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WWE champ Jade Cargill very hopeful to meet ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin at Hall of Fame ceremony

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WWE champ Jade Cargill very hopeful to meet ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin at Hall of Fame ceremony

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WrestleMania 42 is the big-ticket item on pro wrestling fans’ checklist this weekend in Las Vegas, but before the bell rings, WWE will enshrine its 2026 class into the Hall of Fame.

AJ Styles, Stephanie McMahon, Sycho Sid, Bad News Brown, Dennis Rodman, the tag team duo known as Demolition and Hulk Hogan’s match with Andre the Giant from WrestleMania 3 are included this year.

Jade Cargill enters the arena before competing against Iyo Sky during SmackDown at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on April 10, 2026. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

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Jade Cargill, the current WWE women’s champion, is also excited for the Hall of Fame festivities. She told Fox News Digital she was a big fan of the Attitude Era of the WWE and was hopeful to be able to meet be able to meet “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.

“I hope he is there because I want to meet him,” she told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. “He’s one of the people, other than Paul Heyman and Booker T, Paul Heyman I was like I have to meet him. How did this guy survive this long? He’s bigger than life. He’s just natural with it. I have to meet him, have to take a picture with him, talk to him, I have to do that.

WRESTLEMANIA 42 CARD REVEALED AS MAIN EVENTS AND MAJOR MATCHES ARE SET

Stone Cold Steve Austin speaks during WrestleMania 41 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 20, 2025. (WWE/WWE/Getty Images)

“And Stone Cold is the other person. I’m very hopeful that he’s gonna be there at the Hall of Fame. He was there last year. But I couldn’t like, there was so many people crowding him. And just to see Stephanie (McMahon) get her flowers is one-of-one. I love that for her.”

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Austin was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009 as a wrestler. Last year, he was inducted as part of the immortal moment wing. His match with Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 was inducted last year. He’s one of eight wrestlers who are in the Hall of Fame multiple times.

WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill performs in the ring during SmackDown at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., on March 13, 2026. (Bradlee Rutledge/WWE)

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The WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will take place at Dolby Live at Park MGM on Friday night at midnight ET.

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Mike Trout’s torrid Angels series vs Yankees ends in historic fashion after he blasts fifth home run

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Mike Trout’s torrid Angels series vs Yankees ends in historic fashion after he blasts fifth home run

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Mike Trout couldn’t stop rounding the bases at Yankee Stadium during the Los Angeles Angels’ four-game series, and he made history doing so.

The future Hall of Famer crushed five home runs, including a blast in the Angels’ 11-4 win Thursday afternoon, and tallied nine RBIs in the series, which Los Angeles split with New York.

The 34-year-old Trout entered the series with only two home runs and seven RBIs on the season, but he’s heading back home this weekend looking like his prime self after what transpired in the Bronx.

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Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels before a game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, N.Y., April 13, 2025. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

He also heads back with some history as the first visiting player to hit a home run four straight days at Yankee Stadium, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.

Trout’s five homers are also tied for the most in a single series against the Yankees. Only three others — George Bell, Darrell Evans and Jimmie Foxx — have done so in past seasons.

AARON JUDGE CALLS OUT YANKEES’ OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES AFTER GETTING SWEPT

The latest home run from Trout was a solo blast that traveled 446 feet off Yankees reliever Angel Chivilli in the top of the seventh inning Thursday to make it a 7-4 game. Jo Adell’s grand slam later in the game blew it open for Los Angeles to even the series in the end.

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Before that, Trout kicked off the series with two home runs and five RBIs in a wild Monday night contest that ended with the Yankees walking it off. Aaron Judge also belted two home runs in the game, as did Trent Grisham, whose game-tying two-run blast in the ninth inning kept the Yankees’ hopes alive.

Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels hits a two-run home run during the fifth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium April 15, 2026, in New York City.  (Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)

But Trout and the Angels got the job done Tuesday night, and the veteran outfielder’s only hit was a solo homer. Then, in Wednesday night’s loss, Trout went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs.

Yankee Stadium in general has been a pleasant place for Trout, a South New Jersey native, as he’s hitting .346 with 13 homers in his career there. He also homered in five straight games against the Yankees if you include the Angels’ last meeting in 2025. That also took place in Yankee Stadium.

“He’s the greatest, the greatest of all time,” Judge said of Trout after Monday’s game. “I know he’s had some tough injuries over the years, but to see himself back in a better spot this year – every time he comes to the Bronx, man, he puts on a show. I hate to see it, but it’s fun competing against a guy like that.”

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As Judge mentioned, the Angels are just happy Trout is playing injury-free to start the season, and perhaps this Yankees series has him hitting his stride.

Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels hits a three-run home run in the sixth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York City on April 13, 2026. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

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The three-time league MVP is heading to Cooperstown one day, but there is always the thought among baseball fans about what could’ve been for his career had injuries not gotten in the way. Trout played 130 games last season for the first time since 2019.

Now 10-10, the Angels are hoping they can get that output from Trout once more in 2026. They’re looking to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2014.  

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Former Alabama player accused of posing as NFL pros — with wigs and makeup — in fraud scheme

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Former Alabama player accused of posing as NFL pros — with wigs and makeup — in fraud scheme

A member of Alabama’s 2009 national championship team has been accused of impersonating NFL players as part of a scheme to fraudulently obtain nearly $20 million in loans to purchase real estate, vehicles and jewelry.

Luther Davis, a Crimson Tide defensive lineman from 2007-10, faces felony counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to court documents filed last month by the U.S. attorney in the the Northern District of Georgia. An alleged co-conspirator, CJ Evins, also faces the same counts.

The documents mention the initials of three players — X.M, D.N. and M.P. — that were impersonated during the alleged scheme. The Guardian is reporting that those players are Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney, Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr.

Prosecutors in the court filings said the NFL players were not involved in the alleged scheme.

The documents describe an elaborate hoax in which the defendants allegedly created fake companies and fraudulent email accounts and driver’s licenses to help fool lenders into loaning them huge sums of money.

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Davis attended virtual loan-closing meetings wearing wigs, makeup and/or a head covering to disguise himself as players seeking loans, according to court documents.

Both men entered pleas of not guilty at their arraignments but have indicated to the court they will enter guilty pleas at hearings set for April 27, according to court records.

In 45 games over four seasons with Alabama, Davis registered 21 solo tackles, 26 assists and eight tackles for loss. A 2013 Yahoo report alleged that Davis broke NCAA rules by paying five prospective draft picks from the Southeastern Conference as an intermediary for sports agents and financial advisers.

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UCLA gymnastics focused on delivering Bruins’ next national title

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UCLA gymnastics focused on delivering Bruins’ next national title

UCLA could earn another national title this weekend.

Led by Olympic gold medalist Jordan Chiles, the Bruins’ gymnastics squad is having its best season since 2018 and will compete in Fort Worth in an NCAA national semifinal on Thursday for a spot in Saturday’s championship meet.

The Bruins haven’t won an NCAA gymnastics championship in eight years, a long gap for the seven-time champions known for developing Olympic talent.

UCLA will compete in a semifinal against Oklahoma, Arkansas and Minnesota. The Bruins will start on the bars, then go to the beam, floor and vault.

The top two teams advance to the finals Saturday against the top two teams from the other semifinal featuring Louisiana State University, Stanford, Florida and Georgia.

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“There’s no defense in gymnastics, and so you really need to just focus on what we need to do to go out and put out the best competition possible,” UCLA coach Janelle McDonald said. “We’ve prepared the team all season long to have that mentality when we go out into competition.”

UCLA placed second in the finals last season, with Chiles and Brooklyn Moors capturing the NCAA uneven bars and floor exercise titles.

The Bruins won their first NCAA Regional title since 2019, leaping from third place into first after finishing with a 49.625 team total on floor in the final rotation at 197.725, one-tenth ahead of second-place Minnesota and .225 ahead of third-place Utah.

UCLA senior gymnast Ciena Alipio leaps in the air after her dismount on the balance beam on Jan. 17.

(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

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“I thought regionals were just such, such an amazing competition for our freshmen that were being thrown in some big pressure situations, and they just really stepped up to the plate and handled it with so much confidence and that was really great to see,” McDonald said. “And I think that really bodes well for us heading into the NCAA [championships.]”

Chiles is also one perfect 10 on beam away from a senior-season grand slam. The two-time Olympic medalist has already won three individual NCAA titles, but this is her last chance to get a shot at the all-around title in addition to the team championship.

Her perfect 10 on floor in the regional, which was her eighth perfect mark this season, helped the Bruins win their semifinal.

“Having Jordan has just been so amazing,” McDonald said. “Just her energy and the passion that she brings to our team each and every day. Obviously, her gymnastics skill level is incredible, but she just really has become such a leader for us. She leads by example. She leads with her energy, but she really leads with her passion and with her heart.”

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But Chiles isn’t the only athlete powering the Bruins run to the NCAA championships. She is one of six UCLA athletes who competed on this stage last year.

“Having all of that depth really has been so helpful all year, especially in those meets where we had girls that were down because they were sick, or little things flared up here and there,” senior All-American Ciena Alipio said. “But we had people who could step up and really fill those positions. So it’s been really awesome to have a lot of people on every event.”

UCLA is one of the most consistent teams on beam in the nation, led by Alipio and Katelyn Rosen. Alipio had a fall during the Big Ten championship and she bobbled during the first round of regionals, but she posted an excellent 9.925 in the regional final to help the Bruins to a narrow lead going into their winning floor routine.

They’ve been up and down on vault, but Chiles took that regional title to help the Bruins, while sophomore Riley Jenkins has also had some success in the event.

Bars might be the x-factor for all the teams in the tournament. In the regional semifinal, UCLA’s 49.225 was its season low. LSU and Oklahoma have also struggled on the variable bars routine during the tournament.

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Top-seeded Oklahoma is the defending champion, claiming its seventh U.S. national collegiate title last April.

The semifinals also serve as individual finals, with the national champions being determined in the all-around and on all four events after the two semifinal sessions on Thursday.

The Bruins have a good chance to win a few individual titles, and Chiles is a favorite for the all-around, but a team title would be huge for a program that came so close last season.

“We got to nationals, and that is the top eight out of the entire country, like we’re there,” Alipio said. “Getting to Day 2 is gonna be our goal for Day 1. But if we go out there and do what we’ve been doing all season, there should be no doubt in our heads that we’ll make it to Day 2.”

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