SERRANO DRAWS 3.4M VIEWS ON TIK TOK FOR 50TH WIN

 

Serrano's win over Manzur was watched by 3.4m viewers on TikTok. Getty Images 

Amanda Serrano retained her WBA and WBO featherweight belts with a narrow majority decision over Argentina's Lucrecia Manzur in the first world title fight to be streamed live on TikTok.

The Puerto Rican was made to work for her 50th career win, edging a majority decision but missing the 33rd knockout she needed to break the women's record, remaining on 32.

Serrano's fight, held over 12 two-minute rounds, may not have delivered a record‑breaking knockout, but it drew 3.4 million total views on TikTok.

The 37-year-old continues to be one of the most watched female fighters in the world, with her third fight against Ireland's Katie Taylor last year drawing an audience of six million on Netflix and their rematch in 2024 getting over 50 million on the same platform.

Friday's fight in Temeculam, California was scored 114-114, 116-112 and 116-112 in favour of Serrano.

Manzur troubled the champion early with repeated right hands, but the Argentine tired as Serrano seized momentum from round nine and finished the fight in control.

Speaking after the bout, Serrano said: "I am so happy and honoured. That was the first championship main event fight on TikTok guys, super excited, super honoured."

On Manzur, Serrano added: "I knew this girl was tough. She's young. She's 27. She's 10 years younger than me. These girls are getting younger and stronger.

"She was hungry, and I knew that coming into training. I trained very hard because I knew it was an opportunity for her, so I had to come on my A game."

The unified champion will now be hoping to eclipse Christy Martin with a 33rd stoppage in her farewell fight, which she plans to stage in Puerto Rico later this year or in early 2027.

It is unclear who Serrano will fight in her final outing.

After admitting post-fight her age may have played a factor in her performance, Serrano further elaborated on social media.

"Wow this was rough," she said.

"Honesty the mind tells you one thing but the body does another.

"You can fight anyone you want and squeeze out a victory but Father Time isn't allowing too much of that.

"Thank you so much to all my fans, you guys are amazing.

"You're the reason why I dug in deep tonight. I'll talk to the team and make my decision. I love you."

On the undercard, Denmark's Melissa Mortensen became a world champion for the first time by claiming the vacant the WBA super-bantamweight title with a points win over Mexico's Mayelli Flores.

Serrano wore Timberland boxing boots in the ring. Getty Images 

Serrano stays tied with legend Christy Martin for the knockout record in women's boxing. Getty Images 

- Jude Winter

"I'M GOING THROUGH A LOT" - COCO GAUFF DEVASTATED AS TIKTOK'S US BAN IMPACTS HER EVEN AT AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Coco Gauff devastated as TikTok's US ban affects her at Australian Open. (Image Source: Getty)

Coco Gauff has reached the quarterfinals of the 2025 Australian Open with an impressive comeback win over Belinda Bencic. However, the American's immediate post-match thoughts were consumed by TikTok being banned in the US.

Gauff and Bencic's highly anticipated fourth-round clash at the Australian Open began on a riveting note, with the Swiss clinching the opening set 7-5. However, the World No. 3 battled back strongly to claim a 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 victory after a two-hour and 26-minute contest, advancing to the quarterfinals in Melbourne for the second year in a row.

With the TikTok ban going into effect in the USA, Coco Gauff used her camera message to pay tribute to the social media platform, drawing a broken heart and writing:

"RIP TikTok USA."

The former US Open champion later shared the message on Instagram, admitting that she was going through an emotional upheaval due to the ban.

"I'm going through a lot rn 😞," Gauff posted on her Instagram story.

Gauff also expressed devastation over her access to TikTok being blocked even in Australia, mournfully reflecting on how long she had been using the social media platform.

"Idk why I thought since I am in Australia this wouldn't apply to me. 😢 been on this app since musically smh," she wrote.

Coco Gauff's feelings come as no surprise, as the 20-year-old recently expressed her hope that the ban wouldn't go through. She pointed out that TikTok was a "great thing for a lot of small businesses in our country and a lot of creators make money on it."

Coco Gauff to lock horns with Paula Badosa in Australian Open QF

Coco Gauff and Paula Badosa - Source: Getty

Following her win over Belinda Bencic, Coco Gauff will battle it out against Paula Badosa in the quarterfinals of the 2025 Australian Open. The Spaniard triumphed over Olga Danilovic 6-1, 7-6(2) to book her place against the third seed.

The duo stand level at 3-3 in their head-to-head record, with Gauff claiming a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory in their most recent encounter in the semifinals of the 2024 China Open.

Speaking in her on-court interview, the American acknowledged Badosa as a formidable opponent and disclosed that she was expecting a tough battle for a place in the semifinals.

"Every time I play Paula, it's a tough matchup. She's playing some great tennis. Last time we played, I think it went three sets, I'm not sure. But we played end of last year, so I expect this to be another tough match," Gauff said.

If Coco Gauff emerges victorious against Paula Badosa, she could set up a rematch of last year's Australian Open semifinal with top seed and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, provided the Belarusian defeats Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarterfinals.

- Urvi Mehra

MANCHESTER CITY MEME 😄

 

MICHAEL JORDAN SETTLES THE GOAT 🐐 DEBATE WITH PERFECT ANSWER THAT FANS HAD NEVER HEARD BEFORE

The legendary former Chicago Bulls star won six NBA championships.

Michael Jordan seen out in the French sunshine with his wife Yvette Prieto on their holidays in Saint Tropez. PHOTO: BACKGRID

 

Michael Jordan is unquestionably the GOAT of basketball and he once made it clear which of the six NBA championships he won with the Chicago Bulls was the best.

Jordan, 61, is one of the most famous sports stars in history following his extraordinary career in the NBA, which has seen him widely acclaimed by many as the greatest player ever to grace the sport.

Success on the basketball court saw him become NBA champion on a total of six occasions, all with the Chicago Bulls.

He was also crowned the MVP in the NBA Finals a total of six times, as well as being named the NBA's Most Valuable Player overall on five instances after playing for the Bulls and the Washington Wizards.

He transcended the sport of basketball and went beyond that, developing a partnership with Nike on his Air Jordan trainers, which has become one of the most recognisable sneaker brands in the world.

He also starred in the 1996 film Space Jam and was the focus of Emmy-winning documentary series The Last Dance in 2020, which appeared on internet streaming service Netflix.

But Jordan's time on the basketball court was the bedrock of his success and his exploits there, playing more than 1,200 regular season and play-off games in the NBA, holding points-per-game records across the course of his career.

Debate rages as to which of the six Chicago Bulls sides Jordan won the NBA with was the best - but the man himself once settled that debate by revealing which one is his favourite.

And the GOAT believes the 1996 roster was the best, as he outlined his reasoning in an interview that has resurfaced on TikTok which proved that there is no 'I' in team and laid down the gauntlet to anyone who feels there is a better side than that.

He said: "People always debated whose the greatest player of all time?

"Dumb question. It should be whose the greatest team of all time.

"You know, there are so many teams to choose from.

"The '91 Chicago Bulls. The '92 Bulls, back to back. The 93' Bulls, first three-peat.

"The '97 Bulls, even with the flu. The '98 Bulls, no push off.

"And my favourite, the '96 Chicago Bulls, 72 wins, tough to beat that.

"You think there's someone else? Prove it."

- John McDougall 

FIA-COMMISSIONED REPORT TAKES AIM SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES FOR NOT CURBING ONLINE ABUSE I

AP Photo 

 An FIA-commissioned report on online abuse in sports released Thursday suggests social media companies should do more to curb targeted attacks toward athletes, officials and even fans.

The United Against Online Abuse Campaign surveyed 22 global sporting federations, among them FIFA, World Athletics, the International Tennis Federation, and the FIA, which is the governing body for Formula One and other European motorsports series.

FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem began planning the campaign when a female race steward received online threats after her ruling against Spaniard Fernando Alonso during a 2022 race. That came after Nicholas Latifi was subjected to death threats after his race-changing crash in the closing laps altered the 2021 season finale.

When people are abused online, the report's authors wrote, why do "the social media publishers fail to adopt more obvious forms of intervention?" The report asked why social media platforms aren't immediately removing harmful content, pursuing perpetrators and banning them.

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