Tyson Fury hits Deontay Wilder in a heavyweight championship boxing match on Oct. 9, 2021, in Las Vegas. Chase Stevens/Associated Press
BOXING
Tyson Fury will defend his WBC heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte in the UK this spring after promoter Frank Warren won a purse bid for the bout.
Top Rank, Fury’s U.S.-based promoter, and Warren’s Queensberry Promotions announced the deal Friday, concluding months of drawn-out negotiations over the unbeaten Fury’s future. Warren is paying just over $41 million for the rights, according to WBC President Mauricio Sulaimán, making it the richest purse bid in boxing history.
Fury (31-0-1, 22 knockouts) took to his social media platforms to herald the deal for his first bout since his dramatic 11th-round knockout of Deontay Wilder last October in Las Vegas, completing their entertaining fight trilogy.
The date and location of the bout aren’t certain yet, but Fury’s announcement confirmed he and Whyte (28-2, 19 KOs) plan to meet in the spring somewhere in the UK. Fury is a Manchester native, while Whyte was born in Jamaica and moved to Britain as a child.
GOLF
DP WORLD TOUR: Chip-ins from Rory McIlroy and Tyrrell Hatton fueled their surge into contention at the Dubai Desert Classic in Dubai, United Arabs Emirates.
The player they’ll try to catch over the weekend is Justin Harding, whose own spectacular shot in the second round came from much further out.
McIlroy and Hatton took advantage of beautiful conditions at Emirates Golf Club to shoot 6-under 66s – tied for the lowest scores of the day – and climb onto the leaderboard in the $8 million Rolex Series event on the European tour.
A chip-in eagle at No. 13 and a 22-foot putt for birdie at the last were the highlights of a bogey-free round for the No. 8-ranked McIlroy, who moved into a tie for fifth on 7 under overall.
Hatton sent in a chip from 34 yards at No. 13 that landed at the front of the green, took one more bounce and skipped straight into the cup for the last of his seven birdies. He was alone in second place on 9 under.
Harding was the only player ahead of Hatton after a day when he played 19 holes and birdied No. 18 twice.
SOCCER
TRANSFER: Wolfsburg signed American winger Kevin Paredes from D.C. United for what the Major League Soccer team said was a $7.35 million transfer fee.
The German club said the 18-year-old Paredes signed a 3 1/2-year contract until the end of the 2025-26 season.
D.C. said the transfer fee is its record high for a sale. The deal includes additional money contingent on performance and a percentage of any future transfer fees.
• It’s taken five months but Juventus has finally found a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo.
Coveted striker Dušan Vlahović completed a $80-million transfer from Fiorentina on Friday on his 22nd birthday and will wear the No. 7 shirt vacated by Ronaldo.
Juventus’ tweet announcing the move included the hashtag “DV7” –a take on Ronaldo’s “CR7.” Vlahović wore No. 9 for Fiorentina.
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Manchester City defender Kyle Walker will miss round-of-16 games against Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League after receiving a three-match European ban from UEFA.
UEFA said its disciplinary panel imposed the suspension for Walker’s red-card foul on Leipzig forward André Silva in a group-stage game in December.
The foul was “a very bad judgment,” the England international acknowledged this month, “a stupid error that a 31-year-old shouldn’t be making with the amount of games that I’ve played.”
AUTO RACING
RACE OF CHAMPIONS: Colton Herta will represent the United States in next weekend’s international Race of Champions as the replacement for injured driver Travis Pastrana.
Pastrana said this week he broke his back and hip in a BASE jumping accident.
Herta will take his place alongside seven-time NASCAR champion and current IndyCar driver Jimmie Johnson. The ROC “Snow + Ice” World Final will be held next weekend in Pite Havsbad, Sweden, on the frozen Baltic Sea, 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle.
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