Day: December 17, 2021

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Female UFC fighter explains sickening move on rival

UFC scrapper Priscila Cachoeira has defended herself over a repeated eye gouge on her opponent that was described as “so dirty” by broadcaster Joe Rogan in his live analysis of the Brazilian’s defeat.

On a weekend to forget at UFC 269 in Las Vegas, ‘Pedrita’ missed weight badly ahead of her fight with Gillian Robertson.

The 31-year-old flyweight then clearly appeared to poke her finger in Robertson’s eye at close range in a fruitless and unedifying attempt to stop ‘The Savage’ from submitting her.

Fans were horrified by the footage from the first-round stoppage. “She definitely looked like she was trying to stick her finger in her eye,” Rogan told viewers, while former champion Daniel Cormier pointed out that Cachoeira had gone at Robertson’s eye more than once.

“100 percent, that’s so dirty. Cheating, missing weight… scratching the eye. That is so nasty.”

Cachoeira has now insisted that the gruesome move was a last-ditch attempt to stay in the fight with no malice involved.

“It wasn’t my intention to [gouge] her eye when she was on my back,” the disgraced brawler told MMA Fighting of her first defeat in more than two years.

“I didn’t know it was going in the direction of her eye. My intention was to go for her neck and push it.

“That was my intention but I was desperate, almost snoring, and it’s a matter of survival, right?

“I want to get it off. But it wasn’t my intention to hit her eyes. Never. I’m a professional and I’ve already apologized to her in person and via Instagram, and she was super cool.

“Critics will come, right? There’s no other way. I’ll wait for the dust to settle and work to come back stronger.”

Fans were predictably unconvinced. “I’ll believe that when my sh*t turns purple and smells like rainbow sherbet,” scorned one.

“Even if somehow the first one was unintentional, she felt the eyeball and did it again. Ludicrous, I tell ya,” said another.

Cachoeira, who was was fined 30 percent of her purse for her weight miss, said she had fallen ill days before arriving in Las Vegas but had taken the fight despite having flu and a faver.

“I’ll fix my mistakes,” she added to the outlet. “I apologize once again for what happened. It won’t happen again.

“It was a matter of survival, right? But I didn’t know I was gouging her eyes. She was on my back – how would I know? If I had to suffer any punishment it would come at that moment.”

A smiling Robertson said after the fight that she had hoped the referee, who appeared to be intently inspecting the situation, would stop the contest.

“I don’t even think he gave her a warning because there was two that were pretty clear that I felt [involved a] thumb straight in my eye,” she said.

“But I was just trying to squeeze, squeeze. Before the first one, I actually felt her body go limp a little bit, so I thought she was out and then I felt the thumb go straight in my eye. I was like, ‘Oh, she’s not out. OK.”

The fighter who set a submissions record on the night said she had “let it slide” over her rival’s saga on the scales.

“Sometimes I guess you don’t really know what’s going through her head,” she added.

“I don’t know. She was probably in a moment of desperation, didn’t really have a defense, so her defense was her eye gouge.

“I don’t necessarily have any hard feelings towards her for that or professionally.

“Like I said, it’s not great to miss weight, but other than that, it is what it is. We fought it out and we can hug at the end of the day.”

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‘Only one answer’ on booster vaccines, insists Liverpool boss Klopp (VIDEO)

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed how his squad has reacted to being offered booster jabs, adding that there are “no two possible answers” for people who are offered the chance to take another vaccine dose.

The UK is currently battling the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, with a record 78,610 new cases recorded on Wednesday. 

In a bid to stem a ‘tidal wave’ of the disease, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced plans to give a million booster shots to the public on top of the two Covid vaccine jabs they have already been offered.

With plan B already affecting football – fans must now show ‘vaccine passports’ to attend matches – Liverpool coach Klopp was probed for his thoughts on boosters and also revealed that potential new signings will not be discarded based on whether they have had their jabs or not, offering a less emphatic view than Reds club legend Steven Gerrard, who now manages Aston Villa.

Gerrard said his staff would “look at everything” when they search for new players during the January transfer window, adding that he was “sure” the issue of whether players being vaccinated will arise.

Ahead of Liverpool’s match against Newcastle, though, Klopp admitted on the same topic: “I didn’t think about it, to be honest. I don’t know.”

“Who knows where we will be, in which situation the world will be, when we start signing players again,”  he added. “But it’s not important at the moment.

“The whole thing, the whole vaccination thing, is for me a massive question of solidarity, loyalty and togetherness.

“We all have the chance to help not only ourselves but other people as well by getting vaccinated.”

Some people have been critical and suspicious of the need for a booster. Johnson has ambitiously said he wants everyone to receive another jab by the end of 2021, and the UK National Health Service says a booster dose “helps improve the protection you have from your first 2 doses of the vaccine.”

“It helps give you longer-term protection against getting seriously ill from Covid-19,” it added.

Klopp is unequivocal on the debate. “There are no two possible answers; there is only one answer, so you do it. That’s how I understand it,” he said.

“It’s not only the squad, everyone who is working here at the AXA Training Centre is at least double-vaccinated and will get a booster as soon as possible for him or her.”

This is not the first time that Klopp has been so outspoken on this subject. In October, when he claimed 99 percent of his title-challenging squad were vaccinated, he compared those that hadn’t followed suit to drink-driving.

“We all probably were in a situation where we had a beer or two and thought we still could drive but, [because of] the law, we are not allowed to drive anywhere, so we don’t drive,” the German said.

“But this law is not there for protecting me when I drink two beers and want to drive: it’s for protecting all the other people because I’m drunk or p*ssed and we accept that as a law.”

Three recent Premier League games have been called off due to the spread of Omicron, with a season high of 42 positive tests announced last week.

With five fixtures in 12 days in the packed Christmas and New Year calendar, losing players would be a nightmare for Liverpool and Klopp.

Deep down, though, the 54-year-old might welcome some postponements given his repeated gripes about the heavy scheduling in the past.

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‘Craziest shot ever’: NBA hero stuns world with miraculous last-second 61ft winner (VIDEO)

A colossally sharp-shooting basketball star has been hailed for a “ridiculous” effort that decided a game with little more than a second to go – and some have called the extraordinarily dramatic finish to the contest “impossible”.

With 1.4 seconds left in a razor-tight showdown between hosts Oklahoma City Thunder and the New Orleans Pelicans, guard Devonte Graham collected possession in a seemingly benign area of the Paycom Center court.

The Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had just scored to level the game at 110 apiece, leaving any sensible fan around the arena readying themselves for overtime as the end of a thrilling tussle neared.

That was when Graham gloriously intervened. Perhaps taking inspiration from Gilgeous-Alexander’s successful 30ft shot seconds earlier, the 26-year-old went considerably better with an outlandish effort from way out to give the Pelicans victory in sensational style.

“Incredible,” roared one commentator as Graham was mobbed by his teammates before racing off court despite the best attempts of astonished fans to congratulate him on his epic last-gasp act. “Get out of here before they review it.”

His co-commentator thundered: “It’s good, it’s good. They can review it all they want to: this is good.”

At 61 feet out, the staggering buzzer-beater is said to be the longest ever final shot in an NBA game in 25 years.

“The most impossible finish to an NBA game you will ever see,” gushed NBA host Rob Perez, spelling out his thoughts entirely in capitals.

“Imagine paying all that money to [watch] your home team lose to a shot like that,” added another. “RIP.”

One viewer called the conclusion “literally the craziest basketball sequence I’ve ever seen,” although they qualified that view by saying they “just didn’t feel the emotion” – an understandable state of affairs given that the shot silenced the home crowd and was followed by the players rushing off.

Graham modestly said he was “just playing around” and reportedly pledged to hand the game ball to his mother or grandmother.

“When I was at [college in] Kansas, I used to shoot half-court shots every game, every practice – trick shots and stuff like that,” the instant hero recalled.

“You never know, you might get into that situation one day, just like today. And it ends up paying out for you.”

ESPN Stats and Info said that the game was the first in 25 season to contain more than one shot from at least 30 feet away to tie or decide the game within the final five seconds of action.

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Chelsea chief Granovskaia talks ‘tough decisions’ (VIDEO)

Roman Abramovich’s chief negotiator at Chelsea, Marina Granovskaia, has spoken of a “difficult year” after being named the Best Club Director in European football.

The Russian-Canadian was handed the prestigious gong at the Golden Boy awards in Turin, where Barcelona midfielder Pedri won the top prize and Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski was named Golden Player.

Granovskaia was recognized after Chelsea won their second Champions League title by beating Manchester City in Porto in May. The famously savvy businesswoman has been credited with overseeing the signings of stars such as $95 million Germany midfielder Kai Havertz, who scored the only goal in the final, as well as having a hand in the astute appointment of manager Thomas Tuchel the previous January following the sacking of club legend Frank Lampard.

On the podium collecting her trophy, though, she dedicated the win to everyone at Stamford Bridge in tough times amid the pandemic.

“It was a season we will not forget in a hurry,” Granovskaia said of a campaign in which Chelsea played behind closed doors for months as a result of the pandemic, even opening the doors of their Stamford Bridge home to UK National Health Service staff under the guidance of billionaire Russian chairman Abramovich.

“It was a difficult year with some tough decisions we had to make, but we won the Champions League for the second time, then the Super Cup – and the Women’s team were very successful too, also getting to the Champions League final, winning the Super League and the FA Cup. We are very pleased with how the year went.”

Granovskaia alluded to her strong partnership with Abramovich and the significant changes made to Chelsea’s squad and coaching staff.

“It is a team sport and, in the boardroom, it is just as much of a team sport as on the pitch,” she explained.

“None of this success would be possible without the right players, the right coaches, but also the right support staff, both at the stadium and at the training ground, and the environment they create for success.

“All of this was achieved under difficult circumstances for both the club and our supporters during the pandemic. A great season but we are, of course, already looking towards the next challenges.”

After Chelsea beat Arsenal 3-0 at Wembley to win the Women’s FA Cup earlier this month, boss Emma Hayes revealed the keen interest Granovskaia and her boss show in the team.

“She said it was the best she has ever seen us play,” Hayes said after the victory at Wembley Stadium.

“She can see the team improving and Roman Abramovich has sent his congratulations. I know he is an avid fan and I know he really enjoyed the performance.”

Abramovich, who made a long-awaited return to the UK last month, has hosted the women’s team on a trip they made to Israel, where he has dual nationality.

Granovskaia is said to have told awards organizers Tuttosport that there “isn’t a secret to Chelsea’s successes”. 

“Or at least, I don’t know it,” she admitted. “Otherwise, it would be easier to win year by year.

“But I know that there is daily teamwork and communication behind every success. Chelsea are a great team on and off the pitch.”

Agent Federico Pastorello, who guided Romelu Lukaku’s $129.5 million move from Inter Milan to Chelsea at the end of last season, told the outlet that Granovskaia “deserves the best”.

“She is very serious – she never bluffs,” he added, predicting that the feared Belgium striker will one day return to Italian top flight Serie A.

German website Transfermarkt reported that Granovskaia has played a key role in player sales worth $1.13 billion since 2011, giving Chelsea a transfer income that is only slightly behind established selling clubs Atletico Madrid and Benfica.

Currently third in the Premier League table and five points behind leaders Manchester City, Chelsea are fighting for their first English top flight win in four years.

Tuchel’s side have advanced to the knockout phase in their Champions League title defense, which will continue with a Round of 16 tie against French club Lille in February.

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Sickened wife of ‘robbed’ Hamilton’s boss rages at F1 – and ex-champ could quit sport

The wife of Lewis Hamilton’s boss, Toto Wolff, has accused F1 chiefs of lacking integrity and robbing the Brit of the World Championship – issuing a rant hours before the Mercedes chief hinted Hamilton could leave the sport.

Former Formula One participant Susie Wolff, who is the CEO of the Venturi Formula E team, has become one of the first figures closely associated with Mercedes to speak up about the dramatic final Grand Prix of the season in Abu Dhabi.

FIA race director Michael Masi has been roundly criticized for his decisions around the use of the Safety Car, with many questioning F1 authorities while arguing that a baffling interpretation of the rules allowed Max Verstappen to overtake Lewis Hamilton on the final lap to win his first crown.

Hours before Wolff seemed devastated at a press conference and said he could not give any assurances Hamilton will return to Formula One next season, his wife, who made history as the first woman to participate in an F1 weekend at the British Grand Prix in 2014 under the Williams banner, addressed the scandal.

“Going into this final weekend, I believed both teams and drivers deserved to win,” she said, accompanying her words with a photo of herself embracing Hamilton.

“It was going to be a spectacle, a historic race that we all hoped would end without controversy. That wasn’t to be.

“What happened is still hard to comprehend and leaves me with a sick feeling… the way in which Lewis was robbed has left me in utter disbelief.

“The decision of one person within the governing body who applied a rule in a way which has never been done before in F1 single-handedly decided the F1 drivers’ world championship.

“Rules are rules, they can’t be changed on a whim or by one individual at the end of the race.”

Wolff said that her gripe was not to do with being a sore loser or aimed at Verstappen or Red Bull, who she called “deserving winners”, adding that “we always knew it was a strong possibility we may not win”.

She then spoke of seven-time champion Hamilton, praising her compatriot for showing “incredible integrity and dignity in the face of injustice”.

“You are the greatest there has ever been,” she said of the man who was knighted in England on Wednesday.

“The outcome of the last laps on Sunday? Those who know, they know – even those who can’t quite bring themselves to admit it.”

When asked about Hamilton’s future, Toto Wolff said: “I think as a racer, his heart will say ‘I need to continue’. But we have to overcome the pain.”

Wolff also revealed that he nor his star driver will not be attending the FIA Awards Ceremony on Thursday night.

Wolff’s wife hoped that by March 2022 “there is a governing body with sporting integrity and fairness at its core so I can fall back in love with F1”.

She earned admiration from some fans who hailed her bravery in calling the fiasco as she saw it.

“Like she said, don’t be mad at the drivers or teams,” remarked one. “They were just following orders. Blame the FIA entirely and maybe Mercedes for not taking the risk and boxing Lewis.”

“Max was the more deserving champion over the whole year,” argued another. “But this will always be marked down as a fixed race. It’s so unfair on both drivers.”

“We need more bravery like Susie’s, to have the guts to say it as the whole world says it,” came another appraisal.

“I just can’t believe how quiet Mercedes have been since the weekend. They haven’t even celebrated their eighth manufacturer’s championship.”

Those on the other side of the argument, however, called it “tactical PR” in a bid to get Masi fired by the FIA, amid Verstappen saying he “doesn’t care” if an investigation sees him stripped of the title.

“I’m fine; I don’t even think about it too much, because I do feel like the world champion, and it doesn’t matter what they try to do,” Verstappen said on Wednesday.

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The deployment of the safety car caused controversy at the Saudi Arabia F1 Grand Prix © Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters
F1 chief accused of breaking his own rules as fuming fans make his words haunt him

“We won it on track, we won it when there was a green light and we passed them on track, and they will never be able to take that away from me anyway.

“About the possible appeal – I’m not busy with that. As a team, of course, it might be disturbing, but for us we have been really enjoying the last few days.”

Regarding his relationship with Toto Wolff, Verstappen said: “I think I can be a forgiving person but at the moment it’s still all so new… that it’s better not to talk about it too much.

“But I saw Toto in Monaco before Saudi, I had a dinner and he was sitting on the table next to me and we had a chat.

“He, of course, goes flat out for his team and I know mine also does everything they can.

“But besides that, I do think you should be accepting a loss – it doesn’t matter how much it hurts. I do think there that there’s a bit of a difference between the teams.”