In a tournament full of surprises, the one assumed result was that Argentina, the reigning world champion, would make it into the knockout stage of this year’s Copa America.
Argentina boasts a 3-0 record in the group stages capped by a 2-0 defeat of Peru in its third and final group-round game. Standing in their way of advancing to the semifinals is Ecuador who edged Mexico after a scoreless draw in its final group game leapfrogging them by goal differential in Group B.
Kicking off at NRG Stadium in Houston, Argentina and Ecuador are the first two games of the quarterfinals starting on Thursday (8 p.m., FS1). Ahead of their game, here’s a numerical look at how these two teams match up.
127: The number of wins all-time for Argentina in Copa America. Following the win over Peru, Argentina improved to 127-33-41 in the tournament. Remarkable record when you think the nation has been playing in this tournament since 1916.
Lionel Messi has scored 106 goals for Argentina, 13 in seven Copa America tournaments combined.Photo by Carlos Sipán/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
106: The number of goals scored by Lionel Messi all-time for Argentina. He has 13 goals all-time in Copa America but is still awaiting his first in this tournament. He’s also the first player to appear in seven Copa America tournaments and set a record in this edition with 35 all-time appearances when he took the field in the opener against Canada.
41: Longtime Ecuadorian striker Enner Valencia leads his nation with 41 goals. Valencia, who has spent time in Europe with teams like West Ham, Everton, and Fenerbahçe, is regarded as one of the best to ever play for the country.
29: The number of times Ecuador has qualified for Copa America since 1939.
Forward Enner Valencia has the most goals all-time for his native Ecuador with 41. Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images
15: The number of times Argentina has won the tournament, the last in 2021. They completed the double of major tournaments, winning the FIFA World Cup in Qatar the following year.
1: As of Wednesday, July 3, this match was the only one listed as sold out with fans clamoring at a chance to see Lionel Messi play. However, Messi, who missed the team’s final group match against Peru due to a thigh injury is still questionable for tomorrow night’s game. Still…
300: That’s the average going rate for a seat in the lower bowl of NRG Stadium on secondary marketplaces. Tickets appear to hover around $137 to be in the arena, and if you really want to splash the cash, we found a front-row seat behind the benches still available for $2,800 on StubHub.
The Houston Astros are going to win the World Series. This is a fact.
You can be mad if you want to, but I am merely the messenger for this Very Important information. Consider that destiny has smiled upon them in the exact same way that it did the last time they hoisted the coveted piece of metal.
Confused? I got you.
The Astros beat the Mets on the road on June 29th and that means a lot
Cards on the table here I am a Houston Astros fan. I cover the Dallas Cowboys here at SB Nation (shout out to Blogging The Boys the GOAT) and that upsets people. Yes, last year’s ALCS was very awkward for me. This is who I am and you will accept me for that or else (I don’t really have an else in mind).
To the point I loved the 2022 Houston Astros because they won the World Series. That season was such vindication and sweet sports honey in every single way and a big part of the journey was a summer trip that took them to New York for road series contests against both the Yankees and Mets.
At the time the New York teams were the most dominant in baseball and yours truly had a great time tweeting about the Astros rolling through Queens and the Bronx relatively untouched. Also let me remind you like my tweet does that Houston’s trip through New York then featured a combined no-hitter from the team led by Cristian Javier, a feat they would replicate in the World Series against the Phillies.
Houston Astros stretch against the New York teams aka “the best teams in baseball”
– Mets – Mets – at Yankees – at Yankees – at Yankees (no-hitter) – at Yankees – at Mets – at Mets – Yankees
Why does that day matter so much? I’m so glad you asked.
Wednesday, June 29th, 2022 was the final day of that particular Astros/Mets series and it was kind of a super boring game. I remember it very well.
But why do I remember it well? You see in the top of the ninth inning Jason Castro hit a two-run homer for the game’s first runs. Houston won 2-0 and Castro didn’t play at all the rest of that season. My guy walked it off in epic fashion.
You obviously know (because I told you) that the Astros would go on to win the World Series that year and did so against the Phillies as mentioned. Beating Philadelphia was significant as it put an end to Houston’s inability to take down NL East teams in the playoffs (aka the World Series). 2019 saw the Astros lose to the Washington Nationals and 2021 the Atlanta Braves… the NL East was terrifying and the break in the dam was first made by Castro with his home run against the Mets.
I recognize that this is silly but this is sports where things like this matter a lot and basically determine history. These are the rules, I didn’t make them. The June 29th win on the road against the Mets served as the catalyst for the Astros in a significant way that season.
THIS BRINGS US TO JUNE 29TH. OF 2024.
You will recall that last week featured the Yankees and Mets tangoing with one another in the latest edition of the Subway Series. Both New York teams are hot. Things aren’t quite as intense in that sense as they were two years ago, but they are the relative toast of MLB’s town.
The Astros visited Queens last weekend riding a 7-game winning streak themselves which saw them get to .500 for the first time this season (lol). Momentum was up and a loss on Friday night was no big deal given that we are still on the front side of the All-Star break.
Houston and New York squared off on Saturday, June 29th with the Astros looking for a win and unfortunately they fell down early and things were looking rather bleak. This is when a Crazy Sports Thing happened that is clearly and undeniably this year’s Jason Castro moment.
At the top of the eighth inning the Astros were trailing 4-6 and looked set to fall a couple of games below .500. It was a tough scene. Jake Meyers and Jeremy Peña both walked, but then Chas McCormick and Mauricio Dubón upped the pressure by failing to do anything. Jake and Jeremy both advanced to put runners on second and third.
This is when My New Guy entered in Trey Cabbage. Pinch-hitting in a big spot, Cabbage needed to do something special in order to keep this rally alive.
Do you ever wonder how certain things happen in sports? Not amazing things, dumb things.
With a full count Cabbage took a pitch for a ball… that the umpire improperly counted. Seriously. We are making counting errors in the year 2024. He mistakenly called it ball 3.
Cabbage was able to rightfully take first base and shortly after a wild pitch sent Jake Meyers home to narrow the deficit to a single run. Jose Altuve walked to load the bases again and then Alex Bregman broke it open. Houston added to their lead in the top of the ninth for more breathing room and got back to .500 on the season.
Baseball is notorious for producing wild and crazy things and these two happened on the same day between the same two teams in the exact same spot on earth. Destiny!
In case you aren’t already convinced… what if I told you that this year’s win in 2024 (the Trey Cabbage game) at Citi Field was the first time that the Astros won there since the 2022 game with Jason Castro?????
THE HOUSTON ASTROS ARE GOING TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES AGAIN.
After an entertaining UFC Saudi Arabia event in which Robert Whittaker showed Ikram Aliskerov that there are “levels” to mixed martial arts (MMA), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns home to Las Vegas, Nev., for its massive yearly International Fight Week event, UFC 303.
In the pay-per-view (PPV) main event, Alex Pereira defends his light heavyweight championship against Jiri Prochazka. In the co-main event, two-time Featherweight title challenger,Brian Ortega, takes on surging Diego Lopes (in a 155-pound showdown).
UFC 303 has several fun fights, and the atmosphere should be incredible because it is a giant card. So, before it all goes later this evening (Sat., June 29, 2024) on PPV and ESPN/ESPN+, let’s checkout some random storylines, tidbits, and statistics ahead of showtime.
Pain.
You all know by now that UFC 303 was supposed to be the highly-anticipated return of Conor McGregor. However, a toe injury ruined everything (seriously). Now, everyone has to wait longer for McGregor versus Michael Chandler, which hopefully will go down later this year.
Rematch
Pereira vs. Prochazka are running it back this weekend, and let’s be honest, they can fight every two weeks and fight fans will be just fine. The two light heavyweights first met inside the iconic arena Madison Square Garden at UFC 295 for the interim 205-pound championship. “Poatan” knocked out Prochazka in the second round.
Kind Of Short Notice …
Yes, Pereira vs. Prochazka is a short-notice fight. They were planned to collide in the main event of UFC 305 in Perth, Australia, over Israel Adesnya vs. Dricus Du Plessis in August. So, they knew about the matchup and were training for each other, although Pereira was in Australia when he signed the contract.
Win-Win
Pereira is in the ultimate win-win scenario. Not only is he even more of a legend for helping UFC once again (more on that soon), but MMAmania.com has heard, per sources, that he is granted an immediate rematch in New York City later this year if he loses.
Phenomenal ‘Poatan’
Pereira’s Octagon run has been absolutely stunning thus far. In eight UFC fights, Pereira became a UFC champion in two divisions, headlined Madison Square Garden (twice), defeated four former UFC champions, headlined (and saved) UFC 300, and now he saved “International Fight Week.”
When you think about it, those accolades are genuinely incredible, especially since most of his combat sports career was in kickboxing.
Jeez, Jiri
Pereira’s UFC accomplishments are unreal, but so is Prochazka’s UFC resume. Thus far, he is the only fighter to knockout Aleksandar Rakic and Volkan Oezdemir, submit Glover Teixeira, and finish former Bellator Light Heavyweight champion, Vadim Nemkov.
The guy is special.
Mexican Grapple-fest With Stakes
Ortega vs. Lopes is UFC 303’s new co-main event. The fight is one of the best matchups in the Featherweight division that could be made because both men are excellent grapplers and extremely exciting. On top of that, it very well could be for a No. 1 contender.
Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway is the fight that should be made, but if that fight falls apart, the winner of Lopes vs. Ortega could step in. Or, they could wait around for the winner of Topuria vs. Holloway.
Weigh-In Day Change
During UFC 303’s early morning weigh-ins, UFC announced that Ortega vs. Lopes will now take place at Lightweight.
Ortega was planning on moving to the 155-pound division, but because of the short-notice call, he had his plans (and weight) on hold.
To The Moon
Since Lopes entered UFC, he has been shot out of a rocket … and deservingly so. And with a win at UFC 303, he will go from No. 14 to No. 3 in the rankings.
Talk about a springboard.
While he lost his UFC debut to Movsar Evloev, he has finished everyone in since in the first round and is coming off a win at UFC 300 against Sodiq Yusuff.
Same Card Luck
Pereira and Lopes have been on the same card twice (UFC 295 and UFC 300), and both have received technical knockout finishes.
Switch-Up Mania
The featured bout between Anthony Smith vs. Roman Dolidzelooks completely different from what the initial bout was supposed to be.
Indeed, the original fight was former Light Heavyweight champion, Jamahal Hill, taking on Khalil Rountree Jr. However, Rountree Jr. failed a drug test, so the fight was changed to Hill versus Carlos Ulberg. Next, Hill got injured, and then Smith stepped in, making it Smith vs. Ulberg. Well, Ulberg suffered an injury, and now the final matchup (knock on wood) is Smith vs. Dolidze.
Moving Up
Dolidze will be moving back up to Light Heavyweight to face Smith.
10 vs. 10
Both Smith and Dolidze are ranked No. 10 in there respective divisions (Middleweight and Light Heavyweight).
Polar Bear In The Desert
UFC 303’s new main card (that is being held together with duct tape) looks pretty awesome; however, there is one fight that sticks out like a sore thumb: Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson. Yeah, yeah, yeah, Silva competed for a title in her last fight, but it was a horrible fight and performance.
No disrespect, but that women’s Bantamweight fight is not UFC 303 PPV main card-worthy, especially for “International Fight Week.” Two obvious fights could take its place: Talbott vs. Ghemmouri or Swanson vs. Fili.
‘MVP’ Gets His Shot
Michael “Venom” Page (MVP) will look to snag Ian Garry’s No. 7 Welterweight ranking later this evening to crack UFC’s Top 10 rankings.
“MVP” made a gigantic splash in the promotion when he upset Kevin Holland in his UFC debut earlier this year at UFC 299. He is riding a two-fight win streak.
Unappealing
Garry doesn’t care about his upcoming fight with “MVP.” At UFC 303 media day, he flat-out said, “I have no interest in it.” It makes sense because he was gunning for former three-time title challenger, Colby Covington.
Garry is fighting down in the rankings and was only taking the fight to stay active and compete on the same card as McGregor.
Welp.
Time Is A Construct
Garry made his professional mixd martial arts (MMA) debut on Feb. 16, 2019, the same night that Page fought Paul Daley at Bellator 216. Garry fought James Sheehan at Cage Warriors 101.
They both won.
Rebound
Joe Pyfer looks to rebound from his first UFC main event loss against Jack Hermansson. It was also his first “L” in the promotion. Pyfer had a rocket ship put on his back when he received a contract on Contender Series, and it still feels that way.
He is given a pretty picture-perfect matchup against Marc-Andre Barriault, and he should get a highlight-reel knockout and put himself back into the UFC Middleweight picture.
Triple Retirement?
Three UFC veterans could lay down their gloves in the Octagon on Saturday: Cub Swanson, Andrei Arlovski and/or Michelle Waterson.
Both Arlovski and Swanson are already 40 years old, and Waterson is 38. It just makes sense because it is “International Fight Week,” and they are fighting in front of a sold-out Las Vegas crowd. And Swanson has not fought in front of a crowd since before the global COVID-19 pandemic (an utter crime).
Arlovski is fighting Martin Buday, Waterson is fighting Gillian Anderson and Swanson is fighting Andre Fili, which should be a banger.
Time To Step Up, Kid
Payton Talbott is fighting outside the UFC Apex for the first time this weekend and is primed to be the one everyone talks about from the “Prelims.”
Talbott had the whole MMA world talking about him after he demolished Cameron Saaimanin his last outing earlier this year, and because of that, he got placed on UFC 303.
He holds an 88 percent finish rate and is one of the flashiest fighters in UFC at the moment.
Biggest Favorite Ever?
While Talbott isn’t the biggest betting favorite … yet — that belongs to Bo Nickal (-2200). But, by fight night, Talbott could surpass that if money keeps coming in on him. He is currently a -1600 favorite, by far the biggest favorite on UFC 303. He faces Yanis Ghemmouri.
Welcome To UFC!
Only one fighter makes his UFC debut this weekend, Rei Tsuruya (9-0). Tsuruya scored a UFC contract by winning the “Road To UFC” Flyweight finals (he finished Jiniushiyue).
Tsuruya holds an 88 percent finish rate with four knockouts and four submissions. He faces Carlos Hernandez.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Curtain Jerker
The first fight of UFC 303 is a banger as former Top 10 Bantamweight, Ricky Simon, takes on Vinicius Oliveira, who is coming off a “Knockout of the Year” contender.
While this fight definitely deserves to be higher on the card, the matchmakers know precisely what they’re doing: start UFC 303 off with a bang.
UFC 303 Fight Leader
The fighter with the most career fights competing at UFC 303 is Arlovski(57).
UFC 303 Fight Rookie
The fighter with the least amount of career fights competing at UFC 303 is Talbott (eight).
UFC 303 Knockout King
The fighter with the most amount of career knockouts competing at UFC 303 is Prochazka (26).
UFC 303 Submission Savant
The fighter with the most amount of career submissions competing at UFC 303 is Smith (15).
Winners And Losers
Thirteen fighters are coming off wins and 13 are coming off losses.
Multi-Divisions
Here are the divisions that will be on display this Saturday:
One Heavyweight fight
Two Light Heavyweight fights
One Middleweight fight
One Welterweight fight
Three Featherweight fights
Two Bantamweight fights
One Flyweight
One women’s Strawweight
One women’s Bantamweight
Beta Dog
According to DraftKings, the “biggest” underdog at UFC 303 is Ghemmouri at +900.
LIVE! Watch UFC 303 PPV On ESPN+ Here!
’McGREGOR-FREE MAIN EVENT!Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., June 29, 2024, without its biggest box office draw, Conor McGregor, after the Irish sports star delayed the “greatest comeback of all-time” because he broke his pinky toe (seriously). Coming the rescue once again is Light Heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira, agreeing to rematch former division champion, Jiri Prochazka, in the pay-per-view (PPV) main event. In UFC 303’s co-headliner, top-ranked Featherweight contender, Brian Ortega, will attempt to halt the rise of red-hot surging 145-pound prospect, Diego Lopes. UFC 303’s PPV main card (see it here) will also feature Anthony Smith vs. Roman Dolidze and Ian Garry vs. Michael “Venom” Page and so much more. It’s must-watch action! UFC 303 start time scheduled for 6 p.m. ET (Prelims) and 10 p.m. ET (PPV).
Don’t miss a single second of EPIC face-punching action!
To checkout the latest and greatest UFC 303 fight card and rumors click here.
Gervonta “Tank” Davis will be back in the ring on Saturday night, marking the return of one of boxing’s most talked-about stars and reliable draws as he puts his WBA lightweight title on the line against undefeated Frank Martin.
Davis (29-0, 27 KO) hasn’t been seen in action since his win over Ryan Garcia 14 months ago, in what was probably the biggest fight of 2023. The 29-year-old “Tank” will not have that level of spotlight against Martin (18-0, 12 KO), who just isn’t near Garcia’s level in notoriety and fame, but any time Davis fights, it’s a big deal for the boxing world.
As is usually the case, however, a lot of the talk days ahead of the fight is about what everyone would like to see Gervonta do next, once he’s done with this fight that pretty much everybody assumes he will win without much trouble.
Martin, also 29, is a good fighter. “The Ghost” has spent the last couple of years earnestly battling his way up the 135-pound ranks with wins over Romero Duno, Jackson Marinez, Michel Rivera, and Artem Harutyunyan, his most recent opponent, and a fight where we saw him struggle a good deal more than he had against the prior trio of opponents.
That struggle leads most to believe that Martin just won’t be good enough to pull the upset on Davis, and it’s a reasonable position. It is worth keeping in mind boxing’s “styles make fights” rule, because Davis fights nothing like Harutyunyan.
Unfortunately for Martin, the things he’s best at are things Davis excels in, too, and “Tank” also packs the power that Martin doesn’t. Davis is not an aggressive fighter by nature, taking his time to figure opponents out, but once he does, he lets the power go, and there’s a reason his knockout percentage is so high.
In a way, Saturday’s Gervonta return feels a little ho-hum, a little pedestrian, because the intrigue just isn’t there. It’s hard to even expect that he will come in unprepared and overlooking his opponent, because he never does that no matter how heavily he’s favored or how easy a fight is supposed to be.
It’s easy to want to look ahead, then, so are we any closer to Gervonta giving the public the fights they want to see instead of just lining up the next available PBC-affiliated name?
Boxing matchmaking is often overwhelmed by the political issues between various promoters and stables, and then further complicated by the broadcast deals tied to those promoters and stables.
Actual star fighters, though, ultimately have the most say, at least when they want to use their leverage. That’s how we got Tank vs Ryan Garcia last year; the fighters made that deal happen, Garcia in particular. Anything really can be done, and with the Saudi government showing wider-ranging interest in the sport, that’s more true than ever. Money will always talk in boxing, and they have a lot more of it than anyone else.
The key fights at 135 for Davis would be a long-awaited showdown with Vasiliy Lomachenko, who holds the WBO title, or a meeting with Shakur Stevenson, the WBC titleholder. Both of those fighters are currently with Top Rank and ESPN. Davis vs Lomachenko might come too late for Loma; as good as the Ukrainian still is, he’s past his best days. But Davis vs Shakur would be a meeting of two of boxing’s smartest in-ring tacticians, and they’ve floated a good bit of animosity into the world. Whether it’s real or not doesn’t even matter — it’s just about getting enough people to believe it’s real.
Maybe one of those guys will be across the ring from Davis next time we see him, whenever that comes, or maybe Davis will entertain a move up to 140, where he’s fought once and wasn’t quite himself, to take on someone like Devin Haney or Teofimo Lopez. There are always curveballs, too. It might sound crazy right now, but Davis may look at a currently soft welterweight division and a chance to become a four-division world champion with a favorable vacant title fight, now that Terence Crawford is moving up in weight.
Whatever it is, the real hope is that we see Davis in against someone you can reasonably see as a serious threat to him. Boxing is at its best when there is an actual split in opinion on who can win a fight and not just building, bit by bit, the marketability of a single fighter with carefully-chosen matchups, which unfortunately has been the bulk of Davis’ career, and seems most likely to be what we get this weekend.
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