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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Deontay Wilder vs. Anthony Joshua may truly be dead.

The long-awaited heavyweight superfight once again burst into flames on Saturday after Wilder suffered a shocking and lopsided unanimous decision loss at the hands of Joseph Parker in the co-headlining bout of the Day of Reckoning event in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia. All three judges scored the contest for the 31-year-old New Zealand native — 118-111, 118-110, and 120-108 — imploding the proposed plans for a Wilder vs. Joshua bout in early 2024.

Check out reaction Wilder’s stunning upset loss below, including commentary from Francis Ngannou and a callout from his representative Marquel Martin.

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Since submitting his drug test and being eligible to compete once again, talk surrounding Conor McGregor’s return to the octagon has gone quiet.

All signs were pointing toward ‘The Notorious’ being welcomed back to the sport by the always dangerous Michael Chandler. The former Bellator lightweight king insisted that, despite the lack of progression, the fight against the Irishman will still go ahead, but that now looks in jeopardy.

While in attendance at the ‘Day of Reckoning’ boxing event in Riyadh on Saturday, Conor McGregor spoke with Derek Chisora about what’s next. According to the man himself, he’s in constant discussion with the UFC and he expects to compete soon.

“Soon, hopefully soon. I’m talking,” McGregor said when asked about a timeline for his comeback. “They’re naming opponents here for me now.”

However, McGregor isn’t ready to put an end to his venture into boxing. He took the time on the mic to call for a huge matchup against Filipino legend Manny Pacquiao, who he claims is in millions of dollars of debt to him.

“How about me versus Manny here in Saudi? How does that sound to you?” McGregor questioned Chisora. “Now wouldn’t you think Manny should have to come up to my weight considering it’s his sport? Wouldn’t you think that’s what a man would do, versus what a mouse would do?”

“Well, Manny already owes me 8 million via court of law, because he was signed to my management company, and then didn’t honor his deal. And he was brought under the court of law.”

Related: Kamaru Usman reveals why Conor McGregor will never be UFC champion again

Despite always being mentioned in boxing conversations, Conor McGregor has only ever competed once in the sport professionally. The Irishman opened up the door for many after him by securing a crossover bout against Floyd Mayweather.

To McGregor’s credit, Mayweather is arguably the greatest boxer of his generation and the UFC star was able to take multiple rounds from the legendary boxer on the judges’ scorecards.  The bout came to an end when ‘Money’ scored the TKO victory in round 10.

Check out Conor McGregor’s brief interview with Derek Chisora below.

Conor wants to fight Manny Pacquiao but only at his weight🧐 pic.twitter.com/h74r5dqOPO

— 🌴ᴛʜᴇᴀʀᴛᴏꜰᴡᴀʀ🌴 (@TheArtOfWar6) December 23, 2023

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TKO
| BJPenn.com

Conor McGregor was one of the many combat sports celebrities in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia earlier today (Sat. Dec. 23, 2023) in attendance of the “Day Of Reckoning” boxing mega event. In fact, McGregor was seated next to soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo for the bulk of the bouts, which included some top-notch Heavyweight action featuring the likes of Anthony Joshua, Joseph Parker, and Deontay Wilder.

At one point, the man funding all the extravagance, His Excellency Turki Al-Sheikh, sat down with the duo and was immediately subject to a classic Conor McGregor mic. A hot mic caught some of the exchange, but the general gist is that a very manic McGregor still wants a piece of Manny Pacquiao, and he doesn’t seem opposed to picking up a Saudi Arabian paycheck in the process.

An unimpressed Ronaldo watches on.

It’s difficult to get a full transcription, but McGregor can clearly be heard demanding Pacquiao to “grow a set of balls” and come up in weight class to box McGregor. “Is he a man or a mouse?!?” McGregor concludes, before comparing rolexes with CR7. Later on in the event, McGregor would reiterate the same sentiments in a more formal interview.

“How about me vs. Manny here in Saudi,” McGregor said. “How does that sound? Now, wouldn’t you think Manny should have to come up to my weight? Considering it’s his sport. Would you think that’s what a man would do versus what a mouse would do?

He continued, “Money talks? Well, Manny already owes me eight million via court of law cause he was signed to my management company and then didn’t honor his deal.”

Somewhere, Michael Chandler is highly agitated right about now.

McGregor has been eyeing a showdown versus Pacquiao for many years now, even prior to the mentioned management drama. The retired boxing legend has mostly shrugged off the talks, but it’s always possible that the Saudi Arabian bank roll could pull him back into the ring. Even if “Pacman” did want to square off with McGregor, would UFC even let that happen?

UFC 300 still needs a main event.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Anthony Joshua’s dreams of fighting Deontay Wilder may be dashed, but the two-time former unified boxing heavyweight champion still has a big 2024 ahead of him.

Joshua dominated Otto Wallin en route to a fifth-round TKO stoppage on Saturday in the main event of the Day of Reckoning card in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia. The win capped off a perfect 3-0 year for Joshua, and likely set him up for a massive opportunity in his next bout.

Check out reaction to Joshua vs. Wallin below, including calls from both Francis Ngannou and his agent Marquel Martin for Joshua vs. Ngannou to be on the menu for 2024.

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Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is chomping at the bit to fight Deontay Wilder after ‘The Bronze Bomber’ suffered a shocking loss at the hands of Joseph Parker.

Wilder returned to the ring more than a year removed from his first-round knockout of Robert Helenius as part of the ‘Day of Reckoning’ card in Riyadh. Hoping to fight his way back into title contention, Wilder appeared to suffer from a severe bout of ring rust as he failed to offer much in the way of offense throughout the 36-minute affair.

In the end, Parker scored a decisive unanimous decision, shocking the live crowd and leaving many to wonder if the 38-year-old pugilist’s best days are behind him.

Rumored to be in talks for a fight with ‘The Bronze Bomber’ either inside a cage or the ring sometime in 2024, Francis Ngannou offered his immediate reaction to Wilder’s lopsided loss on social media.

“Licking my lips after watching this fight,” Ngannou wrote on X.

Ngannou and Wilder Have been linked to a clash in 2024

Francis Ngannou shook the boxing world to its core in October, going toe-to-toe with perhaps the greatest fighter on the planet, Tyson Fury. ‘The Predator’ even put Fury on the canvas at one point, but ultimately came up short on the somewhat controversial scorecards. Since then, every top 10 heavyweight has been itching to test their skills against the MMA star. That includes Deontay Wilder who suggested that a fight between the two could happen either in the boxing ring or inside the PFL Smart Cage next year.

After Wilder’s poor showing against Joseph Parker, it’s safe to say Francis Ngannou likes his chances whether it’s in four-ounce gloves or eight-ounce ones.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Watch Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin full fight video highlights from their eight-round cruiserweight contest, courtesy of multiple outlets.

Joshua vs. Wallin took place Dec. 23 at Freedom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Anthony Joshua (27-3) and Otto Wallin (26-2, 1 no-contest) competed in a heavyweight contest.

Result: Anthony Joshua defeated Otto Wallin via fifth-round knockout

Catch more video highlights below.

For more on Joshua vs. Wallin, check out the live blog below.

Round 1: Joshua the aggressor right away. Good jab pressure as he looks to set up that right hand. Hard right to the body by Joshua. Wallin can’t take too many of those. Joshua’s jab looking good. Wallin starts to establish his jab, which works to counter a Joshua lunge. Joshua scores with a jab, both fighters having success working in the middle of the ring. Wallin fires a straight left to the body. Joshua goes to his right hand, blocked. Quick left from Wallin to end the round.

MMA Fighting scores the round, 10-9 Joshua.

Round 2: Joshua with a right to the body. He’s utilizing the jab well. Wallin pokes Joshua with a jab. Left hook by Joshua. Wallin with a left that has Joshua circling and resetting. Good right hand by Joshua. Neither fighter giving up much ground yet. Wallin paws with a right, Joshua answers with a jab. He ventures forward with a looping right that deosn’t hit. Counter left by Wallin. Joshua ends the round with a jab. Two competitive rounds so far.

MMA Fighting scores the round, 10-9 Joshua. Overall, 20-18 Joshua.

Round 3: Wallin pressuring with his jab now. Joshua sticks the body, but it’s not keeping Wallin off of him. Joshua still finding the range as Wallin gives him a freebie and steps into a right hand. Wallin to the body. Big left hook from Joshua. Another good body shot scores for Joshua. Wallin having difficulty throwing without getting hit. Clearest round yet for the former champion.

MMA Fighting scores the round, 10-9 Joshua. Overall, 30-27 Joshua.

Round 4: Wallin jabbing away, but he’s consistently losing that battle. Joshua pumping jabs to the head and body. Wallin slips a jab through. Scary right hand from Joshua shaves Wallin’s chin. Wallin focusing on defense as Joshua hunts for an opening to land with power. Nice counter left by a circling Wallin. Joshua cuts off the ring and Wallin has to work his way out of the corner. They trade right hands.

MMA Fighting scores the round, 10-9 Joshua. Overall, 40-36 Joshua.

Round 5: Joshua connects with a right hand early. He’s fighting with a ton of confidence. That jab is money and he follows it with a straight right. There’s another Joshua right to the body. Wallin opens up and eats a left hand for his troubles, that rocked him. Joshua smells blood, he’s got a minute left to work in this round. Right hook blocked and Wallin looks to have recovered. Joshua rips the body. A left hook has Wallin retreating just before the bell.

MMA Fighting scores the round, 10-9 Joshua. Overall, 50-45 Joshua.

Never mind the scoring. Wallin’s corner has seen enough and they’re saving their fighter. Commentary says that Wallin might have a broken nose.

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