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Juan Manuel Marquez knocks out Manny Pacquiao in sixth round

LAS VEGAS — Manny Pacquiao never saw it coming. He never saw the punch that snapped his head back Saturday and dropped him to the canvas and left him sprawled there momentarily, face down, while his wife sobbed uncontrollably and the packed crowd at MGM’s Grand Garden Arena rose to its feet in shock.

Juan Manuel Marquez celebrated his victory while Manny Pacquiao remained out cold.

With that, a rivalry known for its lack of a definitive triumph suddenly had the most definitive ending of them all.

Juan Manuel Marquez celebrated his victory while Manny Pacquiao remained out cold.

Juan Manuel Marquez threw both arms skyward, as blood dripped from his nose. Bedlam ensued all around him, but Marquez said little. His face said it all.

His face summarized four fights between two men, two scored in favor of Pacquiao, another one a draw. His face summarized the release of nearly a decade of frustration. For the moment that Marquez waited for and obsessed over, for the moment he set the record straight.

“I threw the perfect punch,” he said.

It happened in the sixth round, after Pacquiao mounted the most furious of comebacks, after he overcame an early knockdown with a reciprocal knockdown, after he stung Marquez with a series of left hands. As Round 6 neared its conclusion, Marquez (55-6-1, 40 knockouts) crept in close to Pacquiao, and he came over the top from a short distance with that right.

The shot crumpled Pacquiao (54-5-2) to the canvas, right in front of Bob Arum, his promoter, who held his hands out as if he wanted to catch his prized fighter in his arms. Pacquiao’s wife, Jinkee, held her face in both hands and cried. It took her husband several minutes to rise, and when he did, his face was bruised under both eyes, which were vacant. He looked lost.

“We knew it would be a tough fight,” Marquez said. “But not an impossible fight.”

Pacquiao was sent to the hospital for a CAT scan.

Before the fight, Pacquiao strode deep inside Grand Garden Arena, through a maze of tunnels. He entered Dressing Room 2 at 5:40 p.m. This was about an hour earlier than for his previous foray against Marquez. Pacquiao was so early that he caught the drug testers off guard. One ran off to fetch a test kit. Pacquiao just smiled, his face filled with confidence, so sure.

The boxer embraced his trainer, Freddie Roach.

“How are you?” Roach asked him. “You good?”

Pacquiao simply nodded.

He wore a blue T-shirt imprinted with his likeness; T-shirt Manny held a microphone, wore boxing shoes and spun a basketball on an index finger. Real-life Manny sat in a chair below where highlights of his previous Marquez fights played on a flat-screen television.

As if to underscore his mood, Pacquiao did not wait for the HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant to interview him. He grabbed the microphone and interviewed Merchant instead. Merchant ably played along. To one query, he said he wanted to confirm HE won the previous three fights against Marquez.

Pacquiao looked up, incredulous. “Wait,” he said, “that’s my line.”

Then it got surreal. In came Mitt Romney. Yes, that Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and the presidential runner-up, every hair on his head in place. Romney, in fact, came in twice. His introduction was at once awkward and hilarious.

“Hi, Manny,” he said. “I’m Mitt Romney. I ran for president. I lost.”

All that really happened, truth stranger than fiction. Or just another Pacquiao fight.

Juan Manuel Marquez threw a vicious right hand that flattened Manny Pacquiao.

The fighter himself stood coiled in his corner before the opening bell ring, his fists already raised. Then he charged at Marquez like a bull at a matador. Pacquiao fought the smarter fight early, as he tagged Marquez with lefts and avoided the right hand.

That all changed in the third round, all changed with one punch. It came from Marquez, who sent his right arm wide, over Pacquiao’s left glove, flush into Pacquiao’s face. The punch sent Pacquiao flying backward, on his backside. He climbed to his feet quickly, his face twisted into a sneer.

It marked the first time in 39 rounds between the fighters that Marquez had knocked Pacquiao down. If anything, it seemed to galvanize Pacquiao. Well, at least until the sixth.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com

UFC on FOX 5 fight card: 'Henderson vs Diaz' in Seattle

UFC on FOX 5: "Henderson vs. Diaz" is all set to pop off tonight (Sat., Dec. 8, 2012) from the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington, and we've got a complete guide to the show with links to all the major storylines. 

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is all set to blow the roof off the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington, with its latest network television offering, UFC on Fox 5: "Henderson vs. Diaz" featuring a lightweight championship showdown pitting Ben Henderson against Nate Diaz.

The rest of the main card is stacked with compelling match-ups that will see B.J. Penn battle Rory MacDonald, Mauricio Rua try to quell the uprising of Alexander Gustafsson, and Mike Swick look to continue his comeback against Matt Brown.

With anticipation running high and so many news stories hitting you at once, we can understand if you missed a few and need an easy guide to get to them all.

Well stand back, Maniacs, because we're using technology. 

Source: http://www.mmamania.com

Jon Jones wants Alexander Gustafsson fight over Shogun Rua

UFC President Dana White has said the winner of the Alexander Gustafsson vs. Mauricio Rua fight will get a light heavyweight title shot, possibly against current champion Jon Jones. For his part, "Bones" would like for that to be the former instead of the latter. 

Later on this evening (Sat., Dec. 8, 2012) at UFC on Fox 5: "Henderson vs. Diaz" at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington, Alexander Gustafsson will take on Mauricio Rua in a light heavyweight number one contender bout. That means the winner will reportedly fight the winner of the Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen bout set for April of next year.

If it was up to "Bones," the current 205-pound king, he would like to take on Gustafsson. His reasoning?

"Well, I guess I would prefer to fight Alexander Gustafsson just because I haven't fought him yet and there's a lot of critics who say the reason why I do so well is because I have a size advantage over my opponents, and I don't think that's really fair. I think fighting Gustafsson will kind of get that out of the way, that whole 'Jon Jones is bigger than everyone else' thing that has gotten going."

Makes sense.

But there have been those who have said "Shogun" wasn't at 100-percent when Jones fought him back at UFC 128 in March of last year. What say you, Jonny?

Source: http://www.mmamania.com
"That's really not my fault that Shogun didn't come to our fight 100-percent prepared. I came and I did my job and if Shogun wins than I'll be more than happy to give him a second chance at the belt."

Now that's a champ, huh?

Pacquiao to bank P1 Billion, maybe more

LAS VEGAS - Manny Pacquiao is guaranteed a paycheck of $23 million (about P943 million) in this Saturday's fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez.

But because it is impossible that nobody's going to watch the fight on HBO pay-per-view at the MGM Grand, Top Rank chief Bob Arum said Pacquiao could end up getting between $28 million (P1.1 billion) to $30 million (P1.2 billion)

"Even if nobody buys the pay-per-view, Manny gets $23 million. That's guaranteed," said Arum. 

Getty Images/Getty Images - LAS VEGAS, NV - DECEMBER 07: Boxers Manny Pacquiao (L) and Juan Manuel Marquez pose during the official weigh-in for their welterweight bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on December 7, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao and Marquez will fight each other for the fourth time on December 8 in Las Vegas. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Getty Images)

Arum said it is a given that this fourth chapter of the revered Pacquiao-Marquez rivalry will gross more than a million buys since it had generated a little over 1.3 million when they faced each other for the third time last year.

"There is a tremendous buzz for this fight," said an excited Arum, who actually turns 81 on Saturday.

Pacquiao will be fighting for the 23rd time on American soil this Saturday and when he made his US debut in June, 2001, also at the Grand Garden Arena, he only made $40,000 as a last-minute substitute.

Marquez, according to Arum, is guaranteed $6 million and might take somewhere between $8 million to $9 million after the PPV and other money-making schemes are all accounted for.

Pacquiao's fights the last four years here have become topgrossers.

Pacquiao's marquee victories over Oscar Dela Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto and Shane Mosley here in Sin City were smash hits with people from all over the world flocking to this gambling and entertainment haven to see the Filipino in action.

Owing to his immense popularity and drawing power, Pacquiao is ranked among the highest-paid athletes in the world.

In a study of the highest-paid athletes from June, 2011 through June, 2012 done by Forbes, Pacquiao was second on the list with earnings of $62 million.

According to Forbes, Pacquiao made $56 million in purses and $6 million in endorsements.

Rival boxer Floyd Mayweather was No. 1 on the list, with $85 million in earnings, all from purses. Golfer Tiger Woods was third with $59.4 million in earnings.

Pacquiao and Mayweather each had two fights in the time period that covers the Forbes' study. 

Source: yahoo.com

Embarrassing Photo Of Spurs Players Leaked

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The San Antonio Spurs' bad week just got a whole lot worse. 

Days after commissioner David Stern fined the team $250,000 for sitting its star players during a nationally televised game with the Miami Heat, a less-than-pleasant photo of Tim Duncan and Tony Parker has surfaced online that is sure to cause the organization another headache. 

The image, which first appeared on Reddit, appears to have been taken on Halloween.

It shows Parker and Duncan, both in costume, pointing toy guns at the head of a man dressed as NBA referee Joey Crawford.

Crawford can be one of the league's more controversial referees, and once he even ejected Duncan from a game while the Spurs big man was on the bench. The league suspended Crawford for the incident.

Lightning appears to have struck the Spurs twice in the span of a few days, which is somewhat surprising for a team that has managed to avoid negative press during coach Gregg Popovich's tenure.

Source: http://www.thepostgame.com

Celtics G Rondo suspended two games after fight

WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) -- Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo was suspended for the third time this calendar year on Thursday when the NBA told him to sit out two games without pay for starting a skirmish that sent players sprawling into the courtside seats.

Rondo will miss Friday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers and Sunday's against the Bucks in Milwaukee. He will also give up $200,000 in pay.

Celtics center Kevin Garnett was fined $25,000 for his role in the scuffle, and Nets forward Gerald Wallace was fined $35,000.

Rondo was thrown out of Wednesday night's 95-83 loss to the Nets in the second quarter when he shoved Nets forward Kris Humphries off the parquet to retaliate for a hard foul on Garnett. A shoving match ensued; Rondo, Humphries and Wallace were all ejected. 

Rondo spoke with the league on the telephone on Thursday and made his case.

''I told them the truth,'' he said after practice at the Celtics' workout facility in suburban Boston. ''I don't think I did anything dirty. I didn't try to start a riot. I don't think it was more than just a pushing war.''

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said in the afternoon that he was hopeful Rondo would not be suspended because no punches were thrown - or at least none caught on camera. But he said he feared the fact that the scuffle went into the stands could lead to a suspension. 

The decision was announced shortly before 6 p.m. by NBA disciplinarian Stu Jackson. 

Nets general manager Billy King said on a conference call that he didn't agree with the penalties and told Jackson so. 

Photo: Boston Celtics' Rajon Rondo, center, walks off the court after being ejected in the second quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets in Boston, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

He noted that Humphries had scratches all over his left shoulder; the Nets forward posted a picture of them on Twitter with the caption, ''Anyone know where I can quick get a Tetnis shot in Boston?''

Earlier, Rivers said on a radio show that he blamed Humphries for the incident. But the referees disagreed, with crew chief James Capers saying in a pool report after the game: ''Rondo initiated everything that proceeded after the foul.''

King also defended his player, who was not penalized on Thursday.

''I really could care less of what the Celtics say about Kris,'' King said. ''I just know what he does for us.''

Rondo was suspended twice last season after losing his temper - once when he threw a ball at a referee, and again during the playoffs when he chest-bumped an official while disputing a foul call. But, just as he did after those incidents, he insisted that he had learned his lesson about taking himself out of the game.

''I know I have to be out there with my teammates. That's the thing about it,'' he said. ''But I was sticking up for my teammates. I didn't try to start a fight.''

Rivers said he thinks Rondo now understands he is more valuable to his team if he can remain on the court.

''I don't think he went in there thinking, 'We're going to get in a fight,''' Rivers said. ''It's snap, it's quick, and it could happen to any of us, and it has happened to me.''

Rondo is averaging 12.9 points and a career-high 12.9 assists per game. He entered Wednesday night with a streak of 37 consecutive games with double-digit assists; that streak ended with his ejection, leaving him tied with John Stockton for the second-longest in NBA history. 

Rondo said he will work on controlling his temper but also denied that it was a problem. 

''I play the game the right way. I'm not a dirty player. Sometimes I let my emotions get the best of me, but I have no intention of hurting anybody,'' Rondo said. ''I go out there and compete every night, and that's how I play the game. I play the game hard; I play the game with an edge. I'm not a trash-talker. I don't play the game dirty. I play hard and when one of my guys are disrespected, I retaliated.'' 

Source: ph.nba.com

Australian clubs line up to lure Beckham

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Australian football clubs are queuing up to bring former England captain David Beckham to the country's A-League in January, despite the 37-year-old denying a deal is in the offing.

Perth Glory has "put its hat in the ring" and is readying a bid, wealthy owner Tony Sage told Monday's The Australian.

"Signing David Beckham would be up there... the number one thing other than my decision to buy Glory," said mining magnate Sage. 

"It's a huge commitment, but something I would love to pull off."

Beckham's management team on Friday played down talk of any move Down Under after Football Federation Australia said that the star player wanted to join an A-League club.

But FFA chief executive David Gallop insisted a deal could still be struck for a 10-match guest stint by the LA Galaxy midfielder.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Melbourne Heart and Adelaide United were also in the race along with an unnamed side that has already made a secret bid.

"Beckham would be a massive thing for tourism," said United chairman Greg Griffin.

"We've just put forward our position to the people we understand are representing him and we would like to take it further," Griffith told the Herald.

The FFA pointed out that earlier this year Italian World Cup winner Alessandro Del Piero's management tried to fight off speculation before he finally joined Sydney FC.

Beckham remains one of the biggest names in football and his presence in the A-League alongside Del Piero and ex-England striker Emile Heskey would help ratchet up the competition's image.

In another coup, the federation was expected to unveil an Aus$160 million four-year television deal later Monday, doubling previous broadcast rights. 

Source: msn.com

D'Antoni as the new head coach of LA Lakers

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The Los Angeles Lakers formally introduced Mike D'Antoni on Thursday as their new head coach, replacing Mike Brown who was sacked just five games into the season.

The 61-year-old D'Antoni, who is still using crutches after recent knee surgery, immediately started talking about winning championships. 

"I'm really happy to be here, excited," D'Antoni said. "We're built to win this year, this is not a project. We have a window and we're going to try to get through it." 

The Lakers fired Brown after getting off to a 1-4 start. Interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff then came in and Los Angeles won two out of the next three. 

Bickerstaff was expected to coach the Lakers' next game Friday against the Phoenix Suns. D'Antoni will likely take over behind the bench on Sunday. "I'm going to do everything in my power to make it a good decision," D'Antoni said. "The reality of the day is I have a great group of guys."

D'Antoni was asked about the NBA club's controversial decision to choose him over Phil Jackson, who coached the Lakers to five NBA championships in two separate stints.

"I was shocked before, now that's wearing off," D'Antoni said. "Phil's a great, great coach. The reality is, I'm extremely fortunate that we went this direction and I can't wait to get started."

UFC 154 Georges St-Pierre vs. Carlos Condit

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 Georges St-Pierre beats Carlos Condit, is open to possibility of facing Anderson Silva

 UFC 154 will be a special event for Georges St-Pierre, and earning a victory over Carlos Condit is the last step toward ensuring that this bout is one of the most memorable of his career.

Georges St. Pierre

This will be St-Pierre’s first fight in 19 months after tearing his ACL last year, and he will make his triumphant return to the Octagon in front of a hometown crowd in Montreal.

His challenger will be Carlos Conduit, who won the interim middleweight title by defeating Nick Diaz in February.

Carlos Condit

Here is everything you need to know about this fight.

Where: Bell Centre, Montreal, Québec

When: Saturday, November 17, 10 p.m. ET (main card)

Main Card
- Welterweight Championship: Georges St-Pierre vs. Carlos Condit
- Welterweight Bout: Marin Kampmann vs. Johny Hendricks
- Middleweight Bout: Francis Carmont vs. Tom Lawlor
- Middleweight Bout: Nick Ring vs. Costa Philippou
- Featherweight Bout: Mark Hominick vs. Pablo Garza

Preliminary Card (FX)
- Middleweight Bout: Patrick Cote vs. Alessio Sakara
- Light Heavyweight Bout: Cyrille Diabate vs. Chad Riggs
- Lightweight Bout: Mark Bocek vs. Rafael dos Anjos
- Lightweight Bout: Sam Stout vs. John Makdessi

St-Pierre’s Keys to Victory

St-Pierre is a master of the takedown, and he must prove early in this fight that he is still capable of exploding toward his opponent despite his knee injury.

If he can get Condit on his back early in each round, the fight has a strong chance of going his way.
Condit is a brilliant technical fighter, but his diverse array of strikes won’t matter as long as he is lying on the canvas.

This fight will depend mostly on how well GSP has recovered. If he is as explosive as he was before his knee injury, he will be victorious.

Condit’s Keys to Victory
Condit kept Nick Diaz guessing earlier this year with a dazzling series of kicks and punches, and that will be his road to victory against St-Pierre.

If he can avoid takedowns, stand up and strike with GSP throughout the majority of this fight, he has a chance to emerge with a win.

Condit is four inches taller than the Canadian, and his striking ability is greatly enhanced by his height advantage. By staying upright and at a distance, Condit can do serious damage.
The fight for Condit will be decided by how long he can stay off the mat. His chances at winning will increase with every second that he is able to stay on his feet.

Source: bleacherreport.com

Cung Le def. Rich Franklin

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UFC on FUEL 6 results: Cung Le def. Rich Franklin via KO at of 2:17 round 1 

Of all those taking in the main event of Ultimate Fighting Championship’s debut in China, no one looked more surprised with the finish than Cung Le – and he was the one responsible.

Known best for his spectacular kicks that seemingly come out of nowhere, it was a right hand, instead, that earned Le the most important victory of his career. In his first-ever UFC main event, the 40-year-old Le – who was born in nearby Vietnam – knocked out Rich Franklin at 2:17 of the first round in Saturday’s main event of UFC on FUEL TV, in Macau, the company’s first-ever event in the most populated country on the planet.

“That’s the biggest fight of my life,” said Le (9-2), who looked near tears in the moments immediately following the match.

Cung Le

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FIGHT NOTES: Four fighters each received $40,000 bonus awards – Gomi and Danzig for fight of the night, Le for knockout of the night, and Silva for submission of the night … The promotion returns to Montreal next Saturday for UFC 154, headlined by Canadian superstar and welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre facing interim welterweight champ Carlos Condit.

Source: http://sports.nationalpost.com 

Lingerie Football League

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Meet the girls of the LFL, a women's 7-on-7 tackle American football league. 

The league was founded by Mitch Mortaza in 2009. Playing style is full-contact and similar to other indoor football leagues.

 Click "Read More" for more images

McGrady to play in the Philippines?

If someone had said five years ago that T-Mac was going to suit up for Ginebra alongside Jay-Jay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), nobody with any real knowledge about professional basketball would've taken that person seriously. Then again, the same could be said if someone mentioned that Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant and Chris Paul, together with a few other NBA stars were going to play a couple of exhibition games in the Philippines.

After major strides by Philippine basketball (and major spending by a guy named "MVP"), having big NBA names play in the Philippines is no longer a dubious possibility. It was also about five years ago when rumors of already retired NBA legend Karl Malone playing in the PBA was met with harsh criticism and ridicule by basketball fans from and outside of the Philippines. The notion then was that the PBA was such an inferior league and that Malone would be embarrassing himself if he made such a move.

How times have changed.

These days, a pit stop in the Philippines by a former high-profile NBA player isn't such a bad move anymore. The Philippines has shown its willingness to cough up cash, and the competition level has steadily improved. It's perhaps why just a few years removed from his days as an NBA All-Star, Tracy McGrady's handlers are eyeing the Philippines as a destination for the former NBA scoring champion.

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Local agent Sheryl Reyes, who has a partnership McGrady's agency, was quoted by InterAKTV about bringing the 33-year-old, 6'8" forward to the PBA.

 

“Several people told me we can’t bring McGrady to China, now it has become possible,” Reyes wrote in a text message. “My next agenda is to bring him in the PBA as a replacement import just like what I did with those ex-NBA players last season.”

John Cena Dead 2012?

John Felix Anthony Cena

MIAMI HEAT NBA CHAMPIONS 2012

 Finally, the Big 3 of Miami are the NBA Champions 2012!

James, Wade, Bosh

WBO says Pacquiao beat Bradley

Unanimous vote by five judges

Manny Pacquiao (L) of the Philippines exchanges blows with Timothy Bradley (R) of the US during their WBO welterweight title match at the MGM Grand Arena on June 9, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

 

Arianny Celeste Arrested For Domestic Violence

In case you didn’t hear, longtime Octagon girl Arianny Celeste  was arrested Saturday morning for domestic violence just hours before she was to circle the Octagon at “UFC 146: Dos Santos vs. Mir.”

Arianny Celeste

Although details surrounding her alleged assault are scarce, UFC president Dana White claimed Celeste has got the organization’s full support.

LeBron James (2012 Kia NBA MVP Award)

LeBron James of the Miami Heat is the winner of the Maurice Podoloff Trophy as the 2011-12 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award, the NBA announced today. James earns the honor for the third time in four seasons and becomes the first player since Michael Jordan to win at least three MVPs. 

James totaled 1,074 points, including 85 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 voters that consisted of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada as well as an NBA.com MVP fan vote. For the third consecutive season, the NBA and Kia Motors America gave fans the opportunity to submit their votes by ranking their top five choices through a dedicated Web page on NBA.com. The fan vote counted as one vote and was compiled with the 120 media votes to determine the winner. Players were awarded 10 points for each first-place vote, seven points for each second-place vote, five for third, three for fourth and one for each fifth-place vote received.

Read more at nba.com

Thunder vs Mavericks Game 4 NBA Playoffs 2012

Seven NBA playoffs 2012 Stories

The NBA playoffs have started, and there's been plenty of drama already. As usual, there's the assortment of horrific injuries, personal problems, and the single-minded desire to win.

We've picked out seven of the most interesting storylines to develop so far. Enjoy!

 

What happens to the Bulls without Derrick Rose?
Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls were looking forward to finally playing together for an extended period of time. Fortunately for the Bulls, their star was back and looking to be in good shape as the playoffs started.

Unfortunately, he blew out of knee in game one of the first round series between Chicago and Philadelphia, and is out for the rest of the season. 

Can the Bulls rally and still make a run? Or are they doomed without last year's most valuable player on the floor?

Will Kobe get his sixth title?
Kobe's still chasing Michael Jordan's six NBA titles, and this is the last postseason before his decline as an athlete begins. It's hard to imagine that Kobe should be in decline, but he's already 33 years old, and has been playing in the league since 1996. All of those miles on his joints, as well as the injuries he keeps shrugging off, are going to catch up soon.