BNT MISC

Ahead of the highly anticipated 2022 World Cup final between France and Argentina, fans were treated to the tournament's closing ceremony.

Like the opening ceremony last month, Saturday's event at Lusail Stadium in Qatar featured plenty of music, dancing and colorful scenes.

Spectators watching along were impressed by the show:

In addition to the dancing, there was also a performance by Nigerian American Afrobeats star Davido:

Among the other performers Sunday were Ozuna and Gims singing "Arhbo," with Nora Fatehi, Balqees, Rahma Riad and Manal performing "Light the Sky."

There was plenty of controversy surrounding the World Cup taking place in Qatar, but the on-field play created numerous memorable moments for players and fans.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said this event was "the best World Cup ever."

It creates a lot to live up to in 2026 as the United States, Mexico and Canada co-host a 48-team tournament.

Hadi Choopan is the 2022 Mr. Olympia after winning the bodybuilding title Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Choopan earned $400,000 for his win, becoming the first Iranian competitor ever to take the top prize at this event.

Here are the final results and payouts in the men's open division, via Barbend.

1. Hadi Choopan - $400,000 
2. Derek Lunsford - $150,000
3. Nick Walker - $100,000
4. Brandon Curry - $40,000
5. Mamdouh "Big Ramy" Elssbiay - $30,000

Elssbiay was one of the names to watch heading into the event as the two-time defending champion. "Big Ramy" was looking to become the eighth person ever to win three Mr. Olympia titles, with six others winning at least three in a row.

Instead, it was Coopan who impressed the judges on Saturday:

The performance was enough to climb the standings and finish in first place.

Choopan had qualified for Mr. Olympia in each of the last three years, earning two third-place finishes and one-fourth place, but his showing this week helped him finally take home the crown.

Derek Lunsford also performed well for a surprise second-place finish, especially doing well in the pre-judging on Friday.

Lunsford won the 212 Olympia a year ago before moving into the open competition this year, and he proved he was up to the task.

Choopan was still the competition's biggest star and should be a top contender to win more titles in the future.

For months, Russell Westbrook has been featured in trade rumors. It has seemed a certainty that the 34-year-old point guard will be on the move prior to the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 9.

As that date gets closer, the most probable landing spot for Westbrook appears to be ... to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers?

That's right. According to The Athletic's Sam Amick, the Lakers may opt to keep Westbrook, who has been performing much better since his early-season struggles. He's thrived while serving as Los Angeles' sixth man, which may not be how the team envisioned using him, but it's worked out thus far.

"According to a source with knowledge of the Lakers' plans, Westbrook's play this past month has made it increasingly unlikely that he will be traded before the league's Feb. 9 deadline," Amick wrote.

Westbrook is averaging 14.7 points, 7.6 assists and 6.1 rebounds in 27 games, only three of which he has started (and none since Oct. 23). He's recorded a triple-double twice over Los Angeles' past four games, including in its win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.

The Lakers still need to find a way to get going, as they had lost four of five games prior to that victory over Denver, which improved their record to a mere 12-16. Los Angeles will likely need to make at least one trade if it hopes to make a push into the playoffs.

Is it the right move to keep Westbrook as part of the core, or should the Lakers be shopping him as a piece in one of their probable potential moves?

Westbrook doesn't seem to be a long-term fit in Los Angeles, and even if he doesn't get dealt, it's unlikely he'll be back next season. After making $47.06 million in the 2022-23 campaign, Westbrook is set to become an unrestricted free agent during the upcoming summer.

But the Lakers don't have much draft capital to part with, considering they have only two first-round picks the rest of the decade. It's unlikely a team would take on Westbrook's salary without acquiring one (if not both) of those selections.

Los Angeles may be better off making a trade in which it adds complementary players to its core trio (Westbrook, LeBron James and Anthony Davis) and possibly doesn't have to give up its most significant draft capital. Is such a trade available? That isn't known, but it's worth the team pursuing.

It would also be smart for the Lakers to remain open to the possibility of a Westbrook trade, depending on the offers they may receive. Perhaps his improved play has boosted his value and could impact the type of return Los Angeles could get for him.

Unless that happens, the Lakers will probably be right to keep Westbrook and try to make a playoff push by making a different trade and hoping they can get rolling. If Westbrook continues to play well, he could serve a key role in helping Los Angeles reach the postseason.

The top prize in international soccer will be awarded Sunday as Argentina battles defending champions France in the 2022 World Cup finale.

Ahead of the titanic clash that will see Lionel Messi pursue the trophy that has eluded him his entire, legendary career, FIFA will present a closing ceremony that promotes togetherness and features some of the top worldwide acts performing songs from the tournament's official soundtrack.

But first, the details.

Date: December 18, 2022

Time: 8 a.m. EST

Location: Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar

How to Watch: Fox (TV), Fubo (streaming)

Nigerian-American performer Davido will become the first artist to open the World Cup by performing at the draw, then the closing ceremony when he is joined by Japanese singer Aisha for a rendition of 'Hayya Hayya (Better Together).'

Elsewhere as part of the ceremony, dubbed "A Night to Remember," Ozuna and Gimes will perform "Arhbo" and an all-female lineup of "Light the Sky" will feature Bollywood actress Nora Fatehi, Rahma Riad, Manal and Balqees.

"The real ones know what this journey is made up of and some may never acknowledge my value or my due, but I'm forever grateful for my team, my friends, and for the ones who always believe in me! I only hope to do bigger and better things on my own terms, and i hope to always make you guys proud! I'll never take the influence that I have for granted," Fatehi wrote on Instagram, conveying the significance of the journey that brought her to be a part of this year's tournament.

The ceremony will precede France's attempt to become the first team since the 1958 and '62 Brazil squad to win and run it back as repeat champions. The only other team to accomplish that feat was the 1934 and '38 Italy squads.

Kylian Mbappé will be the star to watch on that team while Messi and his desire to capture the FIFA World Cup Trophy bears paying attention on the other side of the field. In a year in which upsets were to be had, and underdogs like Croatia and Morocco advanced late in the competition and had a real shot at competing in Sunday's game, it is somewhat apropos that the two best players in the tournament will clash for the most coveted trophy in the game.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup Final is here, with Lionel Messi-led Argentina and Kylian Mbappé-led France set to meet at Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday to see who will be crowned champion.

The World Cup final is set to kick off at 10 a.m. ET on Sunday, but first, fans will be treated to a World Cup closing ceremony, which is expected to begin around 8:30 a.m. ET. Both the game and the closing ceremony can be watched on Fox and streamed on Fox Sports.

As is customary with the World Cup closing ceremony, organizers have kept details of the event under wraps. However, we do have some details about the artists who will be performing.

Afrobeat musician Davido will headline the event, FIFA confirmed. He will perform "Hayya Hayya (Better Together)," which is one of the songs featured on the 2022 World Cup soundtrack. Trinidad Cardona and Aisha are also featured on the track, and Aisha will perform alongside Davido at Lusail Stadium.

Award-winning Puerto Rican artist Ozuna and Congolese-French rapper Gims are also expected to perform their song "Arhbo," which is featured on the 2022 World Cup soundtrack. It was a Billboard top-10 hit.

In addition, Indian actress, singer and dancer Nora Fatehi is expected to perform alongside Balqees, Rahma Riad and Manal. They will be performing her song "Light The Sky," which is also featured on the 2022 World Cup soundtrack.

With a diverse set of artists set to perform, the closing ceremony should be one to remember, followed by an even more memorable clash between two of the world's best teams.

Former UFC featherweight and lightweight double-champion Conor McGregor tweeted Saturday that he plans to fight at middleweight at some point in the future.

McGregor's comments come after he recently posted a video of his training where he was tagged as a middleweight. The video shows a clearly bulked up McGregor:

Since suffering back-to-back losses against Dustin Poirier in 2021, McGregor has yet to announce his return to the ring. He has been working his way back from a broken left fibula and tibia suffered in a bout against Poirier at UFC 264.

The Irishman said during an Instagram live session in October that he was targeting a return in "early 2023." At this point, it's unclear what weight class McGregor would fit into and who his next opponent would be.

UFC president Dana White also said recently that he isn't sure when McGregor will return. The 34-year-old must first re-enter the United States Anti-Doping Agency's testing pool for at least six months before he can fight again.

However, he could be given an exemption to return if he provides two negative drug tests. He said in November that he will be clear for testing in February and intends to begin the process in hopes of being granted an exemption to book a fight.

While Sasha Banks is expected back in a wrestling ring soon, STARDOM co-founder Rossy Ogawa was initially hesitant to use the former WWE superstar due to money.

Per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Ogawa originally rejected bringing in Banks because "it wasn't cost-effective."

Meltzer added it's unclear how much Banks will be earning, but it's a "huge per-event deal" with New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Earlier this week, Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Mukherjee) that Voices of Wrestling Banks said is being paid more than the $100,000 per show total Chris Jericho got when he worked with New Japan from 2017-20.

Jericho denied on Twitter he had a per-appearance deal with New Japan, but he did make more per-event with the promotion than for most of his WrestleMania matches:

Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reported last week that Banks will be appearing at New Japan's Wrestle Kingdom 17 event on Jan. 4.

It's unclear exactly what role Banks will have on the show. She could challenge the winner of the Kairi-Tam Nakano match for the IWGP women's championship.

Banks teased a match against Kairi on Instagram earlier this year that Kairi posted on Twitter:

Banks and Kairi worked together in WWE from 2016-21. Kairi, who was known as Kairi Sane in WWE, left the promotion when her contract expired in December 2021. She returned to Japan with STARDOM in February.

Kairi defeated Mayu Iwatani in the main event of Historic X-Over on Nov. 20 to become the first IWGP women's champion.

STARDOM and New Japan are both owned by the same parent company (Bushiroad), and Meltzer noted the Legit Boss' deal includes a date for one STARDOM show to help build up the brand for the all-women's promotion.

"Their belief is that with 5.6 million Instagram followers and 2.4 million Twitter followers, far more than any of their talent, that she has gigantic mainstream appeal," Meltzer wrote.

Banks hasn't wrestled on television since she and Naomi defeated Natalya and Shayna Baszler to retain the WWE women's tag team championships on the May 13 episode of Friday Night SmackDown.

Both Banks and Naomi walked out of WWE during the May 16 edition of Raw because of creative differences.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (some language NSFW).

In one of their highest-profile games thus far, Bronny and Bryce James played their father's alma mater.

St. Vincent-St. Mary's came out on top 67-61 over Sierra Canyon on Saturday night from Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

LeBron James first arrived on the national scene when he was a student at St. Vincent-St. Mary's. He led the Akron, Ohio, school to three state titles before being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft and becoming one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

Despite all the hype around the James brothers squaring off against St. Vincent-St. Mary's, neither Bronny nor Bryce is likely to put this game on their highlight reel.

Bronny made just one field goal in the first half and finished the game with seven points, six rebounds and four assists. The 18-year-old fouled out late in the fourth quarter as the Trailblazers were attempting to make a comeback.

Sierra Canyon did cut the deficit to four at 61-57 with 40 seconds remaining, but the Fighting Irish were able to make clutch free throws to preserve the win.

Bryce didn't even make an appearance in the game, though there were fans in the stands who wanted to see him. LeBron was not in attendance after the Lakers played Friday night in Los Angeles and play at home again Sunday.

The loss is just the second of the season for Sierra Canyon, which came into the game ranked No. 25 in the nation by ESPN.com. St. Vincent-St. Mary improved to 4-1 with the win.

While most of the attention was on LeBron's sons playing against his high school team, Isaiah Elohim was the best player for Sierra Canyon with 22 points. The 6'5" shooting guard is a 5-star prospect and 12th-ranked player in the 2024 recruiting class by 247Sports.

Sierra Canyon will look to rebound in its next game on Wednesday against Venice in Los Angeles.