Canelo triumphs by unanimous decision over an elusive William Scull
From the editorial staff
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. 9
Saúl Canelo Álvarez's first Arabian Night was not a seductive story, one of those that enchant spectators like a dream. Although he won by unanimous decision against Cuban William Scull, who displayed the skills of an athlete or an escape artist, the Guadalajara native didn't seem comfortable with his opponent's style. In any case, he won, and above all, the real fight that awaits him against one of the best fighters of the moment, Terence Crawford, was announced. Crawford entered the ring to announce the fight in September in Las Vegas and to hold the first face-to-face of this highly anticipated event.
Canelo regained the IBF belt he was missing from Scull, adding it to his other titles, the WBC, WBO, and WBA, and once again becoming the undisputed champion of the super middleweight division.
The real climax came when Turki Al-Sheikh, the minister responsible for bringing the sport to Saudi Arabia, presented Canelo with a gold belt and confirmed the fight against Crawford for September 12.
We will be facing two of the leading boxing figures of our era
, Al-Sheikh said.
Scull was a relative unknown until Canelo was stripped of the title for refusing to accept the IBF mandatory fight to defend his super middleweight belt, and the Cuban became the IBF champion.
Now Canelo wanted to regain that belt to hold all the titles in the weight class. It was a good start to his time in Saudi Arabia, the first of four appearances he agreed to with the Saudis.
Even so, Scull wanted to appeal to the prestige of the Cuban boxing elite. Athletic, muscular, and agile, but without any signs of posing a risk to the Mexican.
A lot of canvas covered
Canelo , in contrast, has already been around the block and knows how to manage his risks. Although he has gone several fights without a knockout, he wins with his experience and the well-practiced technique that has become his natural way of moving. He advanced slowly, powerfully, like a bull cornering, swinging its colossal horns in pendulum-like motions.
Álvarez, as he has acknowledged, takes time to take off in his fights. He starts out calculating and analytical, and the same thing happened this time, although he never quite reached the point he craved. In the early rounds, he moved forward to cut off the Scull's openings, which were very active on the flanks, but with the volatility that prey possess, not predators.
The Mexican seemed impatient for it to quickly become a fight, rather than a tactical game where punches would eventually be thrown. The Cuban managed to lift the redhead's face with an uppercut in the fifth round, but the Mexican knows how to take blows without too much damage. Canelo primarily attacked his opponent's body, a traditional strategy that goes: hit low so the head falls off. But as time went on, he seemed a little anxious about not overpowering his opponent.
"Don't let the guy get bigger, you have to win round by round . Let him do his shit, that guy will never stop, so don't let him," advised Eddy Reynoso, his trainer who has been with him throughout his career.
Scull danced on his toes, like a mischievous devil who appears to the gullible and scares them with his tricks of apparition: here I am, now I am here. A work of escapism that didn't allow Canelo to close him down, allowing him to show off the power of his punch.
The Guadalajara native began to show signs of weariness. He didn't seem comfortable in his corner, and Reynoso told him to walk, not to stand still, and, above all, to remain on guard.
That Cuban escape artist, however, displayed amazing legs, bouncing from left to right, rhythmic and agile, as if he'd worked out endless sessions of athletics or salsa on a dance floor. And that dance never made it to the expected fight, which takes on the warlike overtones everyone wants to see in Canelo . That will be for another occasion.
Tricolor stele in Arabia
Canelo 's global success is so powerful that it has also helped to draw other Mexican fighters into the new spotlight of elite sports. The industry in this sector is beginning to gain a foothold in Saudi Arabia, a kingdom that has invested extraordinary amounts of money to attract major celebrities and figures who populate the world's imagination.
This isn't simply a strategic investment in the financial sense, but rather a use of the wealth derived from that country's oil reserves to change its global identity, highlighted by human rights violations in the kingdom.
One of the Mexicans who traveled in Canelo 's cosmic wake is Marco Verde, Olympic runner-up in Paris 2024 who returned Mexico to the boxing podium and made his professional debut in style, in the biggest showcase that currently exists and as the endorsement of our country's greatest sports figure.
There were nerves like never before. Perhaps it was that, or perhaps it was the eagerness to win that led Verde to defeat his rival, Monterrey native Michel Galván Polina, in just 44 seconds. This gave no idea of what this young man is like as a professional, but who paralyzed Mexico during last year's Olympic Games as an amateur.
Meanwhile, another Mexican in Riyadh was Jaime Munguía, who got his revenge and defeated Frenchman Bruno Surace—the same man who gave him his first career knockout last year—by unanimous decision. The Tijuana native kept this in mind, hoping to avoid repeating the same mistake that, in a desperate moment, cost him a crushing defeat in 2024.
Norris wins the sprint race
Verstappen responds after penalty; takes pole at the Miami GP
▲ Reigning world champion Max Verstappen had a bumpy day but used his experience to prevail in a close race against the McLaren drivers. AP Photo
From the editorial staff
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a10
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen (Red Bull) had a day of ups and downs in Miami. The Dutchman was penalized in the sprint race, but then unleashed his magic behind the wheel in search of revenge for pole position for this Sunday's Grand Prix, after beating the McLaren drivers in a close race.
Days after Verstappen and his partner Kelly Piquet announced the birth of their first child, Lily, the four-time world champion clocked a blistering lap of 1 minute 26.204 seconds at Hard Rock Stadium. With his trademark ferocity, he outpaced everyone in the standings.
We had to improve the car, that was the first mission. The weather will change tomorrow, so it'll be a different story. We'll try to make progress as much as we can
, Verstappen said.
This is Verstappen's third pole position of the season, which currently puts him in third place in the championship standings, 12 points behind the leader, Australian Oscar Piastri (McLaren).
The Dutchman started the day with complications in the sprint race, which was affected by rain, after being penalized for unsafe driving following contact with Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes). However, he drew on his experience in Grand Prix qualifying, now in better weather conditions, to prevail in a close race against the McLaren drivers and thus take the pole position at the start of the main race.
While McLaren's Lando Norris seems to have a special connection with the Miami track, where he achieved his first F1 victory last year, he has now gone from glory to suffering. The British driver won the sprint race in the early hours, but in qualifying for the GP, he couldn't find the strategy to stop Verstappen and finished in second place.
Piastri, also driving a McLaren, had a less brilliant performance, finishing second in the sprint race and then finishing fourth in the Grand Prix.
Day of contrasts
Young Italian Kimi Antonelli, on the other hand, recovered in the standings after an unfortunate performance in the sprint , in which he finished in 10th place after starting from pole position , and later secured third place for the main race in Miami.
Multi-time world champion Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) also had a day of contrasts. The Briton finished third in the sprint race after an impressive comeback, but in qualifying, he suffered errors that relegated him to 12th place in the GP competition.
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) had a more unfortunate day, as he couldn't even compete in the sprint due to an accident during warm-up and finished in eighth place in qualifying.
Pato O'Ward suffers accident in Alabama
Mexican driver Patricio Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren) crashed into a wall after a spin, though he suffered no major injuries, during the IndyCar Grand Prix of Alabama testing, which was also affected by rain. Despite the accident, the Mexican driver managed to qualify in eighth place for today's race at Barber Motorsports Park.
I lost the rear end (of the car). Once I got into the grass, I was practically a passenger
, O'Ward noted after rehearsals.
(With information from Reuters)
Cadillac officially joins Formula 1
From the editorial staff and Reuters
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a10
Cadillac has arrived in Formula 1. The American team was unveiled Saturday night at the Queen Miami Beach racing venue to compete in the 2026 season on the top circuit in motorsports. Although it has not yet announced its drivers, Mexican Sergio Pérez remains an option for the team.
"Go for Checo
," shouted a group of fans who gathered outside the venue where Cadillac was presented to show their support for the Mexican, who was left out of Red Bull's season.
There have been reports of talks between Checo and Cadillac to bring the tricolor back to F1 tracks, but nothing has been confirmed so far.
Before Cadillac's unveiling, team executive director Dan Towriss said no drivers had been signed so far.
The most important thing is that we are in no rush to choose
, he noted, stressing that the team is committed to having an American driver
, but would take it slow for his debut in 2026.
It's not about bringing someone in and just plonking them in the seat, because it's important to us that they succeed
, he explained. We'll find the right way and time to bring the right driver to F1
.
Tariffs will not affect
Meanwhile, lower profit expectations and a potential $5 billion hit from auto tariffs won't affect Cadillac's Formula 1 debut, General Motors Chairman Mark Reuss said.
GM, the parent company of Cadillac, cut its 2025 profit forecast this week amid uncertainty over tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.
The Detroit automaker plans to compete with its own powertrains starting in 2029, after initially using Ferrari engines.
Reuss told a group of journalists at the Miami Grand Prix yesterday that General Motors remains fully committed to bringing the 11th team to the F1 grid.
There's an impact of about $5 billion for us
, Reuss said when asked about the tariffs. But it's not going to affect this project
.
The executive did not comment on the cost of the F1 project, which has been in the works for a long time with Cadillac, which is already forming a 350-person team for next season.
Sabalenka defeats Gauff to become a three-time Madrid Open champion
AFP
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a10
Madrid. Belarusian world number one Aryna Sabalenka yesterday became the champion of the Madrid WTA 1000 for the third time, defeating American Coco Gauff (4) in the final 6-3, 7-6 (7-3).
The 26-year-old tennis player, with three Grand Slam titles under her belt, confirmed her excellent form three weeks before Roland Garros, where she has never won a title.
With this latest triumph, the 2021 and 2023 champion in Madrid equals Czech Petra Kvitova as the most successful player in Madrid.
Champion in Miami this season, and a finalist at the Australian Open and Indian Wells, Sabalenka has further extended her lead in the WTA rankings and will have a lead of more than 4,000 points over Poland's Iga Swiatek on Monday.
Sabalenka also puts pressure on Swiatek, winner of the three most recent editions of Roland Garros and unrecognizable in Madrid, where she was swept in the semifinals by Gauff.
In yesterday's final on the Manolo Santana court, the Belarusian took the early lead at 4-1 in the first set. Gauff then recovered, but it was too late and she ended up losing 6-3 in 35 minutes.
The 21-year-old American, who won the 2023 US Open, changed her attitude and played more aggressively in the second set. But Sabalenka's winning streak resurfaced to take the victory.
In the second-set tie-break , the Belarusian won the first three points; the American equalized, but then collapsed against Sabalenka with the crowd at her feet. Gauff, a finalist at Roland Garros in 2022, hadn't had such a good start to the season, losing in the round of 16 in Miami and Indian Wells.
The men's doubles final was also played yesterday, where Spaniard Marcel Granollers and Argentine Horacio Zeballos were crowned champions in Madrid for the second time, following the 2021 edition.
They defeated Salvadoran Marcelo Arévalo and Croatian Mate Pavic 6-4, winning their eleventh title and their eighth in a Masters 1000.
Achieves bronze on the platform
Alejandra Estudillo wins her second medal in Beijing
▲ The Chiapas native earned Mexico's second medal, following the bronze she won on Friday in the mixed team event. AP Photo
From the Editorial Staff
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a11
Mexican Alejandra Estudillo won her second medal in the Diving World Cup Superfinal held in Beijing, China, winning bronze in the women's 10-meter platform final.
The Chiapas native earned 332.70 points to secure third place on the podium. Meanwhile, the Chinese representatives took first and second place. Yuxi Chen, who even performed dives that received scores of 10, won gold with 431.25 points, and her compatriot Hongchan Quan took silver with 409.80.
In this tournament, the individual events underwent a modified format, as they were held using a single-elimination system.
Thus, in the preliminary round, Estudillo defeated Spain's Valeria Antolino in her head-to-head
. After executing her three jumps, the Mexican earned 194.85 points, while her opponent accumulated 169.60.
In the semifinals, the tricolor diver competed in a group of three, with the top two advancing to the final. In that round, Estudillo finished second with 313.65 points, behind China's Yuxi Chen (432.15) and ahead of Italy's Sarah Jodoin di María (310.75), who was eliminated.
In the final, the Chinese participants finished 1-2, while the Mexican finished third, beating the Olympic medalist and world and European champion, Britain's Andrea Spendolini Sirieix, in fourth place with 324.80 points.
This is Mexico's second medal so far in the competition, as Estudillo had won the bronze medal in the mixed team event on Friday, along with Olympic runner-up Osmar Olvera and Randal Willars.
Meanwhile, Mexican Juan Celaya, silver medalist at Paris 2024, failed to make it through the preliminary round of the men's 3-meter springboard event, losing in the first round to German Moritz Wesemann. With 218.00 points, he finished in eighth place.
In the Artistic Swimming World Cup, held in Markham, Canada, the Mexican team, made up of Regina Alférez, María Fernanda Arellano, Miranda Barrera, Itzamary González, Glenda Inzunza, Juana Jiménez, Pamela Toscano and Diego Villalobos, finished in fourth place in the acrobatic team final, with 174.861 points.
The gold medal went to Italy (199.4300), while Spain won silver (181.6612) and France bronze (181.5826).
Meanwhile, American Gretchen Walsh improved her 100-meter butterfly world record, clocking 55.09 seconds at the Pro Swim Series in Orlando, United States.
Walsh had set the previous record of 55.18 seconds at his country's Olympic pre-qualification competition in June of last year.
At the same competition, swimming star Katie Ledecky broke her world record in the 800-meter freestyle, setting it at 8 minutes, 4.12 seconds, and taking the victory.
The nine-time Olympic champion had held this record since her triumph in Rio 2016 with a time of 8:04.79.
Cruz Azul on alert due to Toro Fernández's injury
Alberto Aceves
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a11
Gabriel Fernández spent more than eight months out of the game. In February of last year, the Cruz Azul forward suffered a torn cruciate ligament in a play that left him severely affected by the poor condition of the turf at the Ciudad de los Deportes stadium. That precedent is causing concern for La Máquina's medical team. El Toro was injured on Thursday in the second leg of the CONCACAF Cup semifinal against Tigres. The initial diagnosis ruled out the same severity, but confirmed a strain of the medial collateral ligament in the same area.
The recovery period will depend on the results of the MRI, so Fernández, a player for whom Cruz Azul paid Pumas around $11 million in 2023—according to the specialized site Transfermarkt—could miss the Liga MX quarterfinals (against León) and the decisive match of the regional tournament in June (against the Vancouver Whitecaps of Major League Soccer). "There's still a long way to go; we're going to talk to the medical team to see how serious the situation is. We hope El Toro gets better as the days go by," said coach Vicente Sánchez regarding the Uruguayan's physical condition.
Just like last year during Atlético de San Luis's visit, Fernández left the match against Tigres after trying to stop a Tigres advance near midfield. His compatriot Fernando Gorriarán entered the fight for the ball in a better position, and the La Máquina forward, suffering from a sore right knee, got the worst of it. His departure was marked by gestures of pain, hands on his face, and support from his teammates on the bench.
It's important for (Fernández) not to see what he's missing, but to think that today is one less day to return even better. It's not what he'll miss, but what he'll be able to play
, says the Celeste team's physical trainer, Rubens Valenzuela, who has been leading the recovery and conditioning work at La Noria since January. The mental aspect is crucial for a good recovery/rehabilitation. With passion, effort, dedication, and hope, anything can be achieved. Perseverance always has its rewards
.
While doctors determine the recovery time, the rest of La Máquina's squad is preparing for the Liga quarterfinals. On Wednesday, they will face León at the former Nou Camp, and on Saturday, with the advantage of being the third-place team in the competition, they will close out the series at the Olympic Stadium at Ciudad Universitaria. On the international front, CONCACAF announced that the Champions Cup final will be played on June 1st in a single match against the Vancouver Whitecaps at the home of Celeste.
They've put a thousand obstacles in our way and a thousand goals to overcome
, recalls the club's physical education graduate. "It's not just any of us who have met our expectations, but each and every player has. What we do is important, but how we do it will be decisive
." Coach Vicente Sánchez and his team will return to training this Monday at La Noria.
Araujo and Bournemouth come from behind against Arsenal
From the Editorial Staff and AFP
La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, May 4, 2025, p. a11
Julián Araujo and Bournemouth pulled off a surprise victory. The Mexican started their visit to London's Emirates Stadium and helped his team beat Arsenal 2-1 on Matchday 35 of the English Premier League. This was his second match in action after an injury that kept him out for five months.
The Gunners took the lead with Declan Rice's goal in the first half which they dominated from start to finish (34), but Bournemouth's reaction, first with Dean Huijsen's equaliser (67) and then thanks to Francisco Evanilson de Lima's 2-1 (75), sealed one of the most unexpected results of the weekend.
Araujo played 65 minutes, making effective defensive interventions on the right flank, before being replaced by Alex Scott.
Arsenal remained in second place in the table with 67 points, while their rivals climbed to eighth place with 53.
Meanwhile, Raúl Jiménez's Fulham side lost 1-0 to Aston Villa, effectively eliminating them from qualifying for the following season's UEFA Champions League. The Mexican played the full 90 minutes.
Barça remains the leader
Although under more pressure than expected, Barcelona achieved a dual objective in their visit to bottom-placed and already relegated Valladolid: they won 2-1 to keep Real Madrid at bay at the top of the Spanish league and kept their key players in check ahead of the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals.
After their match on Matchday 34 of the tournament, the Blaugranas now have a seven-point lead over the Whites (79 to 72), who host Celta today, before next week's derby at Montjuic, which will almost be a title final.
The night in Pucela was no walk in the park for Barça. Their goalkeeper, Marc-André Ter Stegen, back in the starting lineup after 222 days out with a serious injury to his right knee, conceded a goal with the first shot he faced from Iván Sánchez (minute 6). Raphinha equalized with a cross (54) and Fermín (60) completed the comeback.
Hours earlier, in Saturday's first match, Atlético de Madrid was held to a goalless draw at Alavés. With no real chance in the title race and qualification for the next Champions League practically assured, Atlético Madrid will end the season with no major objectives for the final four matches.
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