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The UFC made its East Coast return Saturday night at Prudential Center in Newark, and the flyweight title fight delivered the kind of moment people will be rewatching for weeks. Joshua Van, coming in as an underdog, defended his title against Tatsuro Taira and sealed it with a finish in the fifth round, walking away with a Fight of the Night bonus to go with the belt.
Meanwhile, the sports world is pausing to honor a legend. Bobby Cox, the Hall of Fame manager who built the Atlanta Braves dynasty, passed away Saturday at eighty-four. Former players flooded social media with tributes, many calling him a second father — a rare thing to hear about a manager, and it tells you everything about the man he was.
And over in the NBA playoffs, San Antonio and Minnesota square off in Game four of their Western Conference series Sunday, with the Spurs fighting to stay alive. Oklahoma City, meanwhile, continues to look like the blueprint for roster building — locking up rising guard Ajay Mitchell on a three-year near-minimum deal, the kind of quiet genius move that keeps the Thunder ahead of everyone else.
That's your play-by-play. Sports Desk, back to the booth.
