A world-title mandate for Hamzah Sheeraz, Islam Makhachev’s record-breaking UFC victory, Haissem Hassan’s move to Celtic and Egyptian success in squash feature in this month’s Sport Brief.
August 14: Hamzah Sheeraz has been ordered by the WBO to defend his super-middleweight title against former unified middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly.
The WBO has given the fighters’ camps 20 days to reach an agreement before the bout goes to a purse bid.
Sheeraz, 27, claimed the vacant WBO title in May and subsequently made his first defence. The British-Pakistani fighter is unbeaten in his last 16 fights and has 15 knockouts on his record.
Alimkhanuly, 33, is unbeaten at 17-0 with 12 knockouts and previously held the WBO and IBF middleweight titles.
The mandatory defence could affect Sheeraz’s hopes of securing a major-name fight, with the British fighter previously linked with a meeting against Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.
August 12: Caroline Dubois’ hopes of becoming undisputed lightweight champion moved closer after Turkish IBF champion Elif Nur Turhan signed with Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions.
Dubois holds the WBC and WBO lightweight titles, while unbeaten Turhan holds the remaining IBF belt. A fight between the two would therefore unify three of the division’s four major world titles.
The move could make negotiations easier, with both fighters now under the same promotional umbrella.
Dubois has previously expressed frustration at the difficulty of securing a unification bout and is seeking to become the first undisputed women’s lightweight champion in the four-belt era.
August 16: Islam Makhachev defended his UFC welterweight title with a unanimous-decision win over Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 in Philadelphia, extending his record winning streak to 17 UFC victories.
The Russian dominated the grappling exchanges, recording seven takedowns and more than 12 minutes of control time. He also knocked Machado Garry down with a head kick in the second round.
Machado Garry landed more significant strikes, 29 to Makhachev’s 22, but could not overcome the champion’s wrestling and control.
The victory improves Makhachev’s record to 29-1 and breaks Anderson Silva’s previous UFC record of 16 consecutive wins.
Machado Garry, 28, suffered the second defeat of his 19-fight career and missed the chance to become Ireland’s second UFC champion after Conor McGregor.
“Ian is a great fighter, good man and I respect him. He gave me a hard time,” said Makhachev.
Machado Garry said he was proud of his performance and vowed to return.
August 14: Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal has collected Sofascore’s Player of the Season awards for both the 2025/26 Champions League and LaLiga.
The Spain international topped the Champions League ratings with an average score of 8.08, having started all 10 of Barcelona’s matches, scoring six goals and providing four assists.
He also led LaLiga’s ratings with 7.93, recording 16 goals and 11 assists in 28 appearances.
Yamal’s Champions League campaign included a competition-high 46 successful dribbles, while he averaged 2.4 key passes per match and created 12 big chances.
The 19-year-old also earned nine LaLiga Team of the Week selections and four in the Champions League.
His domestic campaign included two perfect 10 ratings, against Las Palmas on February 28 and Real Madrid on April 11, according to Sofascore.
The awards cap a season in which Yamal established himself as one of Barcelona’s most influential attacking players, combining his ability to beat defenders with consistent goals and assists.
August 13: Egypt international winger Haissem Hassan joined Celtic from Spanish club Real Oviedo on a four-year contract.
The 24-year-old completed the move after helping Oviedo secure promotion to LaLiga. Celtic have agreed a deal worth around £6 million initially, with the fee potentially rising to £9 million with add-ons.
Hassan arrives as Celtic strengthen their attacking options for the new Scottish Premiership season and their European campaign.
The winger has established himself with Egypt after making his international debut and will now begin a new chapter in Scotland following his spell in Spain.
August 14: Egypt’s Seif Refaay and Sohayla Hazem won the men’s and women’s titles respectively at the HCL Squash PSA Challenger Tour event in Kolkata.
The results completed an Egyptian double at the tournament, continuing the country’s strong presence in international squash.
The Kolkata event formed part of the 2026 PSA Challenger Tour, which provides a pathway for players to climb the world rankings and progress towards the sport’s elite PSA World Tour.
