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‘Don’t talk about my mom’: Canelo shows incredible reflexes as he trades blows with Plant at explosive press conference (VIDEO)

Hands are already flying long before Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Caleb Plant step into the ring for their super middleweight world title unifier, as the pair clashed in combustible scenes at a Los Angeles press conference.

Facing off for a staredown at the Beverly Hilton hotel, Mexican icon Canelo snapped after an X-rated exchange of words with Plant, shoving the American forcefully with two hands. 

Plant came back swinging with a left hand, which Canelo appeared to slip artfully before countering with a shot of his own.

The pair were eventually separated by their teams and security, although Plant was left with a cut below his right eye which he later said had come from his sunglasses being jammed into his face.

“You can say whatever you want to me, but not about my mother,” Alvarez said afterwards, adding the same message in a tweet which showed footage of the exchange.

Plant was seen dabbing at blood from his cheek and was patched up with a band aid. 

The 29-year-old American – who owns the IBF super middleweight title – continued to launch repeated barbs at Canelo when the pair sat down for a feisty press conference, repeatedly accusing the Mexican and trainer Eddy Reynoso of being “cheaters.”

Canelo, 31, was suspended for six months in 2018 after banned substance clenbuterol was detected in a drug test, although the Mexican star insisted it had come from tainted meat.  

“Taking illegal substances doesn’t happen because you’re confident, it happens because you’re afraid,” Plant said.

“That just gives me more confidence. I’ve dedicated a lot to this sport, and it will be my life’s work coming together in that one moment when I beat him. It would etch my name in the history books, and that’s what I’m here to do.”

The American also took to social media to dispute claims that he had come off second best in the scuffle, sharing an image which showed he had clipped Canelo slightly with his left hand. 

He also denied that he had insulted Canelo’s mother, pointing to the death of his own mother in 2019 as the result of an officer-involved shooting in Cheatham County, Tennessee. 

“You’ll never hear me talk about someone’s mother, kids or wife. When men go off to war they leave the women and children at home,” Plant wrote. 

“My mother was shot and killed by the police two years ago. Why would I ever bring anyone’s mother up and even if I didn’t give a f*ck, why would I open that door up just for someone to 1 up me and tell me ‘didn’t your mom get shot and killed by the police dummy?’” 

Most observers, though, were impressed with Canelo’s typically swift reflexes as he slipped Plant’s effort to catch him with his left hand.  

Canelo and Plant are preparing to meet in their title unification bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on November 6.

WBC, WBA and WBO super middleweight king Canelo is widely considered as the world’s pound-for-pound number one. His only career loss in 59 fights remains a majority decision defeat to Floyd Mayweather in 2013. 

Plant is undefeated in 21 fights, winning 12 by knockout.  

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‘I can’t stop laughing at this’: Conor McGregor mocked for ‘worst ceremonial pitch ever’ as UFC star almost hits fans (VIDEO)

Conor McGregor should probably stick to throwing punches rather than baseballs, at least judging by the Irishman’s woeful effort on Tuesday night at the Chicago Cubs.

Stepping up to the do the honors for the ceremonial first pitch before the Cubs hosted the Minnesota Twins at Wrigley Field, McGregor sent his throw wildly wide of catcher Patrick Wisdom.

The former two-weight UFC champ put on a brave face but was already being ridiculed online for his “embarrassing” effort, which almost took out fans seated in the front row. 

Numerous observers dragged up the iconic ‘juuuust a bit outside’ line from fictional broadcaster Harry Doyle in classic baseball comedy ‘Major League’.

Others compared and contrasted McGregor’s lame effort with that of rapper 50 Cent at a New York Mets game in 2014.

To be fair, McGregor has past form at flopping in sports outside the cage, having been widely trolled for his attempts at tossing a football before a Dallas Cowboys game in 2018.

The Irishman was typically defiant after his pitch on Tuesday night, boasting: “The most devastating first pitch ever seen! The venom is there, the power is there.”

Some attempted to defend McGregor by claiming he had been hindered by his tailor-made suit.  

“Maybe if his suit wasn’t skin tight…,” joked one fan.

“That’s the first time that dude’s ever thrown a baseball in his life,” scoffed another, while one person tweeted: “He throws like he fights. Terrible.”

McGregor’s UFC rival Justin Gaethje also stuck the boot in.

“I cannot stop laughing at this,” tweeted the lightweight star. 

“Every MMA fighter that has represented us doing this has looked terrible but this takes the cake.”

McGregor, 33, is currently recovering from the horrific leg-break he suffered in his defeat to Dustin Poirier in July.

That was the second loss in a row for the Notorious against his American rival, leaving McGregor with just one victory in his last four trips to the Octagon.

He has vowed to return next year to meet Poirier in a fourth bout, with the American 2-1 up in their trilogy thus far.   

The Cubs, meanwhile, went down to a 9-5 defeat to the Twins as they endured a fifth defeat in their last six games. 

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Machine Gun Kelly (pictured with girlfriend Megan Fox) clashed with Conor McGregor at the MTV awards. © Reuters / Getty Images
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Russian footballer hit with 48-GAME BAN for headbutting rival after telling referee ‘I’ll show you what’s punishable’ – reports

A Russian amateur footballer in Austria has been slapped with a 48-match ban for deliberately headbutting a rival after taking exception to being shown a second yellow card by the referee, according to reports.

The shocking scenes are said to have taken place in the Austrian ninth-tier match between FC Viktoria 62 Bregenz and Gofis Satteins 1b earlier in September, according to Kronen Zeitung. 

After being shown a second yellow card in the 87th minute of his team’s 3-1 defeat for an implied headbutt against an opponent, enraged Viktoria player Rahid Arsanukaev is said to have responded to the referee, “I’ll show you what’s punishable”, before landing his head on his rival’s nose and breaking it.

The violent incident has reportedly been brought to the attention of the police, while Arsanukaev has been released by his club, even though his image remains on their website.

“Viktoria stands for integration, but of course we cannot tolerate such incidents,” club official Christian Gojo was quoted as saying.

Voralberg Football Association managing director Horst Elsner said they had informed other leagues to ensure they were aware of the hefty ban, so that Arsanukaev could not find a way to play until he had served his time.    

“We have informed the surrounding associations about the suspension of Arsanukaev and want to prevent that he as a newly registered player can bypass the suspension and kick again somewhere,” Elsner said.

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Shot shy: Premier League bosses ‘struggling to get stars to feature in Covid vaccine publicity campaign’

Premier League stars are refusing to participate in a publicity campaign encouraging fellow players to get their Covid vaccine, according to a report.

The Daily Mail claims to have discovered that vaccination rates among Premier League players have stalled in recent weeks, with numerous clubs holding talks about releasing videos featuring their biggest names stating the importance of being jabbed. 

Yet the project has apparently failed to take off due to “a lack of volunteers.”

Back in July, England manager Gareth Southgate released a video for the NHS which urged young people to get their vaccines, and claimed that he received more abuse for it than England’s Euro 2020 penalty shootout loss to Italy in the final at Wembley.

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England boss Gareth Southgate took part in a Covid vaccine campaign video © Twitter / apexworldnews © Akhtar Soomro / Reuters
England manager Southgate reveals he suffered more abuse for Covid vaccination campaign video than during run to Euro 2020 final

“Of all the things I received abuse for over the summer – of which there’s been several – that’s probably the one I’ve received the most abuse over,” Southgate had said.

“I’m probably going to keep out of that argument for the time being.

“When you want to try to make a difference and take the right sort of stance on taking the knee and other things, then you know you are not going to please everybody and there are extreme views on lots of those subjects as well.

“I’m comfortable with that but I’m not going to town on things like the vaccine. I’m not the one who has to open some of that mail and some of those emails, because my poor secretary has dealt with quite a lot of that, so that is the reality,” he finished.

In his clip, Southgate said: “If you haven’t had your vaccine yet go and get it done, and you guys will get your freedom back.”

But thus far there has been no similar message from the English top flight’s stars with the backlash the Three Lions’ tactician received a possible motive for reluctance.

In comparison to elite competitions in the US such as the NFL, NBA and NHL, the Premier League refuses to disclose how many of its players have been vaccinated.

In the lower tier EFL leagues, however, the figure is put at around 70% across staff and players.

Both the Premier League and the EFL have arranged for briefings to be held for managers and captains with England’s deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, where he attempted to debunk numerous vaccine myths.

Despite these efforts, they are still struggling to find players that are prepared to front a publicity campaign.

This week, the EFL plans to step up vaccination promotion by sending information to players in a Q&A format as they currently work with lower league clubs with small medical teams to establish pop-up vaccination centers around training grounds and stadiums.

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Premier League stars such as those at Manchester United are being persuaded to get vaccinated by officials such as Jonathan Van-Tam. © ASSOCIATED PRESS
They might be pampered millionaires, but Premier League stars are being cajoled into getting the Covid jab just like everyone else
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60-year-old Suriname vice-president names himself captain for crunch cup clash before ‘dishing out money in changing room’ (VIDEO)

Suriname’s 60-year-old vice president featured for the team he owns in a CONCACAF league fixture on Tuesday night, naming himself as captain and starring alongside one of his reported 50 kids at the stadium named in his honor.

Ronnie Brunswijk owns Inter Moengotapoe and took matters into his own hands for their last-16 clash against Olimpia.

Starring up front with his son Damian for most of the match, his overbearing influence still amounted to nothing despite completing 14 out of 17 passes in his 54 minutes on the pitch.

Online, video clips have emerged of Brunswijk not being the most mobile of players while barking instructions at his colleagues and shouting at one for not laying off a pass to him.

Come full time, Inter Moengotapoe had been thrashed 6-0 and have a mountain to climb in the second leg in Honduras next week if they wish to advance in the regional equivalent of the Europa League.

With his lengthy cameo, Brunswijk became the oldest ever player to make an appearance in an international club competition.

After the match, unverified footage appeared on social media purportedly showing Brunswijk dishing out money in the opposition changing room, in the latest chapter in the colorful story of his life.

In the late 80s and early 90s, he was a rebel leader of the Jungle Commando in Suriname’s Interior War only ended by a peace treaty being signed in 1992 after hundreds of deaths. 

In 1999, the Netherlands prosecuted him in absentia for drug trafficking with an Interpol warrant for his arrest still active when he became the vice-president of his former Dutch colony in July last year.

Brunswijk has been described as a popular Robin Hood-type figure in Suriname with an alleged 50 kids, who has distributed money gained through his crimes including bank robbing to the poor, and has sometimes thrown cash from his helicopter – which perhaps helps to explain the glee the Olimpia players seem to exhibit in the purported clips of him dishing out notes.

In 2002, he constructed the 3,000-capacity Ronnie Brunswijkstadion stadium, but his influence in football has long attracted controversy.

Three years later, he received a suspension for allegedly threatening some players with a handgun in the middle of a match, though the ban was later withdrawn due to a lack of evidence.

Lastly in 2012, though, he was finally reprimanded and suspended for a year when verbally abusing a referee.

It remains to be seen whether Brunswijk runs out for Inter Moengotapoe in the second leg and spearheads their comeback in Honduras, with reports that he cannot leave the country without the risk of facing legal trouble.

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Two dogs and a horse have invaded a football match in Ukraine © Twitter / PVP.Poltava via Buckarobanza
Deaf Olympics football match in Ukraine stopped as dogs invade the pitch – then a horse heads for a dugout minutes later (VIDEO)