Daily Mirror - 17.08.2019

DM1ST
mirror.co.uk/sport SATURDAY 17.08.2019 DAILY MIRROR^57

BARRY

McGUIGAN

Joshua has

to focus on

just desert

SAUDI ARABIA is an unusual place from

the point of view of boxing culture.

There is no history of prize fighting in

the region and you feel that absence from

the moment you touch down.

From a technical point of view

everything works. The facilities and the

hotels are great.

The only thing that went against us

when George Groves fought Callum Smith

was the result, but we had no complaints

about the show.

So whatever concerns Andy Ruiz

(above, beating Anthony Joshua) about

the rematch, it is not the setting or

neutrality. You will never find a more

neutral location to defend a title.

I suspect good old boxing politics is

behind the Ruiz noise coming out of the

United States. His handlers are either

manipulating the circumstances for a

better deal, or they are testing the

strength of the contract.

Ruiz is managed by Al Haymon, who

also advises Deontay Wilder (below).

And Haymon wants the

big fights in the US, an

environment he knows

and can control.

In many ways

Joshua walked into

an ambush in the

first fight at Madison

Square Garden.

He was reckless. He

got caught trying to finish

the job and the whole fight went away

from him.

To me, Joshua didn’t look quite right at

any point that night. There was

speculation that he was hurt in his last

sparring session. He looked unsettled.

Critics say he is no good away from

home. I don’t believe that. People forget

how difficult it is to maintain form when

you are carrying the weight of the sport

on your shoulders.

That is how it must seem to him at

times. Joshua has become a huge star.

After being knocked down four times in

New York, Joshua recognised something

has to give and has said he will make

changes to his coaching team.

He said he needs to get back to basics,

to surround himself by boxing people and

rediscover his passion for the sport.

In that Joshua is absolutely bang on.

Wherever the rematch takes place, he

needs to be fully focused on the job. He

can’t afford to get careless a second time.

ATHLETICS: DIAMOND LEAGUE, BIRMINGHAM

MOLI’S ED OF STEAM

Resort as he seeks a fourth

European Tour title.

“I’m giving myself lots of

chances,” said Molinari,

who won twice in

Scotland in 2010 to

earn a Ryder Cup wild

card and also won the

Trophee Hassan II in

2017. “I’ve had a tough few
      years but now I’m playing
      well so life is good.”

ITALY’S Edoardo Molinari will

take a two-shot lead into the

third round of the D+D Real

Czech Masters after

another flawless display.

Molinari (right)

carded a second

consecutive 66 for a

halfway total of 12 under

par. The former Ryder Cup

player has yet to drop a

single shot at Albatross Golf

MUIR WILL TAKE ON WORLD
little more than six weeks away,
the flying Scot is in a race
against time to make the start
line and fulfil her clear medal
potential.
But she is back in training and
given that in the spring she went
from injury to clocking 3min
56sec – the world’s third fastest
1500m – in Rome six weeks later,
her camp are understood to be
unworried.

BY ALEX SPINK
LAURA MUIR will be fit for the
World Athletics Championships
despite her build-up being
disrupted by injury.
The European 1500m
champion damaged a calf at the
London Anniversary games and
is out of both tomorrow’s
Birmingham Diamond League
and next week’s British champs.
With the Worlds in Doha now

BEAT THE CLOCK

Muir is racing time

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finish

GOLF: CZECH MASTERS, PRAGUE

SINCK

OR SWIM

Sinckler keen to get stuck back into

Wales despite losing the plot last time

KYLE SINCKLER

insists he was not

scarred by his Six

Nations experience in

Cardiff and is itching to

get stuck into Wales.

The fiery England prop,

26, is back at the

Principality Stadium for

the first time since Warren

Gatland branded him an

“emotional timebomb” in

February.

Sinckler responded by

tackling himself to a stand-

still before Wales got under

his skin, provoked him into

conceding two key

penalties, and Eddie Jones

quickly subbed him off

(above).

“I’m not perfect,” he said.

“Everyone makes mistakes.

For me I’ve got to let it go

and move on. I am itching

to get back out there and

show what I can do.

“I review everything to

see how I can improve.

Every detail, everything I

do. But I don’t hold on to

things, good and bad, as if

you do it will hinder your

next game and the next

game after that.”

Sinckler is a huge talent,

as Gatland knows well,

having capped him off the

bench three times for the

2017 British Lions before

he had even made his full

debut for England. And the

JONES: I CAN’T WRAP THE

PLAYERS IN COTTON WOOL

EDDIE JONES insists it is right his England

stars play Test matches so close to the

World Cup despite another injury fright.

Ruaridh McConnochie “pulled up sore”

in the final session ahead of today’s clash

with Wales and was rated a major doubt.

The uncapped wing joins Jack Nowell,

Mako Vunipola, Tom Curry, Sam Underhill,

Mark Wilson and Henry Slade as a crock.

But Jones said: “You can’t worry about

injuries, you just get on with it. It’s the risk

you take. It’s like a boxer – a boxer’s got to

box, rugby player’s got to play rugby.”

TV TIMES: Live on

Sky Sports Main Event, 2pm

WALES ENGLAND

L Williams Daly

North McConnochie

Jon Davies Joseph

Parkes Francis

J Adams Cokanasiga

Biggar Ford

G Davies Heinz

Smith Genge

Owens Cowan-Dickie

Francis Cole

Ball Launchbury

A-W Jones (c)^ Itoje

Wainwright Lawes

James Davies Ludlam

Moriarty B Vunipola

LIKELY LINE-UPS

15

14

13

12

11

10

9 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

WALES REPS: Dee, W Jones,

Lewis, Shingler, Navidi,^

A Davies, Evans, Watkin

ENGLAND REPS: George,

Marler, Sinckler, Kruis,

Singleton, Youngs, Farrell,

Tuilagi

by rugby standards. He said: “I have

been doubted throughout my

career because of my size.

“I remember not getting an

academy spot because I was

too small. I thrive on proving

those people wrong.

“It keeps me going every day.”

DAVIES MAKES LIGHT WORK OF TEST

JAMES DAVIES aims to lay down a

World Cup marker today.

Wales flanker Davies (right)

will win his fourth cap and play

alongside brother Jonathan

for the first time at Test level.

The flanker, who is 6ft tall and

weighs 15 stone, is small and light

WALES v ENGLAND

WORLD CUP WARM-UP

PRINCIPALITY STADIUM, 2.15PM

Wales coach tried to bury

the hatchet ahead of

today’s World Cup warm-

up clash, seeking him out

at Twickenham last

Sunday.

“I saw him and shook

his hand,” said Gatland.

“I made a couple of

comments about him in

the Six Nations. I thought

he was brilliant and played

exceptionally well against

us for most of that game.

“There is no doubt he is

an outstanding player. His

work-rate was outstanding

with the number of tackles

and carries he made.”

Nobody, least of all

Sinckler (right, clashing

with Alun Wyn Jones),

would pretend he is the

finished article. He is

combustible, partly

because he cares so much.

“International rugby is

like a rollercoaster,” he

said. “When you win it’s

the best feeling in the

world. But when you lose

you carry

the weight

of the

country

on your

shoulders.

“We feel it

more than

anyone. It is

pretty

intense.”

FOLLOW Barry on Twitter at....

@ClonesCyclone @McGuigans_Gym

and @CyclonePromo

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