Sports
Sean Strickland hands Khamzat Chimaev first loss, reclaims belt
May 9, 2026; Newark, New Jersey, UNITED STATES; Sean Strickland (blue gloves) celebrates after defeating Khamzat Chimaev (red gloves) during UFC 328 at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images Khamzat Chimaev’s first UFC middleweight title defense surprisingly marked a changing of the guard, as Sean Strickland ruined his plans by becoming a two-time UFC middleweight champion at UFC 328 in Newark, N.J., on Saturday.
Strickland’s (31-7 MMA) split decision victory – 47-48, 48-47, 48-47- handed Chimaev (15-1 MMA) his first loss as both men embraced each other after a four-day buildup peppered with a ton of animosity.
“He’s a f***ing savage. That motherf***er would not go back,” Strickland said of Chimaev. “I’m hitting him with everything, and he just keeps coming forward. Crazy.”
After a dominant opening round from the incumbent which nearly saw Chimaev secure a rear-naked choke, a stuffed Chimaev takedown in the second led to Strickland being in side-control, landing strikes from the top position – a sequence rarely seen in Chimaev’s career to that point.
In Round 3, both men kept the fight standing as Strickland found a home for the jab. Chimaev ignored Prudential Center jeers of “F*** you, Khamzat” as he attempted to remain focused.
By Round 4, Chimaev used a much more tentative approach on the feet as Strickland’s nose was visibly bloody and compromised. A late takedown from Chimaev, a Russian who fights out of the United Arab Emirates, gave him his third in his last five attempts, albeit briefly, as the round ended.
With five minutes remaining, Chimaev kept Strickland against the fence in the clinch as Strickland eventually broke free back to the center of the octagon. Chimaev ended the fight with nine takedowns, but Strickland held a sizable 123-98 edge in significant strikes.
The co-main event saw UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van (17-2 MMA) of Myanmar successfully defend his title for the first time, securing a TKO win against Japan’s Tatsuro Taira 1:32 into the fifth and final round.
The fight encountered many twists and turns. As Taira (18-2 MMA) kept getting takedowns and the mount position, Van’s jab and a near rear-naked choke attempt in Round 3 were the perfect counter to a potential Fight of the Year candidate that many pundits had 2-2 entering the final round.
Van had a few choice words for Alexandre Pantoja, from whom he took the title in December when Pantoja dislocated his elbow after a bad fall, resulting in a TKO via an unexpected finish to their UFC 323 fight. Pantoja had a front-row seat to the action in Newark, N.J.
“We can run it back if you want,” Van said to Pantoja during his post-fight interview.
Taira had never been finished in his previous 19 fights, only losing a decision to Brandon Royval in October of 2024 at UFC Vegas 98.
In the featured heavyweight main card bout, second-ranked Alexander Volkov of Russia outlasted fourth-ranked Waldo Cortes-Acosta of Cuba, earning a unanimous decision win 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. Although it wasn’t a dynamic TKO from Volkov (40-11 MMA) that he’s primarily used to, volume striking made the difference.
Cortes-Acosta (17-3 MMA) had a three-fight winning streak snapped. The entire division remains at a standstill until Tom Aspinall returns to full health from his eye injury and the interim title fight between Alex Pereira and Cyril Gane at UFC Freedom 250. After that, what’s next for Volkov can be determined.
UFC welterweight Sean Brady overwhelmed Joaquin Buckley with ground strikes from the mount position across four takedowns, 12:09 of ground control time, and several submission attempts, winning a dominant unanimous decision – 30-25, 30-25, 30-27.
Brady (19-2 MMA) bounced back, having now won four of his last five, with his only loss coming to Michael Morales in that span. Buckley (21-8 MMA) has done the opposite, taking back-to-back losses. Buckley is still seeking his first win since December of 2024, landing only 21 strikes throughout the 15-minute contest against 245 from Brady.
King Green kicked off the UFC 328 main card emphatically with a first-round rear-naked choke (4:20) submission over fellow UFC veteran Jeremy Stephens at lightweight — even though Stephens came in four points overweight — in a one-sided affair. Green (35-17-1 MMA) picked up his 16th UFC win, extending his winning streak to three.
Meanwhile, Stephens (29-23 MMA) is in his second stint with the promotion, having competed on and off overall since 2007, and is still searching for his first UFC win since February of 2018.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Byron Buxton accounts for both Twins runs to beat Guardians in 11
May 9, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Minnesota Twins center fielder Byron Buxton (25) hits a solo home run in the first inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images Byron Buxton’s RBI double in the 11th inning gave the Minnesota Twins a 2-1 win over the host Cleveland Guardians on Saturday night as each team managed only two hits.
The game’s start was delayed two hours and 6 minutes by rain.
Buxton had both of the Twins’ hits as he led off the game with a home run. His double in the top of the 11th was the game-winner, scoring automatic runner Matt Wallner from third to snap Minnesota’s three-game losing streak.
The Twins escaped bases-loaded, one-out situations for the Guardians in the bottom of the ninth and 10th innings.
Cleveland had its three-game winning streak ended.
Minnesota reliever Eric Orze (1-1) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings, and Luis Garcia worked the 11th for his first save.
Guardians right-hander Peyton Pallette (1-2) allowed one run on one hit and one walk with three strikeouts in two innings.
Both starters were outstanding.
Cleveland’s Tanner Bibee allowed a run on one hit — Buxton’s homer — in six innings with two walks and a season-high nine strikeouts. His run of retiring 10 straight batters was snapped by a walk to Luke Keaschall with two outs in the fourth.
The Twins’ Joe Ryan gave up a run and two hits in six innings with three walks and five strikeouts.
Kyle Manzardo’s RBI single tied the game 1-1 in the fourth for Cleveland. Jose Ramirez, who got the first hit off of Ryan with one out and stole second, scored on the play.
Ryan worked his way out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam later in the inning by striking out Angel Martinez and Austin Hedges.
Buxton’s homer was his 13th this season as he took Bibee’s 1-1 cutter over the wall in left.
The Twins placed starting pitcher Taj Bailey (4-1, 2.87) on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 6, with pec muscle inflammation. Minnesota also recalled RHP Travis Adams from Triple-A St. Paul.
The Guardians acquired catcher Patrick Bailey from the San Francisco Giants for left-handed pitching prospect Matt Wilkinson and Cleveland’s Competitive Balance Round A pick (29th overall) in the 2026 draft and sent catcher Bo Naylor to Triple-A Columbus.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Jeong Sang-bin's goal lifts St. Louis City past Rapids
May 9, 2026; Commerce City, Colorado, USA; St. Louis City midfielder Conrad Wallem (6) and Colorado Rapids midfielder Paxten Aaronson (10) battle for the ball in the first half at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Jeong Sang-bin scored in the 26th minute Saturday and visiting St. Louis City SC logged its first clean sheet since last year, blanking the Colorado Rapids 1-0 in a contentious match.
It was the first goal this year for Sang-bin. Goalie Roman Burki started the sequence with a long goal kick that Simon Becher conveyed to a streaking Sang-bin. Racing down the pitch’s middle, Sang-bin easily dribbled by goalie Nicolas Hansen and poked the ball home.
Colorado’s bid at a second-half rally took a hit when Rob Holding was sent off in the 51st minute after fouling Becher. St. Louis (2-6-3, 9 points) played 36 minutes of 11-on-10 soccer before Chris Durkin was booked for the second time in the 87th minute, leveling the teams at 10 men each.
Rafael Navarro, Keegan Rosenberry and Georgi Minoungou each had good chances to equalize after Durkin’s dismissal. But Navarro’s header sailed right of the net in the 87th minute and Rosenberry couldn’t finish two minutes into stoppage time.
Minoungou then sailed a header over the crossbar, a shot that was estimated to have a 48% chance of going into the net. St. Louis held on through six more minutes of stoppage time for its first road win of the year.
The Rapids (3-5-4, 13 points) wasted a major advantage in possession time (58.1% to 41.9) and got just two of their 11 shots on frame, with Burki denying both. Colorado created a whopping 11 corner kicks but couldn’t convert its set pieces into goals.
Both teams were hoping to display better form than they showed in recent fixtures. St. Louis was 0-3-2 in its previous five matches and the Rapids were 0-3-1 in their prior four matches.
The first half was played on even terms until Sang-bin struck. Despite Colorado controlling the ball 55.1% of the time, each team took five shots and got one to net.
Referee Tim Ford whistled 36 fouls and administered a total of nine cards in a physical match.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Pirates collect 20 hits as Braxton Ashcraft dominates Giants
May 9, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Braxton Ashcraft (35) throws a pitch against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Robert Edwards-Imagn Images Braxton Ashcraft threw seven innings of one-run ball, batterymate Joey Bart matched his career high with four hits and the Pittsburgh Pirates used a 20-hit assault to roll past the host San Francisco Giants 13-3 on Saturday night.
Nick Gonzales also collected four hits and Brandon Lowe had four RBIs for the Pirates, who won for the sixth time in their last eight games.
Giants starter Landen Roupp (5-3) matched zeroes with Ashcraft for four innings before Bart led off the fifth with an infield single on the right-hander’s 94th pitch, prompting San Francisco manager Tony Vitello to go to his bullpen.
After a single and steal by Oneil Cruz, the Pirates went ahead 1-0 on Lowe’s sacrifice fly and then 2-0 on an RBI single by Bryan Reynolds.
Bryce Eldridge launched his first career home run to get the Giants on the board in the last of the inning, before Pittsburgh seized control with a two-run sixth and blew the game open with a six-run seventh.
Konnor Griffin and Bart had RBI singles in the sixth, before Lowe lashed the big hit of the seventh — a two-run triple.
Bart made it a four-hit day when his leadoff single off Christian Koss, normally an infielder, triggered a three-run ninth.
Ashcraft (2-2) limited the Giants to six hits in his seven innings. He struck out six without walking a batter.
Bart, who played his first four seasons with the Giants, matched the four hits he’d recorded twice last year for the Pirates. He had three hits five times as a Giant.
The catcher scored three times and drove in two runs.
Cruz also scored three times and had three hits, while Lowe and Spencer Horwitz scored twice apiece. Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn had two hits each in the season-best 20-hit attack.
Heliot Ramos had a pair of singles for the Giants, who won the series opener 5-2 on Friday night. San Francisco has lost nine of its last 11 games.
The Giants completed the game’s scoring with two in the last of the ninth on a bases-loaded walk to Drew Gilbert and an RBI single by Eric Haase.
–Field Level Media
