• British-Somali boxer claims first world titles in Texas

• Kreps outlands Ali but loses disputed split decision

• Baumgardner wins 135lb belt as Dubois feud heats up

British-Somali boxer Ramla Ali became a world champion for the first time at the age of 36 on Sunday night after escaping with a highly contentious 10-round split decision over former sparring partner Mikiah Kreps to claim the vacant WBO and IBF women’s junior featherweight titles in Arlington, Texas.

Ali, who grew up in east London after fleeing Somalia’s civil war with her family and went on to become the first boxer to represent the African country at the Olympics, completed her remarkable journey to the top of the 122lb division at College Park Center on her second attempt at a world championship – but only after a controversial verdict rewarding her for a fight that appeared to be largely controlled by her opponent.

• Wilder, 41, has won 43 of his 45 victories by knockout

• Australian cruiserweight champion moves up in weight

• Cardiff showdown will stream worldwide on Netflix

Deontay Wilder, the former World Boxing Council heavyweight champion, will face unbeaten Australian cruiserweight world champion Jai Opetaia on the undercard of Tyson Fury’s showdown with Anthony Joshua in Cardiff on 11 December, organizers announced on Wednesday.

Opetaia will move up to heavyweight to take on one of history’s most devastating punchers at the Principality Stadium with the event streaming live worldwide on Netflix.

A coach shaped by her circuitous basketball journey was uniquely suited to building the trust that made Golden State champions just 534 days after their first game

The mighty, miserly Golden State Valkyries won their first WNBA title on Saturday night with a point guard Dallas had given up on and cast aside, a starting forward who had been waived five times and a late-blooming All-Star once passed over by every team in the league. That made them a fitting match for their coach. Natalie Nakase has pieced together a basketball life on making small openings count, turning a walk-on place at UCLA into a scholarship and an unsolicited scouting report into a coaching job in Japan’s top men’s league.

The Valkyries’ nerve-shredding 68-63 fightback over the Atlanta Dream in Game 7 did more than make them the fastest expansion team in major North American professional sports history to win a championship – as 45-1 preseason longshots in their second season of existence. It was proof of concept for an organization that gave overlooked players the resources, responsibility and trust to become champions – and enlisted a leader whose own circuitous journey had taught her what those things could unlock.

Can Florida’s continuity trump the transfer portal? Will JuJu Watkins pick up where she left off? And who will survive an expanded March Madness? Our writers weigh in

Lots of stuff. The return of JuJu Watkins at USC after her 19-month injury layoff, the debut of Tyran Stokes at Kansas, the potential turnaround of the Big East on the men’s side, and the stacked ACC on the women’s side. Ella Brockway

• Dream win 80-69 to level best-of-seven series at 3-3

• First Game 7 in WNBA history set for Saturday night

• Ella Brockway’s minute-by-minute report of Game 6

The Atlanta Dream had no intention of letting a matinee become their curtain call.

Facing elimination at a lunchtime tipoff, the Dream overwhelmed the Golden State Valkyries 80-69 on Thursday afternoon to force a decisive seventh game in the WNBA finals, rediscovering their offensive touch just as their title hopes were threatening to slip away.

• Brewers win first championship with 4-1 win in Game 5

• Misiorowski hurls five and two-thirds scoreless innings

• Contreras named World Series MVP after batting .381

The Milwaukee Brewers captured their first World Series crown on Wednesday night, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1 to complete a four-games-to-one victory and end more than half a century of waiting for baseball’s biggest prize.

Rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt drove in two runs and Jacob Misiorowski pitched five and two-thirds scoreless innings as Milwaukee put the finishing touches on a charmed season that began in spring training with championship ambitions and ended with the first title in the franchise’s 58th year.