Browsing: rival

Former WWE star Braun Strowman has finally spoken about his recent Twitter clash with Paul Heyman, suggesting the WWE manager might be overly sensitive or perhaps misses having him around. The Monster Among Men seemed confused about why Heyman came at him so strongly when he never directly addressed the veteran wrestling personality in the first place.​

Speaking on TMZ’s Inside the Ring, Strowman explained that

I keep getting this tweeting with Paul Heyman. I never even talked about Paul or acknowledged Paul. I donâ€t know why he got so upset and came at me… Especially because he gets to see my face every commercial break on SmackDown, and letâ€s be for real, if anybody knows about me having a show about ordering everything on the menu, you think Paul would know.

I have no idea (why Heyman wrote what he did about me). I guess I struck a nerve or something. I donâ€t know. I didnâ€t deliberately, intentionally mean to talk to him or any of that stuff. I donâ€t know whatâ€s going on, and maybe heâ€s just sensitive or something or maybe he misses me. Thatâ€s probably what it is. I think the ratings are struggling a little bit and they realize that when The Monsterâ€s on TV, he draws ratings so who knows?†(H/T: WrestlePurists)

Strowman also took a subtle shot at WWE’s current television performance, suggesting that the ratings are struggling a little bit, and they realize that when The Monster’s on TV, he draws ratings. The comment seemed to reference his absence from WWE programming since his departure from the company in May 2025.​

The Exchange Between Paul Heyman and Braun Strowman

The social media back-and-forth began after the October 6 edition of WWE RAW, when Heyman claimed during a segment that Bronson Reed was the only person who ever put Roman Reigns on a stretcher. This statement caught the attention of Strowman, who famously feuded with Reigns back in 2017 and had his own brutal moments with the Big Dog, including overturning an ambulance with Reigns inside.​

Strowman responded on Twitter by posting emojis and calling Heyman ‘Oswald Cobblepot,’ referencing the Penguin character from Batman. The jab was a clear shot at Heyman’s appearance and his revisionist history about Reigns never being stretchered out before.​

Paul Heyman didn’t let the comment slide and fired back with a brutal response on October 8. He wrote a sarcastic message saying he had nothing negative to say about Strowman, but added that he was actually relieved and celebratory to learn that Strowman was still alive, something most people didn’t realize and even fewer cared about. The cutting remark was classic Heyman, mixing fake politeness with a harsh dig at Strowman’s reduced visibility since leaving WWE.

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Jannik Sinner claimed a commanding victory over rival Carlos Alcaraz to win the lucrative Six Kings Slam in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Sinner, replaced as world number one by Alcaraz following the US Open in September, exacted revenge for his defeat in the New York final with a 6-2 6-4 win.

With his victory, the Italian, 24, earned a reported $6m (£4.5m) – including $4.5m (£3.4m) in prize money, in addition to a $1.5m (£1.1m) participation fee.

While the pair split the four Grand Slam titles between them this season, Sinner was dominant from the outset against Alcaraz, who said his opponent was “just too good” on Saturday.

Sinner broke Alcaraz’s serve in the opening game and swiftly wrapped up the first set, with the Spaniard unable to gain a foothold against his opponent’s clinical serving.

He would go on to win the exhibition event for the second consecutive year after making the decisive breakthrough in the seventh game of the second set.

“I wish I could play like this everywhere,” Sinner said in his on-court interview.

“This season we played many, many times and I also lost many times to Carlos. It is a huge pleasure and honour to share the court with him.

“At the same time, you want to get better as a player and you need rivalries in the sport. So it’s nice to have a great rivalry and more importantly a great friendship off the court.

“We have a very special friendship and it’s very nice.”

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MUNICH — Modern football hype prefers it when we place everything in a convenient box that doesn’t always reflect reality. I suppose it’s understandable.

Covering the German game as a commentator, however, you quickly resist the temptation to make Bayern Munich vs. Borussia Dortmund what advertising moguls might have us do with a fixture that has come to be known as der Klassiker.

It doesn’t lend itself to a simplistic “clash of the titans” narrative. Nuance and context are needed when understanding what this confrontation is.

Yes, it is the most-high profile Bundesliga fixture that the wider world often associates with the league and it features two heavyweight clubs, indeed the two most avidly followed in the Bundesrepublik. The action — as was the case last season in a pair of thrilling score draws — can be highly absorbing in front of some of the largest crowds in the world and offers a window into who is currently the best team in Germany.

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However, this is not the German rivalry to end all rivalries along the lines of Real Madrid against Barcelona, Celtic vs. Rangers or Galatasaray against Fenerbahce. Nor should we pretend it is. Bayern fans simply don’t obsess on a weekly Schadenfreude basis over BVB, and the same is true of those of a schwarzgelb persuasion with regard to the Rekordmeister.

Some would argue that calling it a rivalry is stretching it, although it is certainly a Spitzenduell (a duel of top teams).

The fixture began to gain prominence in the 1990s with the threat to Bayern from the industrial west under the aegis of Ottmar Hitzfeld, who would later take his coaching talents to Munich. Back then, Bayern were not as dominant as they are now and players didn’t view Bayern-BVB as a cut above other matches.

Arguably the greatest era for this tussle was during Jürgen Klopp’s time in charge of BVB. Dortmund lifting the Meisterschale in 2011 and 2012 added spice and tension and it set the table for the all-German 2013 Champions League final at Wembley. This time, Bayern were victorious in a nailbiter.

The fact remains that BVB have come up empty in their Bundesliga title quest since 2012, most painfully in 2023, when they failed to play the considerable cards in their deck and gifted Bayern a winning hand on the final day.

In the past two seasons, der Klassiker, while still the most watched fixture in the Oberhaus, has played second fiddle on a competitive basis to Bayern’s meetings with 2024 champions Bayer Leverkusen.

Stopping Harry Kane, center, will be the tall task facing Emre Can, right, and Borussia Dortmund in Saturday’s Klassiker vs. Bayern Munich. AP Photo/Matthias Schrader

This term, there’s no doubt the pecking order has shifted again. Bayern, under Vincent Kompany appear to have one of their most formidable formulas in several years. It raises the question: Can anyone get close to them in the Bundesliga?

The evidence of the first six matchdays is that BVB are likely the only team with a chance of preventing a Bayern runaway. They lack Bayern’s overall quality but there is a tenacity and defensive resilience about Dortmund in their current guise under Niko Kovac that makes you think they could, on a very good day, end Bayern’s flawless record in all competitions so far this season.

I find there is a general erroneous belief among casual fans that Bayern almost always beat BVB, and certainly in Munich. In fact, Dortmund’s past two visits have produced a 2-0 win and a 2-2 draw, the latter well merited with the pressure on to lift themselves up into a Champions League place against the odds.

Bayern will be firm favorites on Saturday, though. How could it be otherwise considering their 10 straight competitive wins to start the season with 38 goals scored?

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The loose ends from Kompany’s first campaign at the helm have been tightened up to the point where it’s difficult to discern a weakness. Even with Jamal Musiala, Alphonso Davies and Hiroki Ito still on the sidelines, and Thomas Müller no longer part of the equation, Bayern are markedly better than they were up and down the pitch when the Belgian took over.

It’s natural to highlight Harry Kane, whose tally of 11 goals from six Bundesliga matches so far puts him on a pace to obliterate Robert Lewandowski‘s 41-goal single-season record. I’ve spoken at length in this space about Kane’s increased versatility with adept long-range passing and dropping into the Musiala position for increased effectiveness part of his repertoire.

But it’s also worth taking note of Bayern’s improved team statistics in the running and sprinting department. Rarely does the team with the highest possession percentage lead the field in distance covered, a category normally reserved for a team designed to play gegen den Ball (against the ball).

Dortmund don’t play with an especially high line and it’s to be expected that their Dreierkette (back three) will follow similar tactics at the Allianz Arena, while hoping to make the Umschaltmomente (transitional moments) count. This plays to the strength of the speedy Karim Adeyemi and natural line leader Serhou Guirassy.

To me, this encounter doesn’t actually need a vapid wrestling style introduction. It’s surely enough to make it about perfect Bayern and unbeaten Dortmund, first vs. second, on a collision course and an engrossing football contest.

And the German language has the perfect word for the occasion: richtungsweisend (pointing the way ahead).

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Michail Antonio is reportedly training with a new club as he hopes to secure a contract.

Antonio, 35, left West Ham United in the summer after a road traffic accident saw the forward break his leg in four different places.

The Hammers helped Antonio in his recovery, but new reports have suggested the striker is keeping fit and has begun training with a Premier League rival.

Antonio has played twice for West Ham’s Under-21s so far this season, featuring in games against Nottingham Forest and Manchester City.

Alongside his current punditry duties, one source on X (formerly known as Twitter) has relayed information that Antonio is now training with Brentford in a bid to earn a short-term contract with Keith Andrews’ side.

The Bees lost strikers Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa this summer, but have since seen Igor Thiago assume the natural starting berth at the Gtech Community Stadium.

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“I’ve got something to prove to show that I can come back, I can come back and play well, which I was doing for the last 10 years,” Antonio said back in August, when asked if he still wishes to continue playing.

“Even before I did the car crash, I was starting for West Ham, so it shows I’ve still got that ability about me and I can do it again.”

Keith Andrews took over after Thomas Frank at Brentford earlier this summer (Image credit: Getty Images)

In FourFourTwo‘s view, the Bees’ immediate aim is to remain as a Premier League club this season, and having someone with Antonio’s experience around could be beneficial.

It remains to be seen whether a contract will be offered to the forward, with Mirror Sport suggesting Andrews and his side have no intention of doing so.

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  By: Ed Weaver  /  September 10, 2025 Wellsboro won their third straight game against rival North Penn-Liberty with a 3-2 win…

NEW YORK — Three years after winning his first major title and becoming the youngest No. 1 player in history,…

By: Ed Weaver  /  October 1, 2024

The Wellsboro Varsity Volleyball team edged rival North Penn-Liberty 3-2 in the inaugural Chuck Tameris Memorial Game, sweeping the season series with the Lady Mounties on Monday, September 30.

“We came out strong the first set and struggled the next two,” head coach Darci Pollock said. “Our girls never gave up and fought the rest of the night. Lexi Urena had a great night offensively on the outside to help us secure the win. I am so proud of this team for the hard work they are putting in.”

Wellsboro needed bonus points to win the first set, 27-25 to take the early lead, however the Lady Mounties battled back to win the next two sets, 25-23 and 25-21 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Lady Hornets then rallied to win the 4th set 25-18 and then held on for a 15-12 win in the 5th set.

This is the first time since the 2016 season that Wellsboro won both matches.

Urena led Wellsboro with 16 kills, 18 points (4 aces) and 16 digs while sophomore Madison Cruttenden made 30 digs, scored 12 points and made 5 assists. Sophomore
Blake Eckart recorded 9 kills, sophomore
Ellie Largey made 18 assists, junior Taylor Main had 11 assists and 15 digs, and senior Paige Logsdon had 9 points (6 aces), 6 kills, and 2 solo (and 1 assisted) blocks.

Junior
Alyssa Chilson also added an assisted block.

Wellsboro also won the JV game 2-0 (25-15, 25-19) to improve to 10-3 on the season.

Wellsboro (10-3, 7-1 NTL Large School Division) hosts Athens on Thursday.

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By: Ed Weaver  /  September 11, 2024  /  Photo: The Home Page Network

Wellsboro knocked off perennial NTL volleyball powerhouse and rival North Penn-Liberty to keep their undefeated season in tact on Tuesday, September 10.

The Lady Hornets erased a seven-year skid, spanning 19 matches (including post-season play). The last time Wellsboro beat North Penn-Liberty was October 20, 2016.

“I am so proud of this team and the work they are putting in,” said head coach Darci Pollock. “That was a
tough game mentally and physically and was a hard-fought battle for both
teams! Our captains are working hard to lead this team and I can’t wait
to see how the season plays
out.”

After dropping the first set 25-14 the Lady Hornets rallied to tie everything up at 1-all with a 25-20 win in set two. Wellsboro again edged the Lady Mounties 25-22 in the third set to pull ahead 2-1, then held on for a 25-19 win in the fourth.

Senior Paige Logsdon scored 18 points to go along with 3 aces, 9 kills, 4 solo blocks and 7 assisted blocks, to led the Lady Hornets on the night. Sophomore Madison Cruttenden had 32 digs and 8 points, senior Lexi Urena made 17 digs and 3 kills, sophomore Blake Eckart made 6 kills, junior
Brooke Wheeler had 3 kills, junior Taylor Main had 11 digs, 9 assists and 2 blocks, and sophomore Ellie Largey scored 9 points (1 ace) and 12 assists.

Junior Alyssa Chilson also recorded 4 blocks.

North Penn-Liberty won the JV game 2-1, winning 25-18 in the first set, falling 19-25 in the second set, and winning 15-11 in the third, to hand Wellsboro their first JV loss on the season.

The Lady Hornets improve to 5-0 (4-0 NTL Large School Division). The team is back in action on Thursday at Athens.

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