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This past Saturday in the main event at UFC Abu Dhabi, we saw a title eliminator in the bantamweight division. Unbeaten top contender Umar Nurmagomedov (18-0) was taking on “The Sandman” Cory Sandhagen (17-5).
For Nurmagomedov, this was the biggest test of his UFC career thus far. Entering Saturday, he was a perfect 5-0 inside the octagon, however, he had never fought anyone on the level of Sandhagen. This was going to be a true test to see if he was ready for title contention.
In the first round, both men had their moments but it felt like Sandhagen got the better of things. That was the last time throughout the fight we could say that. For the next four rounds, Nurmagomedov really controlled things. Through his striking, pressure, volume, and grappling, he led the dance. Sandhagen never really got going and Nurmagomedov pulled away and won a big unanimous decision at UFC Abu Dhabi.
What’s next after UFC Abu Dhabi?
The new rankings came out this week and Nurmagomedov is ranked second in the division. He’s now only behind the champion Sean O’Malley and top contender Merab Dvalishvili. Those two will fight at Noche UFC in September for the bantamweight title and it’s clear who will be next.
Dana White has already said that Nurmagomedov will be next for the winner of September’s title fight. Given how he’s ran through all of his competition in his professional career, it doesn’t matter who is the champion. I fully expect Umar Nurmagomedov to be the betting favorite whenever he gets his highly anticipated UFC title shot.
More must-reads:
- 'Clearly separated himself': Why one QB is winning Browns' competition
- Yankees' unlikely answer emerges from depth chart to save season — for now
- The '2024-25 NFL passing-yard leaders' quiz
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Yankees' unlikely answer emerges from depth chart to save season — for now
One out, seventh inning, 2-2 tie in Arlington. Ben Rice watched from the dugout as manager Aaron Boone called Paul Goldschmidt to pinch-hit for Austin Wells. When Goldschmidt crushed a 0-2 fastball over the left-field wall for the go-ahead run, the New York Yankees had their first lead since the fifth inning. More importantly, they had it because Rice's catching ability made the crucial substitution possible. The 26-year-old's emergence as a multi-position weapon couldn't be more timely. The Yankees entered Wednesday's Texas series finale having blown a seven-game AL East lead since May 28, sitting 6.5 games behind Toronto and 3.5 behind Boston for the first wild card. They'd started August 0-5, desperate for any break before facing Houston at home. Rice represents the internal solution they've needed. His .779 OPS sits well above the .719 MLB average, powered by 16 home runs and elite contact metrics. Baseball Savant ranks him in the 95th percentile or higher in hard-hit percentage, average exit velocity, expected slugging and expected weighted on-base average. Those numbers seem impossible considering where Rice started. The 2021 12th-round Dartmouth pick hit .171 in 178 plate appearances last season. But knowing he'd catch in 2025, Rice added 10 pounds to his frame and worked relentlessly on his receiving skills. The defensive flexibility pays dividends beyond Wednesday's game. Rice has posted a +2 fielding run value across 84 innings caught and 180 innings at first base. Not spectacular, but competent enough to create the matchup advantages Boone exploited against the Rangers. Rice embodies exactly what championship teams find within their system. Aaron Judge remains the Yankees' best player, but Rice may be their most valuable in pure utility terms. His ability to produce above-average offense while handling two premium positions creates strategic options other teams lack. Wednesday's sequence proved the point. Without Rice's catching ability, Boone couldn't have pinch-hit Goldschmidt in that crucial spot. The move worked because Rice had spent months building trust through consistent performance at both positions. The Yankees still trail Toronto by 6.5 games with the Astros series looming next. Their playoff chances remain fragile yet likely, per FanGraphs, after months of disappointing baseball. But Rice's ascension from .171 hitter to essential depth piece shows what's possible when overlooked talent meets opportunity. If the Yankees accomplish anything meaningful this season, they'll trace it back to moments like Wednesday's seventh inning. Not because of Goldschmidt's clutch homer, but because Ben Rice made that moment possible.
Padres already demoting one of their trade-deadline acquisitions
The Padres announced they’ve optioned JP Sears to Triple-A El Paso. They recalled reliever Sean Reynolds and will go with a nine-man bullpen in the short term. Sears will spend at least 15 days in the minors unless he’s brought up to replace a player going on the injured list. San Diego acquired Sears alongside Mason Miller in last week’s massive deadline deal. The 29-year-old southpaw made his team debut Monday night. He allowed five runs in as many innings on 10 hits and a walk against the Diamondbacks. Sears took the loss in a 6-2 defeat. He’d carried a 4.95 earned run average over 22 starts with the A’s. Monday's performance pushed his ERA to 5.12 across 116 innings. It’s a bottom-10 mark among pitchers to log at least 100 frames. Sears had the highest home run rate among that group, offsetting his nearly league-average 20.3% strikeout rate and solid 6% walk percentage. This is the first time in two-and-a-half years that Sears heads to the minors. He broke camp with the A’s in 2023 and has been in the majors since then. Sears has also avoided the injured list for that entire time. As a result, he’s tied for fifth in MLB with 87 starts since the beginning of the ’23 season. The durability is the big selling point, as his production (4.62 ERA/4.56 SIERA) over that stretch is that of a fifth or sixth starter. The demotion shouldn’t have any impact on Sears’ service trajectory. He has already surpassed the three-year mark and will qualify for arbitration next winter. He’s under team control for three seasons beyond this one. While he’ll probably be back up at some point this year, it may require an injury elsewhere in the rotation. San Diego optioned Randy Vásquez over the weekend. They have a four-man rotation of Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish and deadline acquisition Nestor Cortes. Darvish and Cortes will get the ball for the next two outings. San Diego is off Thursday and could turn back to Pivetta and Cease on extra rest for their first two games of the weekend series against the Red Sox. That’d point to the series finale on Aug. 10 as Michael King’s return date. King threw 61 pitches in what is expected to be his final rehab start on Sunday, via the MLB.com injury tracker. He’d be on six days' rest for his first MLB appearance since he went on the injured list in late May with a nerve problem in his throwing shoulder.
'Clearly separated himself': Why one QB is winning Browns' competition
Recent reports have indicated that veteran Joe Flacco holds a significant lead in the Cleveland Browns' quarterback competition over Kenny Pickett, 2025 third-round draft pick Dillon Gabriel and 2025 fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders. For an article published on Wednesday, Lance Reisland of the Cleveland Plain Dealer explained why Flacco "has clearly separated himself from the quarterback competition" heading into the Browns' preseason opener at the Carolina Panthers on Friday. "His performance is rooted in elite mechanical consistency in his footwork, balance and ability to transfer weight efficiently through his throws," Reisland said about Flacco. "These traits have allowed him to remain composed under pressure, stay on time through full field progression reads, and consistently deliver accurate passes at all three levels of the field." During the 2023 season, Flacco won four of five starts while playing under head coach Kevin Stefanski to guide the Browns to a playoff berth. None of Cleveland's other active quarterbacks has ever taken a meaningful in-game snap in Stefanski's offense. Gabriel seemingly won't be ready for regular-season action anytime soon, and Pickett missed a handful of practice days while dealing with a hamstring injury. Sanders reportedly will start against Carolina, but he's Cleveland's fourth option at the position. Even if he looks like a revelation on Friday night, all signs point to Stefanski going with Flacco for Cleveland's Week 1 game against the division rival Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. As of Wednesday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook had Flacco as a -265 betting favorite to get the nod for the Cincinnati matchup. "Flacco’s blend of polish, poise and veteran field-command paired with his ability to operate from under center or in shotgun, against pressure or in structure, makes him the clear best option to start Week 1," Reisland continued. "He’s executing with rhythm and timing, manipulating coverages and elevating the offense every time he’s under center. He looks fully prepared to lead this team on day one." While that doesn't necessarily mean Flacco will start when Cleveland faces the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2 on Sept. 14, it appears the Browns' QB1 gig is his to lose.
Indiana Fever Insider Provides Caitlin Clark Injury Update
Indiana Fever superstar guard Caitlin Clark has been sidelined since July 15 with a groin injury that she suffered in the final moments of a game against the Connecticut Sun. Given that this was the third soft tissue injury that caused Clark to miss time during this 2025 WNBA season, it was clear that Indiana was going to be cautious in bringing her back to action. And this has been proven by Clark not only not playing since that game, but the franchise still has not provided a clear update on when fans can expect No. 22 to return to the court. Indiana Fever Insider Speaks On Caitlin Clark Injury Few people outside of the Fever's organization would have a better idea about the status of Clark's recovery than IndyStar Fever beat reporter Chloe Peterson. And Peterson got honest about what she has seen from Clark of late during an August 7 episode of IndyStar's Indiana Fever Insider Live podcast. "The most I know is what's already been reported, in the sense of [Clark] has been running up and down full speed. As far as I know, she hasn't come back to practice yet," Peterson said of Clark. "The last time I saw them in a practice capacity was on Tuesday. "Caitlin was there for the first couple minutes when everybody was just warming up, and then after they officially started shootaround, she left with a trainer to do some individual rehab, recovery work," Peterson continued. "She's participating in the half-court contests before each game, it seems like. But it doesn't look like she's doing drills with the team as of yet." ESPN's Holly Rowe Offers Clark Injury Update Peterson isn't the only insider who has spoken about Clark's injury of late, as ESPN reporter Holly Rowe said, "Stephanie White did give us a small update on Caitlin. That she has started some full-court running, some full-speed running, the last four or five days. Still not doing full basketball activities, but there has been some progress made," during the Fever's August 5 game. It's clear that Clark is making positive progress from her groin injury. However, given the recurring nature of these soft tissue injuries for No. 22 this season, combined with the Fever having played well when she has been sidelined to this point, it makes it likely that Indiana is going to continue to use caution in bringing Clark back on the court.
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