEFA coaching badges. Putting even a little forethought into free kicks and corners, he wrote, would be the equivalent of adding a 15-goal striker. "The difference is," he says now, "that striker can be injured or suspended."

Brentford's squad responded to Vio with general bemusement. There were no set piece specialists at any club in England, as far as anyone knew, and only a handful anywhere in the world. When Vio was brought on at the end of training sessions to explain what he was looking to implement, there was grumbling. "The modern player wants to train and get off the pitch," says Stuart Dallas, who was at Brentford at the time. "The set piece coach needs 20 or 25 minutes extra."

But Dallas had been working with a set piece coach while representing Northern Ireland. That coach happened to be MacPhee.

"He was the first person I saw on a football pitch with an iPad," Dallas says. "He would chart the topspin and the ball speed and all that. We were a small country that wasn't blessed with so much quality, so we had to take advantage of every small gain we could." By 2016, Northern Ireland had scored 11 of their 17 goals from corners or free kicks, qualifying for the Euros for the first time in their history.

Dallas thought Vio could do the same for Brentford. Like Northern Ireland at the international level, Brentford didn't have the resources of the biggest Championship clubs. They needed an edge that relied on strategy rather than talent. "We need to buy into this," he told his teammates. "This can be the difference that gets us in the playoffs or promoted."

Former Tottenham staffer Gianni Vio now works for the USMNT and Watford. John Dorton/Getty Images for USSF

"Set pieces are a different moment than the normal game," Vio explains. "In the normal game, the two teams are playing together. But when there is a set piece, we are the owner of the time. That changes everything. I can decide how many players are in the box, when everyone is where, and what happens in the first moment."

That Brentford were the first club in England to use a set piece coach was hardly a surprise. "The general DNA of the club is both innovative and about the marginal gain," Frank says. "We try to find areas where we can tweak just a little bit. But actually, set pieces is more than just a marginal thing. I think it's a big thing. And it surprised me that it took so long for more clubs to follow."

In Brentford owner Matthew Benham, a professional gambler, Frank works for someone who understands that set pieces are the cheapest way to obtain goals in the world marketplace. ("It's far cheaper to buy height in center backs," Graham confirms, "than it is to buy finishing skills.") To underscore the club's commitment, players were awarded bonuses based on how many goals were scored from corners and free kicks -- not just the goal scorers but the entire squad. "It's not about one player," Vio stresses. "When we score goals off set pieces, all the players recognize that."

At the start of the 2021-22 season, only Brentford, Arsenal and Aston Villa employed dedicated set piece coaches among Premier League clubs. Now there are at least a dozen. (Liverpool and Manchester United hired one for the first time before this season, while Tottenham, Brighton and Newcastle United still don't have one.) Nearly all of them are kept under the radar. They're rarely allowed to be quoted. They don't get publicized on official websites. They're treated as stealth weaponry, human equivalents of wearable monitors or proprietary algorithms.

But then the team lines up to do a free kick. Suddenly the head coach gives way to some other guy waving a clipboard and exhorting the players. At Villa, for example, MacPhee is the only assistant allowed to join Emery in the coaching box or even stand up during a game. At Brentford, Frank disappears during set pieces. "I do nothing," he says. "I just sit back."

Inside the game, these coaches are coveted. Vio eventually went to Leeds United and, later, AC Milan and Tottenham. His replacement at Brentford, the German-born Jover, stayed until Manchester City swooped in the way it might for a talented young winger or striker. That hiring, in 2019, was engineered by Mikel Arteta, then an assistant under Pep Guardiola. When Jover's contract at City expired in June 2021, he left to join Arteta at Arsenal.

Jover's set pieces look deceptively normal. They just tend to work: Arsenal has scored a league-leading eight goals off set pieces in the Premier League this season, including their past three. In Europe, too, Jover's work is paying dividends, most recently with a Gabriel Jesus header off a Declan Rice corner in a 5-1 dismissal of Sporting Clube de Portugal on Nov. 26.

During a recent Carabao Cup tie at Preston North End, Arsenal won a free kick to the right of keeper Freddie Woodman. Gabriel Martinelli sent a ball over the scrum assembled in front of the goal to Jakub Kiwior, who nodded it into the box. It landed at the feet of Gabriel Jesus, who banged it into the net.

It wasn't scripted like the plays MacPhee creates but rather was a tactical construct designed to maximize opportunities. "Coach Nico is brilliant," Jesus gushed after the game. "We have good headers, a tall team, a strong team. He gives us the right structure, and we just follow what he says."

When Jover left Brentford, he was replaced by Bernardo Cueva, who helped engineer the club's promotion to the Premier League, only for Chelsea to snatch Cueva up this past summer. Andrews, a former Wolves captain, had been scouted by Phil Giles, Brentford's director of football, while working in a variety of roles at Sheffield United. At Brentford, he has one role. "We, of all clubs, know how much a set piece is worth," Frank says.

Brentford practice set pieces at the end of every training session. "We put so much energy into this," forward Bryan Mbeumo says. "To see it pay off is good for us."

But whoever thought of a kickoff as a set piece? "It's harder to score from a kickoff," acknowledges Mbeumo, who has done that inside the game's first minute twice this season. "We have the ball in the middle of the pitch, and you have to pass it back. There's a certain amount of luck involved."

Maybe there was luck on Sept. 14 when Yoane Wissa scored in the first minute at Manchester City. That goal involved a headed cross that Ederson, City's goalkeeper, dove for and deflected into the air for Wissa to flick home. But a week later at Spurs, a stolen pass, a feed to Keane Lewis-Potter on the wing, a cross, and then an acrobatic left-footed strike by Mbeumo into the upper corner gave Brentford another instant lead. A week after that, at home against West Ham United on Sept. 28, Mbeumo scored another in the opening minute: another left-footer off another stolen pass.

Bryan Mbeumo and Brentford have turned the previously benign kickoff into a dangerous set piece. Rhianna Chadwick/PA Images

This hasn't gone unnoticed around the Premier League. "It was an important part of our preparation, to be honest," said Kieran McKenna, Ipswich Town's manager, after his team managed to successfully avoid allowing an early goal at GTech Stadium in late October. McKenna had studied tape, his coaches had studied tape, and they'd spent hours assessing how to thwart the threat.

"The most common mistake teams tend to have made is getting caught on that second ball, and trying to complete passes in the first couple of seconds," McKenna explained. "We were prepared for that part of the game."

After deciding on a defensive strategy, McKenna and his staff needed to download it to the team. As it turned out, all four of Brentford's goals in their 4-3 victory over Ipswich were scored in open play, but that doesn't mean those scripted kickoffs had no impact. Preparing for them used up time, a finite resource, leaving less of it to spend on everything else. In a one-goal defeat, that might have been the difference.

MacPhee was playing at Forfar Athletic, in the nether reaches of the Scottish football pyramid, when he was recruited by UNC-Wilmington. After college, he drifted from Romania to Japan and then back to Scotland, where he attained his coaching badges. At that time, the value of set pieces hadn't yet penetrated his consciousness. But by the time he came to Villa from Danish side Midtjylland in 2021, he had made them his specialty.

That same year, he agreed to work for Scotland. In the 24 games before he arrived, Scotland scored one goal off a set piece and conceded six. In his 24 games with the national team before leaving this past summer, they scored 16 and conceded four.

Such success has given MacPhee license to basically create what he wants. Emery gives him all the time he needs on the training pitch twice a week to make those vectors and dotted lines come to life. When they lead to a goal, the result is a unique sense of satisfaction for everyone involved. MacPhee compares the meticulous planning and precise execution to robbing a bank, a phrase that has been adopted by the Villa players. "When one of [those plays] works," Bailey says, "we all celebrate."

Before any of that can happen, MacPhee spends hours watching videos of the coming opponent -- but these days, so does everyone in his position. All that scouting has almost reached diminishing returns; each coach knows that the opposition coach knows what he knows. The psychological warfare that ensues can approach the level of Mad Magazine's old Spy vs. Spy cartoons.

Heading into Villa's game against Bournemouth, MacPhee was sure that Shaun Cooper, the Cherries' set piece specialist, had come across video of a free kick routine that involved McGinn running down one side or the other, then stopping at the opponent's wall to serve as a screen while a trailing player hustled past. MacPhee also had used a variation of the play for Scotland, so he figured Bournemouth's Christie would also remember it. To remind him, he used it again during a Champions League game against Bologna four days before the Bournemouth fixture.

So when McGinn ran down the left side and stopped, Christie was ready. "Go! Go!" he shouted. A Bournemouth player who was serving as the draft evader behind the wall scrambled to his feet and ran out to meet McGinn. But this time, the maneuver was a fake. "Smoke and mirrors," Christie says now. Instead, Villa's two tallest players, Amadou Onana and Ezri Konsa, ended up unmarked on the opposite side. Only an acrobatic save prevented a goal.

Occasionally, the process does break down. Against Liverpool in early November, all four of Villa's first-half corners resulted in clear chances. Two ended in acrobatic Caoimhín Kelleher saves of headers by Onana and Diego Carlos, but the other two chances were Liverpool's. It doesn't take a set piece coach to notice that Villa's players all push forward during corners, leaving the back exposed. Villa's first two led to breakaways in the other direction, one that Darwin Núñez converted, and one he missed.

After Liverpool won 2-0, the MacPhee cult was ridiculed on talk shows and podcasts. Villa's players were philosophical about the breakdowns. "Sometimes you have to risk to get rewarded," Bailey explained. "We've been doing that, and we'll keep doing that. He won't change anything," he said about MacPhee. "He doesn't need to change anything."

Despite their success, Aston Villa remain undermanned for an elite Premier League club. Villa don't have a player whose wages rank among the Premier League's 45 highest, for example, but goals from set pieces are a crucial equalizer. After the loss to Liverpool, Emery pointed out that Villa easily could have added another two.

Through 15 games, MacPhee's free kicks and corners had created 7.94 xG (expected goals) in the Premier League -- second only to Arsenal's 8.84. If his club's set pieces continue to provide opportunities like that, Emery knows the rest will take care of itself.

- Bruce Schoenfeld

AJAZ STARS AS NEW ZEALAND BEAT INDIA 3-0 IN HISTORIC TEST SWEEP

New Zealand's Ajaz Patel celebrates the win against India at the end of their third Test in Mumbai (INDRANIL MUKHERJEE)

New Zealand spinner Ajaz Patel took six wickets as his side sealed a historic 3-0 Test sweep in India with a thrilling 25-run win in the third Test on Sunday.

Chasing 147 for victory, India were bowled out for 121 in 29.1 overs on day three, after Rishabh Pant hit a valiant 64 at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.

Ajaz roared in delight as he bowled Washington Sundar to take the final wicket and the Black Caps celebrated a first Test series win on Indian soil in style.

It was the first time India had been swept in a Test series at home since South Africa's 2-0 win in 1999-2000 and the first time they were beaten 3-0 at home.

"This will be a very low point in my career, having lost three games at home," India skipper Rohit Sharma told reporters.

"I fully take responsibility for that. As a leader, I have not been at the best of my abilities right from the start of the series.

"With the bat as well, I have not been good enough."

New Zealand did the unthinkable under new captain Tom Latham, and in the absence of senior batsman Kane Williamson, who was recovering from a groin injury back home.

The Black Caps turned around their fortunes from a 2-0 whitewash in Sri Lanka, and made India suffer their first Test series loss at home in 12 years.

"Very ecstatic," said Latham. "Looking back at the start of the series, to now be in this position, the boys have done a fantastic job over the last three Test matches."

Mumbai-born New Zealander Ajaz ended with a match-haul of 11 wickets at a venue where he created history by claiming all 10 wickets in a Test innings in 2021.

In a tricky chase on a turning pitch, New Zealand reduced India to 29-5, before the left-hander Pant made counter-attacked with his half-century.

- Pant controversy -

Ajaz, after lunch, had Pant caught by wicketkeeper Tom Blundell, a decision denied by the on-field umpire but successfully reviewed by New Zealand. An unconvinced Pant trudged back.

"If we say something, it will not go down well. If the decision is not conclusive then the decision has to stand with what the on-field umpire calls," said Rohit.

"I don't know how that decision was overturned."

Glenn Phillips then got two in two balls and Ajaz wrapped up the innings to be named player of the match.

India bowled out New Zealand quickly for 174 in the first session, with Ravindra Jadeja taking five wickets on a turning wicket for 10 in the match.

But the New Zealand bowlers led by Ajaz ripped into India's top order.

Fast bowler Matt Henry dismissed Rohit Sharma in the third over, getting the captain to mis-hit to Phillips at midwicket for 11.

He extended his poor run with the bat in the series with scores of 2, 52, 0, 8 and 18 in his previous five innings.

Ajaz bowled Shubman Gill and then had Virat Kohli, on one, caught by Daryl Mitchell at slip to silence the home crowd.

Kohli has also struggled in the series, with just one half-century and four single-digit scores in the series.

Pant put on 42 runs for the sixth wicket to revive the chase, but Ajaz struck again to remove Jadeja for six.

Will Young's 71 and 51 in the two New Zealand innings proved key and he was named player of the series for amassing 244 runs.

- Faisal Kamal

OLEKSANDR USYK -TYSON FURY REMATCH SCHEDULED FOR DEC. 21

Tyson Fury suffered his first career defeat against Oleksandr Usyk earlier this month. Richard Pelham/Getty Images

 The heavyweight championship rematch between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will take place on Dec. 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority Turki Alalshikh announced on Wednesday.

Usyk became undisputed heavyweight champion when he beat Fury via a split decision victory in their first highly anticipated fight earlier this month. One judge scored the fight 114-113 for Fury but was overruled by scores of 114-113 and 115-112 for the Ukrainian.

Usyk is the first unified heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in a 1999 rematch in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, it was Fury's first defeat of his professional career.

The pair had signed a two-fight deal that included a rematch on Oct. 12, but Alalshikh's announcement confirms that date has been pushed back to the end of 2024.

Alalshikh said in a post on Twitter: "The rematch between the Undisputed Champion Oleksandr Usyk and the Champion Tyson Fury is now scheduled on the 21 of December 2024 during Riyadh Season...The world will watch another historical fight again... Our commitment to boxing fans continues...We hope you enjoy it."

Fury said in the ring after their first fight that he will look to correct his record in the rematch.

"I believe I won the fight, but I'm not going to sit here and cry and make excuses," Fury said. "I believe he won a few of the rounds, but I won the majority of them. What can you do? We both put on a good fight, the best we could do. ... People are siding with the country at war. But make no mistake, I won that fight ... and I'll be back. We've got a rematch clause."

The fight was a particularly brutal one. Fury absorbed 14 unanswered punches in Round 9 that resulted in the eighth knockdown of his career. Usyk appeared at the post-fight news conference with four stitches in his right eye and severe swelling around both eyes.

Both fighters also endured long training camps after the fight was postponed from its Feb. 17 date due to a cut Fury suffered during sparring that required 11 stitches over his right eye.

Jose Mohan, president of the Middle East Boxing Commission, told ESPN on Wednesday that Usyk received a medical suspension until July 2 while Fury was handed mandatory one week of rest.

"Both of 'em at the moment are both [medically] suspended because of how much the fight took out of them," Fury's promoter, Frank Warren, told ESPN on Tuesday. "It is a tough fight. Those guys were in an epic, epic battle."

Information from ESPN's Michael Coppinger contributed to this report.

- ESPN

IKE IBEABUCHI KNOCKS DOWN CHRIS BYRD | HEAVYWEIGHT | BOXING HISTORY