Undefeated and king.
Ilia Topuria is the latest fighter to be crowned UFC champion. The new featherweight king is not only 15-0 but has not looked in danger in any of his Octagon appearances.
The 27-year-old made his UFC debut in 2020 and after winning six fights in a row was finally granted a title shot against one of the greatest to ever fight inside the Octagon – Alexander Volkanovski.
Volkanovski was not one of the UFC champions with the most title defenses at featherweight, having defended the belt five times. However, he was noted to be one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on the roster and Ilia Topuria was able to finish him in the second round with a vicious knockout. The four-punch combination was a thing of absolute beauty.
There were many fans and critics that doubted Topuria coming into the UFC 298 contest, but he never doubted himself. The reason for doubt was justified by the fact that he had not faced a former title holder or even a top contender before earning the title shot.
Topuria never let that faze him, in fact, it seemed as though he was his own biggest fan. The critics were silenced after the UFC 298 main event.
“I feel so happy Joe [Rogan], I feel so happy right now,” Topuria said in his post fight speech inside the Octagon. “They gonna tell you you can’t do it. They gonna knock you down and doubt you, but guess what? The only person you need to achieve anything in this life is yourself. Just trust yourself, work tirelessly, have faith, and everything is possible.
I just know my skills. I worked so hard for this. I was knowing always that one day I would become a UFC champion. Guys, it doesn’t matter where you come from if you know where you’re going.
After Joe Rogan congratulated Topuria he had one last thing to say to the UFC brass.
“Dana [White], Hunter [Campbell], it’s showtime, it’s time to take the UFC to Spain. And Conor McGregor, if you still have some balls, I will be waiting for you in Spain.”
An odd callout for Topuria, as McGregor is likely not his next opponent. However, it was very interesting as the leadup to UFC 298 was a carbon copy of McGregor leading up to his championship bout with Jose Aldo in 2015.
Volkanovski believes he should be granted an immediate rematch and thinks the Spain thought makes sense.
“Obviously he has some power in his hands. Well done to him, he caught me. I was gonna start working everything, and he got me, so credit to him. He’s a hard hitter, we knew that going in. He wasn’t meant to land like that, but he did.
“He keeps mentioning Spain, maybe we do a rematch there.”
Topuria isn’t the first to hold a UFC championship as an undefeated fighter, he joins the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov, Israel Adesanya, Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez, Lyoto Machida, Chris Weidman, Ronda Rousey and Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
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Quarterback Aaron Rodgers spent the bulk of the spring as an unsigned free agent and, thus, only began officially practicing with Pittsburgh Steelers teammates during the team's three-day mandatory minicamp in June. During a Monday appearance on Pittsburgh radio station 102.5 WDVE, Steelers reporter Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette addressed how Rodgers looked during his first few training camp practices with the club. "His release is just astonishing to watch," Dulac said about Rodgers, as shared by Ross McCorkle of Steelers Depot. "Everybody knows about it, and when you see it in person, you see it every day in practice, you just marvel at it. To me, he's the greatest thrower of the football I have ever seen, even at 41 (years old). That flick of that wrist and that ball comes out, it's moving and it is something to see." Rodgers was with the New York Jets when he suffered a torn Achilles four offensive snaps into the 2023 regular-season opener. He was then slowed by a nagging hip issue, injuries to both his knees, a low ankle sprain and a serious hamstring problem as the 2024 Jets went 5-12. According to Pro Football Reference, Rodgers finished last season ranked 28th in the NFL among qualified players with a 48.0 adjusted QBR and 26th with a 43.9 percent passing success rate. That said, he was also eighth with 3,897 passing yards and tied for seventh with 28 passing touchdowns. Rodgers and Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson endured some struggles during training camp sessions last summer before the two allegedly "never saw eye-to-eye" during the season. It sounds like Pittsburgh fans should be encouraged by how Rodgers performed in recent practices. "That guy can get rid of the ball as quick as anybody," Dulac added. "He made three throws in seven-on-seven (drills) the other day that the cumulative total I bet couldn't have exceeded 2.1 seconds. And two of those were for touchdowns." Rodgers wants to finish his career "the right way" and help the Steelers notch at least their first playoff win since January 2017. As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Pittsburgh at -150 betting odds to miss the playoffs for the upcoming season.
The New York Yankees have been busy making moves as the trade deadline looms, and it doesn’t look like they’re slowing down anytime soon. Fresh off the addition of Ryan McMahon to bolster their lineup, the Yankees are shaking things up once again. This time, it’s not about who they’ve brought in, but rather who they’ve decided to part ways with, and it involves a familiar name who spent just a single season in pinstripes. Jack Curry reported on the trade on X saying, “The Yankees have traded Carlos Carrasco to the Braves for a PTBNL [player to be named later] or cash.” Given that the trade took place a few days before the deadline and just hours before a series opener at home against the division rival Tampa Bay Rays, fans had a lot to say. One fan said, "HAL WASNT LYING! THEYRE EXTREMELY ACTIVE." Another fan added, "CASH CONSIDERATIONS IS ON FIRE THIS TRADE DEADLINE!!!!" "CASHMAN YOU BEAST," said a fan. Another fan commented, "Gonna be the new Jessie Chavez" "Weird trade," said a fan not convinced with the move. Another fan said, "what does this look like? a NURSING HOME?! bffr." The Yankees picked up Carrasco on a minor-league deal back in February, and thanks to early injuries to Gerrit Cole and Luis Gil, he found himself in the Opening Day rotation. Unfortunately, things didn’t go smoothly. Carrasco struggled in his eight appearances (six starts) with New York, posting a 5.91 ERA and recording 25 strikeouts over 32 innings. He was designated for assignment on May 6 and sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre two days later. He got a brief recall on June 1 but was quickly designated again on June 3, staying in the organization since then. In Triple-A, though, he turned things around, putting up a solid 3.27 ERA in 11 appearances (10 starts) over 52 1/3 innings. While the Yankees are still in the hunt for veteran pitching, Carrasco wasn’t viewed as a big-league option for them. Instead, he now heads to Atlanta, where he’ll have a real shot at earning a rotation spot. Across his MLB career with the Cleveland Guardians, New York Mets and Yankees, Carrasco has a 4.18 ERA in 332 games (283 starts).
The 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame class had its day in Cooperstown on Sunday. This year's class included Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner, who were elected by the eligible voters from the Baseball Writer's Association of America, and Dave Parker and Dick Allen, who were elected by the Classic Baseball Era Committee. Here are some of the top highlights from Sunday's induction speeches. Dave Parker's son reads poem written by Hall of Fame father Parker's induction into the Hall of Fame was long overdue, and he sadly did not have the opportunity to enjoy the moment of seeing his name in the Hall of Fame as he died June 28. That left his speech in the hands of his son, Dave Parker II, who read a poem written by his dad. Parker spent the majority of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates where he was an MVP winner, two-time batting champion and World Series champion with the 1979 "We Are Family" team. Dick Allen's wife remembers his kindness Allen was the other veterans committee inductee, and his widow, Willa Allen, spent the majority of her speech remember the kindness of Allen off the field as much as his ability on the field. Allen is going into the Hall of Fame as a Phillie but won the 1972 American League MVP with the Chicago White Sox. He led the league in OPS four times and was the 1964 National League Rookie of the Year. A reminder that Billy Wagner wasn't naturally left-handed Being left-handed is a huge advantage (and money-maker) for pitchers, and Wagner was one of the most dominant left-handed relief pitchers to ever step onto a mound in the big leagues. But he wasn't always left-handed. Wagner was a natural-born right-handed person but taught himself how to throw left-handed after fracturing his right arm twice as a kid. It led to quite a career. Wagner made a name for himself with the Houston Astros but also spent years with the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox. CC Sabathia takes playful dig at Ichiro Sabathia accomplished a ton in his 19-year big league career. He won 251 games, won the 2007 American League Cy Young Award, was the 2009 ALCS MVP and a World Series champion. He still has apparently not gotten over the one individual award he did not win — the 2001 American League Rookie of the Year Award, which went to fellow 2025 inductee Ichiro. Sabathia made sure to make a playful dig at that. Sabathia was the only American League rookie outside of Ichiro — who also won the American League MVP that year — to get a first-place vote. He received one. The others all went to Ichiro. Ichiro stole the show Ichiro stole 509 bases in his Hall of Fame career, and on Sunday, he added one more steal to his list of accomplishments by absolutely stealing the show at Cooperstown. He delivered two of the best lines of the day, first by calling out the one lone writer who did not vote for him, keeping him from being just the second unanimous Hall of Fame inductee ever (after Mariano Rivera). His best line of the day, however, might have been when he referenced his brief time as a member of the Miami Marlins toward the end of his career. Ichiro played 14 of his 19 seasons with the Seattle Mariners while also spending time with the Marlins and Yankees.
Kirk Cousins might be relegated to the job of backup quarterback, but he is showing veteran leadership to his Atlanta Falcons teammates. Following Sunday's practice, Cousins pulled aside rookie defensive end James Pearce to encourage the first-round pick after his fourth practice in the league at Flowery Branch, Georgia. "QB Kirk Cousins pulled aside Pearce after practice to compliment him on a pass batted down," wrote Marc Raimondi of ESPN. Cousins reportedly had a solid day of practice on Sunday, going 7-of-12 passing against the first-team unit. If Cousins wants out of Atlanta, he's not showing it at practice. The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback is competing on the field and being a good teammate around the facility. Cousins' actions on the field backed up what Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot praised Cousins for before the team's practice on Sunday. “Outside, it's a lot more of a deal than it is in the building,” Fontenot said to the media about the idea of friction between the Falcons and Cousins, per video from D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “He shows up, he does his job, just like anybody ... We've gotta build the best 70-man roster so we can go win games. "That's what we're focused on, and Kirk, just like all the other players, is focused on coming in here and doing their job. That's what he's been doing." Fontenot didn't dismiss the idea that Atlanta would trade Cousins before the season. He said the Falcons will do whatever it takes to make the team better, but stressed that Cousins has been a professional throughout the process of being replaced by Michael Penix Jr., a first-round pick from the 2024 draft. “In terms of making moves, whether it's trades or acquiring players, we're always looking at those factors," Fontenot said. "We're gonna do whatever we can do to make this team the best it can possibly be. But he's been a great professional, and he's handled himself well.” Cousins is coming to work in a manner that will make another owner want to take a chance on the veteran quarterback. That could be one of his best-selling points before he plays in his 13th season in the league.