FRANCIS NGANNOU | TMK #5 - October 29th

Today, on Polysport:

A Springbok eats a Kiwi, a King gets knocked on his ass, and a Ferrari driver is confused.

News Roundup:

• South Africa Wins Rugby World Cup

• Fury Beats Ngannou By Split Decision

• Jude Bellingham Wins El Clasico for Madrid

• Ferrari Locks Out the Front Row For the Mexican GP, Ricciardo 4th

• Diamondbacks Dominate To Take Game 2 Of World Series

Today’s Action:

• The Mexican Grand Prix - Race Day

• Manchester United - Manchester City

• NFL Week 8

Quick Bites:

• Quote of the Day

• Can’t Miss Moment

• Stat of the Day

• Video of the Day

🏉 South Africa Wins Rugby World Cup

South Africa are back-to-back World Champions after defeating the All Blacks 12-11. In what was arguably the messiest game of this World Cup, the South Africans got the job done against an undisciplined All Blacks team, who gave up too many penalties and couldn’t capitalize when it mattered.

Cane Smith, the All-Blacks captain, was given a red card in the 29’ minute after what was deemed a dangerous tackle. Was it deserved? Perhaps. But it was undoubtedly harsh for unintentional contact to the head in a World Cup final, and a decision that came from the off-site officiating bunker 10 minutes after the foul had occurred.

Nevertheless, the All Blacks kept fighting valiantly and managed to stop the South African side from scoring a try, while Beauden Barret managed to score one despite being down a player. New Zealand will rue the missed penalty by Jordie Barret at the 74’ minute mark, which would have put the All Blacks in front. Sport is cruel.

South Africa won its fourth World Cup by winning their three knockout matches by one point, the slimmest of margins. They defeated France 29-28, England 16-15, and now New Zealand 12-11. They are now the only nation to have won the World Cup 4 times and have usurped the Kiwis as the greatest rugby nation on earth.

🥊 Fury Beats Ngannou By Split Decision

What. A. Fight.

Ngannou came into this fight intending to prove he could box. He did so much more. Ngannou was perhaps “awkward” in his first appearance in the ring, as Fury described him after the fight, but he was also patient and disciplined. He showed his ability to dictate the pace and execute a game plan against Fury, arguably the greatest heavyweight of all time.

Fury came out aggressive in the first round but undeniably underestimated Ngannou’s ability to fight back. In an exchange during the third round, Ngannou caught Fury with a left hook and dropped the Gipsy King to the floor, in the only knockdown of the night. As the fight went on, Ngannou kept pushing Fury to the limit, despite this being his boxing debut and having never fought a 10-round fight before.

Ngannou put on such a performance that at the beginning of the last round, live betting sites had him as the favorite to win the fight, despite coming into the fight as one the biggest underdogs of all time.

As the fight went to the judges, Fury narrowly won in a split decision - a disappointing result for Ngannou and a borderline controversial decision. But while Fury may have won the fight, Ngannou won the hearts of boxing fans everywhere.

Next for Fury is a unification fight against Oleksandr Usyk in December.

Ngannou plans to keep boxing, and his next money fight could be against Wilder in the “battle of the punchers”. The marketing material writes itself, and both fighters would surely earn a 7 figure purse.

⚽ Jude Bellingham Wins El Clasico for Madrid

In a tense Clasico that lived up to expectations, Real Madrid were able to defeat Barcelona 2-1, thanks to two goals from Jude Bellingham, including a 92’ minute winner.

There is only one answer to the question “Who is currently the world’s best football player”. Jude Bellingham is. At only 20 years old, the Englishman has started his season in an incredible run of form and is seemingly involved in every good offensive action at Real Madrid. 

Barcelona played well - arguably better than Madrid did, especially in the first half - but Real Madrid’s star power and a few mistakes from the Catalan side were enough to tilt this match in favor of the team from the Spanish capital. Bellingham’s two goals, one a powerful strike from outside the box arguably stoppable by Ter Stegen, the other a half-missed volley a few meters from the goal that went between the keeper’s legs, showed how seemingly everything is going his way. 

Bellingham could drop a piece of toast 100 times and never have it fall on the buttered side.

With this win, Real Madrid kept first place in La Liga and opened a 4-point gap from Barcelona. Barcelona’s youngsters will continue to develop, and the next El Clasico could already be looking very different.

🏎️ Ferrari Locks Out the Front Row For the Mexican GP, Ricciardo 4th

In a qualifying session that Carlos Sainz described as “strange”, Ferrari were able to secure the top two places on the grid for tomorrow’s race. 

Ferrari didn’t see this kind of pace coming and were once again surprised by the performance of their car in the high-altitude circuit of Mexico City. Charles Leclerc took pole position, with Sainz and Verstappen trailing him by less of a tenth. 

The big surprise of this qualifying session was Daniel Riccardo - aka Danny Ricc, aka The Honey Badger - who came in fourth to give Alpha Tauri its best qualifying result of the season, coming in ahead of Home hero Sergio Perez in what is a much weaker car. 

After the session, Danny Ric said he has “Lots of good energy right now…I just want to rip my shirt off”. Never change Danny Ricc, never change.

This will not help Sergio Perez keep his Red Bull seat, as rumors of the return of Danny Ricc to his boyhood team are sure to only grow stronger.

Behind Perez are Hamilton, Piastri, Russell, Bottas, and Zhou, as both Alfa Romeos made it into Q3.

Lando Norris was eliminated in Q1 after a lock-up ruined his first go and yellow flags ruined his second attempt. 

⚾ WS Game 2: Arizona Diamondbacks 7 - 1 Texas Rangers

The Arizona Diamondbacks dominated this game.

Diamondbacks’ pitcher Merrill Kelly had a night to remember in Game 2 of the World Series. Kelly, who played in South Korea just five years ago, delivered a sensational performance, going seven innings without issuing a walk and striking out nine while giving up only one run on three hits. 

When you pitch like that, you win.

But the Diamondbacks didn’t need to solely rely on pitching; their hitting was on point. Tommy Pham had an exceptional game, delivering four hits. Catcher Gabriel Moreno added to the offensive onslaught with a home run, his fourth of the playoffs. Second baseman Ketel Marte extended his postseason hitting streak to a record 18 games.

Almost everyone was switched on tonight for the Diamondbacks, and they’re heading back to Arizona having evened the series 1-1.

🏎️ The Formula 1 Mexican Grand Prix

Now that the grid order has been established for the race, let's talk about expectations: A Verstappen win from a Leclerc pole. Traditions.

A Max Verstappen victory surely seems in the cards as the Dutchman has the fastest car and will benefit from a massive slipstream heading into turn one. Tire degradation on the Mexican track seems low, which points to a one-stop race for most cars. Verstappen is an expert at managing the Red Bull tires, and the car is known to be kind on the tires.

The exact opposite can be said of Ferrari, whose tire degradation is known to be an issue with the car. Ferrari’s qualifying pace can be remarkable, but its long runs are often middle of the pack, as was evident last time around in the US Grand Prix.

The biggest question mark is Danny Ricc’s fourth place on the grid. Yesterday he insisted that his qualifying performance wasn’t a fluke and that the car feels good and is genuinely quick. Can he avoid dropping back too much to secure his first points of the season? Can Alpha Tauri not botch his strategy? Anything but points would be a major disappointment for the Australian.

⚽ Manchester United - Manchester City

One of the world’s most anticipated derbies is back as Manchester United take on their arch-rivals, Manchester City at Old Trafford. The Red Devils were teetering on the edge of a crisis not too long ago, but they've steadied the ship with three wins, albeit not super convincing ones. They're heading into this Sunday clash just six points behind City in the league standings.

Manchester United recently found their groove with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Brentford, a 2-1 win against Sheffield, and a dramatic 1-0 victory against Copenhagen in the Champions League. It’s not like United is suddenly the team of old, but Maguire and Onana came through when it counted - and United fans hope this is the start of a trend, rather than a fluke.

For City, they're aiming to keep the momentum going after bouncing back from a tough spell with wins against Young Boys and Brighton. They set a new Premier League record with 21 consecutive home victories in all competitions. The lethal combination of Julián Álvarez and Erling Haaland did the damage against Brighton, and they’ll be looking to score today as well.

Pep Guardiola's squad managed to avoid injuries on the tricky artificial pitch of Young Boys, and Kyle Walker is expected to start in place of Akanji. 

City are clear favorites to win this match, but tense derbies can sometimes play out differently than expected - and this is my must-watch match of the day.

🏈 NFL Week 8

How is it Week 8 already? We’re almost halfway through a season that feels like started only yesterday. Contenders are emerging while other teams are preparing for the annual tanking ritual. Let’s go over the key matchups of Week 8 in the NFL.

Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) - Jacksonville Jaguars (5-2)

Seattle Seahawks (4-2) - Cleveland Browns (4-2)

The only two games this week featuring teams with winning records. The Steelers are looking to continue their string of successes at home and chase the Ravens against a resurgent Jaguars team who seem primed to take the AFC South crown this year. 

The Seahawks and the Browns are both fighting to keep up with their division leaders, the 49ers and Ravens, who stand at 5-2. The Browns have the #1 defense in the NFL and will be looking to impose their will on Geno Smith, who looks like the league’s most improved QB this year.

Green Bay Packers (2-4) - Minnesota Vikings (3-4)

Miami Dolphins (5-2) - New England Patriots (2-5)

Washington Commanders (3-4) - Philadelphia Eagles (6-1)

Denver Broncos (2-5) - Kansas City Chiefs (6-1)

Four divisional games await us this week, with the Packers and Vikings chasing the Detroit Lions for the NFC North crown, the Dolphins looking to help Tyreek Hill break the season receiving record (he is currently on pace for over 2100 yards receiving), the Eagles look to extend their lead over their divisional rivals, and the Chiefs are expected to obliterate a weak Broncos team.

Other games:

New York Giants (2-5) - New York Jets (3-3)

Dallas Cowboys (4-2) - Los Angeles Rams (3-4)

Tennessee Titans (2-4) - Atlanta Falcons (4-3)

Carolina Panthers (0-6) - Houston Texans (3-3)

Arizona Cardinals (1-6) - Baltimore Ravens (5-2)

Los Angeles Chargers (2-4) - Chicago Bears (2-5)

🗣️ Quote Of The Day

“Unreal, this guy”

Erling Haaland, after Jude Bellingham won El Clasico for Real Madrid.

Haaland is saying what we all think. Bellingham is an alien.

⭐ Can’t Miss Moment

Ngannou floors Fury in the 3rd round

Unbelievable scenes in Saudi Arabia as Ngannou hurt Fury with a left hook. Ngannou even did a celebratory little dance.

🧮 Stat Of The Day

Jude Bellingham: 13 Goals in 13 Games this season

10 in La Liga, and 3 in the Champions League. How long can he keep this up? Bellingham has “future Ballon d’Or” winner written all over him.

📽️ Video of the Day

EVERY Francis Ngannou UFC Finish

In honor of Francis Ngannou’s incredible performance in the ring yesterday, let’s revisit what made him the UFC Heavyweight Champion. Here is every Ngannou KO in the UFC. Tyson Fury should’ve probably watched this video.

Click HERE to watch on Youtube.

Wrap Up

Yesterday was one the most exciting days of sports in October, and it’s followed up by a Formula 1 Grand Prix, the Manchester Derby, and a full week of NFL action. No complaints here. See you tomorrow.