One thing you can be sure of as we near the end of 2020 – a bustling sports schedule

The exhilarating rush that sport provides is unlike anything else, but throw together three monumental occasions, all with thrilling moments happening simultaneously, and you have a truly unique experience.

On Saturday you had the Premiership rugby final with the Exeter Chiefs attempting to double up from their European triumph a week earlier against a fiercely determined Wasps side at a rain-sodden Twickenham. 

More than 200 miles north there was the country’s reigning Premier League champions Liverpool, rallying against a spirited Sheffield United side yet to bolt out of the gates after this rushed start to the new campaign.

If Anfield is a sporting cathedral drenched in tradition, then perhaps world sport’s newest theatre was just beginning its most famous chapter yet. Yas Island, also known as the Fight Island, in Abu Dhabi, hosted Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Justin Gaethje for the UFC lightweight crown.

The unbeaten Russian, famously nurtured as a mixed martial artist before he could even walk, is undoubtedly one of the most dominant sights in sport. But there was doubt as to whether the American challenger would follow the helplessness of recent opponents, including Conor McGregor, who have fallen asleep, succumbing to his deadly groundwork and arsenal of submissions. How would he cope with 13 months of rust accumulated during his pandemic-induced absence from the Octagon, and the tragic passing of his father and trainer following health complications linked to Covid-19?

Amid a frantic hour on Saturday night then, all three spectacles overlapped: Jurgen Klopp’s side rallied from a 1-0 deficit, including a masterful Mohamed Salah strike cruelly chalked off by VAR before a bullet header from Diogo Jota won the day, then Joe Simmonds brushed the stream of rain pouring across his brow to boot Exeter into the history books. But Khabib then stole the show, cementing his legacy with a fine victory before sinking to his knees on the sweat and blood-drenched canvas.

Except it was not merely relief at defending his title. Beyond capturing the conclusions to these sporting outcomes, the Russian delivered a curveball to journalists around the world: a shocking announcement that he would be retiring.

It epitomised the role of the sports journalist in 2020: a bustling schedule had neared its climax, and yet barely a dozen words had sent shockwaves around the world, demanding minimal reflection on the events that had just transpired, for now, and immediate focus on unravelling yet another major story.

Yours,

Jack Rathborn

Assistant sports editor