In what must be music to the ears of many horse racing fans around the world during this prolonged coronavirus outbreak, Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) have authorised the continuation of fixtures to take place over the next few days, including Thurles on Saturday afternoon.

HRI will be under constant scrutiny to ensure that these “behind closed doors” meetings do not impact on the Irish government’s attempts to deal with the impact of coronavirus, but they are currently deemed a necessity to keep a fragile industry ticking over during these difficult financial times.

Even the terrestrial racing broadcasters are getting in on the act with the UK’s ITV network taking in five of the races from Thurles (1.40-3.40pm) which they will show on their ITV4 channel.

The feature event on the card is the Grade Three Pierce Molony Memorial Novice Chase which takes place at 3.10pm GMT. For those of you thinking of having a flutter, here is your race-by-race preview:

888sport are BOOSTING at least one runner in all FIVE televised races at Thurles - keep up with the latest horse racing odds ahead of Saturday's meeting.

 

1:40pm - Adare Manor Opportunity Maiden Hurdle (5yo+) 2m

The Gordon Elliott-trained Fakiera has the perfect opportunity here to finally break his maiden tag, but after finishing the bridesmaid on his last two runs, there are doubts once again as to whether he can actually finish the job in hand.

POLITESSE won going away at this very venue a month ago and the Fowler family bred mare has been carefully placed once again by her trainer – Mrs Lorna Fowler. There is no doubt that the mare will be on the premises.

The mare Blanketontheground could easily run into a place at a price.

 

2:10pm - www.thurlesraces.ie Hurdle (5yo+) 2m 6½f.

Martin Hassett’s MARY FRANCES got the better of Blast Of Koeman at Punchestown last time out and can follow up in what is not a particularly strong field.

Her Clonmel run this season ties in nicely with The Storyteller who finished an honourable second in the Pertemps Final at The Festival and is by far the strongest form line in the race.

Moyhenna’s jumping has gone to pot so far this campaign, while Karl Der Grosse is an interesting runner on his return for Willie Mullins after being absent for over a year.

Jessica Harrington’s Jetz placed second on this very card twelve months ago.

 

2:40pm - Horse & Jockey Handicap Hurdle (4yo+ 80-95) 2m 6½f.

This is a pretty open handicap hurdle with the majority of the principles players probably coming from the 90+ rated horses in the field.

GOULANE JESSIE just went down to Highest Benefit when they met last time at Fairyhouse at the end of January, and the pair of them should be in the vanguard once again in this contest.

Johnny Little Legs put in an improved performance last time but it is difficult to assess whether he will follow that up, while the seven-year-old Ballea Fox has been running well throughout the months of February and March and holds a solid each-way chance.

 

3:10pm - Pierce Molony Memorial Novice Chase (Grade 3) (5yo+) 2m 2f.

Sizing Pottsie has been a revelation since the start of the year and can put in another bold bid to make it a hat-trick of wins here.

The Henry De Bromhead-trained CAPUCCIMIX is in fine fettle himself this season and the seven-year-old is a good looking prospect going forward, never mind in this - he could be one to watch in 2021 Cheltenham Festival ante-post tips.

His commanding win at Naas last time showed that he can dominate from the front and the others may struggle to peg him back here.

Cut The Mustard has been running consistently all this term and should make his presence felt once more, while the Peter Fahy-trained Duvegan has the potential to pick right up where he left off after a recent break.

 

3:40pm - Duggan Veterinary Handicap Chase (5yo+) 2m 4½f.

Top-weighted Seskin Flyer is a course and distance winner and usually runs a game race at this venue.  He is without a win since last March but it would come as no surprise if he were to remedy that.

The thirteen-year-old SONNY B has been turning back the sands of time this season and gives the overall impression that he just coming to the boil. He is also a course and distance winner and will be hoping to remedy a losing spell lasting four years.

As we all know, J.P McManus like a winner or two and his At Your Ease may well be his best chance of getting one on the Thurles Saturday card. The seven-year-old should come on a ton for his run here at the beginning of the month in the Urlingford Rated Chase.

Kavanagh’s Corner is in a rich vein of form and is sure to be well supported by the betting public.

 

4:10pm - Devil's Bit Beginners Chase (5yo+) 2m 6f.

MACGILONEY was last seen when chasing home Ramses De Teillee at Cheltenham last October and sets the standard here. The seven-year-old has won five times under Rules and will be fit and raring to go after a 147-day break.

The Willie Mullins-trained Max Dynamite has won and run big races on both the Flat and over obstacles and should not be underestimated in this sphere, while Jessica Harrington’s Hotel Du Nord ran his best race for some time last time out at Leopardstown.

Dortmund Park is probably pretty dangerous to dismiss too.

 

4:40pm - www.thurlesraces.ie (Pro/Am) Flat Race (4yo) 2m.

With the Henry De Bromhead-trained Kapard likely to dominate the horse racing tips and betting odds, many punters will be looking for an alternative to the favourite and a horse they can take her on with.

Jenny’s Star, Land Jet and Street Fighter are all obvious challengers, but an each-way chance can be give to the Stuart Crawford-trained MAJOR ROBINSON who has had a fair degree of success in bumpers over the years.

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to Terrance Williams / AP Photo*

Boxing is one of the most popular sports on the planet, with millions of fans across the globe tuning in for the biggest fights.

According to ESPN, approximately 50 million people in the United States alone watched Floyd Mayweather fight Conor McGregor in 2017 – and boxing continues to flourish and thrive three years later.

Over the years, boxing has developed and sporting icons have emerged. From Muhammad Ali’s infectious charisma to Tyson Fury’s heroic comeback story, boxers have managed to paint the sport in various lights.

Here, we take a look through some of the best boxing quotes and comments in the history of the sport.

 

Muhammad Ali:

“You can be free. You can be black. Look at me! I’m the world heavyweight champion! Can’t nobody stop me.”

 

Muhammad Ali:

“The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.”

 

Muhammad Ali:

“That man was beautiful. Timing, speed, reflexes, rhythm, his body, everything was beautiful. And to me, still, I would say pound for pound… I’d say I’m the greatest heavyweight of all-time but pound for pound, I still say Sugar Ray Robinson was the greatest of all-time.”

 

Tony Bellew:

“Boxing is the only thing I’ve ever understood. I certainly don’t understand women.”

 

Tony Bellew:

“You don’t brag about putting someone in hospital. It’s absolutely horrible.”

 

Drew ‘Bundini’ Brown:

“We gon’ float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. AH! Rumble, young man rumble! AH!”

 

Frank Bruno:

“Boxing is the toughest and loneliest sport in the world.”

 

Michael Buffer:

“Let’s get ready to rumble!”

 

Dereck Chisora:

“If David [Haye] doesn’t fight me, I am going to physically burn him.”

 

Dereck Chisora:

“I’ve lost six fights and people wrote me off but you can’t write me off. I’m like herpes. You think I’m gone and then I pop back up.”

 

George Chuvalo:

“He went to the hospital with bleeding kidneys and me, I went dancing with my wife.”

Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb:

“I don’t think his hands could take the abuse.”

 

Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb:

“If you screw things up in tennis, it’s 15-love. If you screw up in boxing, it’s your ass.”

 

Howard Cosell:

“The time may have come to say goodbye to Muhammad Ali, because very honestly, I don’t think he can beat George Foreman.”

 

Cus D’Amato:

“To see a man beaten not by a better opponent but by himself is a tragedy.”

 

Oscar De La Hoya:

“Once, I was at a party. This was a time when it seemed like I had everything. I was young, I was undefeated. I had money and had just moved into my own home. People at the party were laughing and having fun.

"I missed my mother, I felt to lonely. I remember asking myself, ‘why isn’t my mother here? Why are all these people around me? I don’t want these people around me’. I looked out the window and started crying.”

 

Jack Dempsey:

“A champion is someone who gets up when he can't.”

 

Roberto Duran:

“I’m not God, but I am something similar.”

 

Roberto Duran:

“Getting hit motivates me. It makes me punish the guy more. A fighter takes a punch, hits back with three punches.”

 

George Foreman:

“The question isn’t at what age I want to retire, it’s at what income.”

 

George Foreman:

“Sure, the fight was fixed. I fixed it with a right hand.”

 

Joe Frazier:

“His mouth made him [feel] like he was gonna win. Not his hands, I had my hand. He had his lips.”

 

Tyson Fury:

“Mental health has got to be the biggest battle I’ve ever fought with, more than any opponent.”

 

Tyson Fury:

“I’m a gypsy – no education, no schooling, nothing. I don’t care what people think of me. I don’t care about being a hero, a role model, a champion.”

 

Tyson Fury:

“It’s not about how much money I’m getting paid. It’s just a love of one-on-one combat. I feel I’m at home. I love the ring entrances, the talking. I’m the master of it all.”

 

David Haye:

“You’re going to get violated in that ring. I am going to close the curtain on the joke that is the Audley Harrison show.”

 

David Haye:

“He is the ugliest thing I have ever seen. I have watched Lord of the Rings and films with strange looking people, but for a human being to look like he does is pretty shocking.”

 

Evander Holyfield:

“A champion shows who he is by what he does when he’s tested. When a person gets up and says ‘I can still do it’, he’s a champion.”

 

Jack Johnson:

“The possession of muscular strength and the courage to use it in contests with other men for physical supremacy does not necessarily imply a lack of appreciation for the finer and better things of life.”

 

Anthony Joshua:

“When you are around people who have money, you realise money isn’t that impressive, it’s about your class, morals and how you conduct yourself.”

 

Anthony Joshua:

“People have built me up to be untouchable, unbeatable, invincible, and I’m not that. I am a man, and I am a winner, but that can change in a second.”

 

Anthony Joshua:

“In boxing, it is about the obsession of getting the most from yourself: wanting to dominate the world like a hungry young lion.”

 

Don King:

“Only in America.”

Jake LaMotta:

“I fought Sugar so many times, I’m surprised I’m not diabetic.”

 

Sugar Ray Leonard:

“It’s different when you become a professional, because you also have to become a businessman and that takes something away from it.”

 

Joe Louis:

“Once that bell rings, you’re on your own. It’s just you and the other guy.”

 

Lennox Lewis:

“In boxing, you create a strategy to beat each new opponent. It’s just like chess.”

 

Floyd Mayweather Jr:

“He can have heart, he can hit harder and he can be stronger, but there’s no fighter smarter than me.”

 

Floyd Mayweather Jr:

“I fight for that check. I’m in the check cashing business.”

 

Larry Merchant:

“There are too many governing bodies. They’re all corrupt. I think they have replaced the old Mobsters with the kind of ‘corporate rule’ of boxing.”

 

Ferdie ‘The Fight Doctor’ Pacheco:

“They only made one mistake, they signed this fight.”

 

Sugar Ray Robinson:

“Rhythm is everything in boxing. Every move you make starts with your heart, and that’s in rhythm or you’re in trouble.”

 

Mike Tyson:

“I want your heart. I want to eat his children.”

 

Mike Tyson:

“The [temptation] for greatness is the biggest drug in the world.”

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to John Rooney / AP Photo*

The Premier League is the most-watched and richest league in the world. The list of the most-expensive transfers in Premier League history is ever-changing, with records broken every window.

Though the league is yet to break the £100 million barrier like Real Madrid and Paris Saint Germain, it’s a matter of time before a team heads into nine figures.

Manchester United are the most likely to do so at this stage, after making one of the best January signings in the form of Bruno Fernandes.

We have compiled a list of the top 10 most expensive transfers in Premier League history, per TransferMarkt.

 

Paul Pogba - £94.5 million

Mino Raiola and over-the-top criticism have clouded Paul Pogba’s time at Manchester United. He’s an opinion-splitting figure, and it’s easy to forget the excitement when he was brought to Old Trafford from Juventus.

Pogba can control a match. His peak performances are as good as any midfielder around. Unfortunately, a poorly built squad and misuse from managers has made his second stint at Old Trafford more about memes than highlights.

 

Harry Maguire - £78.3 million

The England international premium, the selling to Manchester United premium, and an established Premier League side premium.

Harry Maguire’s fee was inflated, and everyone knew it at the time, but it shouldn’t undermine what was a good signing for Manchester United.

They finally got the centre-back they needed, a leader who can hold the defence together through the 2020s.

Romelu Lukaku - £76.23 million

Romelu Lukaku’s signing from Everton completes a Manchester United top three and another transfer that didn’t work out.

United lost almost £20 million when they sold Lukaku to Inter last summer, and the former Chelsea man has been on fire for Antonio Conte’s side.

Lukaku became a scapegoat at Old Trafford, and few can blame him for wanting out.

 

Virgil van Dijk - £76.19 million

Not many players have transformed a team like Virgil van Dijk did when his long-awaited move from Southampton to Liverpool went through.

A European champion and a Lionel Messi away from winning the Ballon d’Or, van Dijk is the undisputed best defender in the world.

It has become cliché to call him a bargain, but it’s for good reason. Van Dijk’s signing was a masterstroke.

 

Nicolas Pepe - £72 million

Adding Nicolas Pepe to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Mesut Ozil should have formed a fearsome attack.

The 2019/20 campaign has been turbulent for Arsenal, however, and Pepe is still settling in.

The talent is there, but the fee brings vast pressure. He’s a player, along with Arsenal’s youngsters, for the Emirates to get excited about in the Mikel Arteta era.

 

Kepa Arrizabalaga - £72 million

Thibaut Courtois rightly displaced Petr Cech and was superb for Chelsea.

When he departed, though, Chelsea were left in a terrible negotiating position for a new goalkeeper, so they triggered Kepa Arrizabalaga’s release clause.

It has been a severe disappointment thus far. Chelsea fans will hope Kepa can follow David De Gea’s developmental path.

 

Kevin De Bruyne - £68.4 million

Always in the Premier League Odds mix to win Player of the Year, Kevin De Bruyne – like van Dijk – has proved to be a bargain at under £70 million.

There’s a case to be made for the Belgian as the best midfielder on the planet. A few more years at this level, and De Bruyne will be considered among the greatest in Premier League history.

Angel di Maria - £67.5 million

Still one of the best players in the world, Angel di Maria’s transfer to Manchester United summed up the club post-Ferguson.

He never really wanted to be at Old Trafford, and despite moments of brilliance, it was a season wasted for both club and player.

Di Maria has thrived in Paris, switching between central and wide roles and stepping up when Kylian Mbappe and Neymar are sidelined. United fans are left wondering about what might have been.

 

Rodri - £63 million

Although not featuring at the top of this list, Manchester City have several transfers in the £45 to 65 million range.

Rodri, signed in the summer of 2019, is the latest such addition. The Spaniard bolstered the deep-lying midfield position as Fernandinho heads into his twilight years.

With injuries at the back forcing the Brazilian to play in defence, Rodri has been much needed in the midfield.

 

Riyad Mahrez - £61.02 million

Leicester made a pretty profit on Riyad Mahrez, having signed him from Le Havre for less than half a million. An improbable title and thousands of stepovers later, and Manchester City were calling for Mahrez’s services.

Considering City’s already obscene attacking options, Mahrez’s transfer could be seen as a good argument for a Premier League salary cap.

Leroy Sane’s injury has made him an integral piece in 2019/20, however, and attracted the attention of PSG.

 

*Credit for the main photo belongs to Rui Vieira / AP Photo*