UK-Sport Summary
Haye shocks Valuev in WBA heavyweight title bout
NUREMBERG, Germany - Briton David Haye clinched the WBA world heavyweight title with a points win over holder Nikolai Valuev of Russia on Saturday. Haye, who became Britain's first heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis retired six years ago, scored 116-112 points on the scorecards of two judges, the third giving it a 114-114 tie in the bout dubbed "David versus Goliath."
Capello issues World Cup warning to England players
LONDON - Established England regulars like centre-back Rio Ferdinand and goalkeeper David James will not go to the World Cup finals next year unless they have been playing regularly and are fit, England coach Fabio Capello has said. The Italian, who will name his squad later on Sunday for next Saturday's friendly against Brazil in Doha, said the rule applied to every player including Manchester United's Ferdinand, who he described as one of the best centre-backs in the world.
Ferguson says real United will show up at Chelsea
LONDON - Manchester United sit just two points behind Chelsea in the table but as they prepare to visit Stamford Bridge on Sunday, there is a sense that something is not quite right with the Premier League champions. Last month's 2-0 defeat at Liverpool was a sobering experience for Alex Ferguson and was concrete proof the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid and Carlos Tevez to Manchester City has severely diminished his team as an attacking force.
Rampant Arsenal go second, Man City draw again
LONDON - Arsenal romped to a 4-1 victory at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday to move into second place in the Premier League while Manchester City's hopes of threatening the top four were hit by a fifth consecutive draw. City drew 3-3 with Burnley after having battled back from a two-goal deficit to lead with three minutes remaining.
Murray beats Verdasco to reach Valencia final
VALENCIA, Spain - Top seed Andy Murray battled past Fernando Verdasco in the semi-finals of the Valencia Open on Saturday, beating the fourth-seeded Spaniard 6-3 2-6 6-3 to set up a final against Mikhail Youzhny. World number four Murray, who before this week had not played on the ATP tour since September's U.S. Open due to a wrist injury, cruised through the first set but lost his way in the second as Verdasco unleashed some powerful winners.
New Zealand maintain stranglehold on Wales
CARDIFF - New Zealand repelled a frenzied late challenge at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday to defeat Wales 19-12 and extinguish the home side's hopes of a first victory over the All Blacks since 1953. In the final 10 minutes, with New Zealand leading 19-6, man-of-the-match Dan Carter pulled down replacement scrumhalf Martin Roberts with a tackle the crowd thought was clearly too high following a sizzling break by Shane Williams.
Zenyatta rules, Europe duo in double hit
ARCADIA, California Breeders' Cup Classic. The unbeaten mare picked off her male rivals one by one in a dramatic stretch run to become the first female to win North America's richest race.
New Zealand hopeful of finding new coach soon
WELLINGTON officials hope to appoint a new national coach by the end of the year. Former coach Andy Moles quit last month after falling out with senior players and the team are playing their current limited over series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates without a coach.
Bath City in FA Cup surprise at Grimsby
LONDON Grimsby Town 2-0, Staines knocked out Shrewsbury 1-0 and Kettering were 1-0 winners at League One Hartlepool.
Djokovic to face Federer after survival act
BASEL - World number one Roger Federer survived a difficult first set before beating unseeded compatriot Marco Chiudinelli to reach the final of his hometown Swiss Indoors on Saturday. He will face third-ranked Novak Djokovic, who pulled off an even more impressive survival act by saving three match points before beating Radek Stepanek 6-7 7-5 6-2.