Plenty happened in the world of sport in 2018. Find out what made our list in Hollywoodbets’ 2018 in Review!
Year of the Tiger? Dyantyi’s breakthrough year? Calamitous Karius in the Champions League? What was your favourite sporting moment of 2018? Check out our list below:
Football
Champions League Final
The Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool was dominated by two very high-profile gaffes by Loris Karius. The German stopper, who is now on loan at Besiktas, was directly responsible for two of Real Madrid’s goals in their 3-1 win. Think the result would have been different if Alison was at the club?
2018 World Cup
The 2018 World Cup was probably the best edition of the tournament for many years. There were plenty of upsets with so-called “smaller” teams going really deep into the competition. In the end, however, it was France who claimed their second World Cup with a stunning 4-1 over Croatia in the final. Check out some of the tournament’s most memorable moments below:
Steve Komphela’s Quotes:
When it comes to quotes, Steve Komphela is the gift that keeps on giving! The former Kaizer Chiefs and Bloem Celtic manager, who is now at Golden Arrows, has blessed us with some absolute crackers this year! That said, he’s also shared some wonderfully mature quotes with us as can be seen below:
Rugby
Aphiwe Dyantyi Wins World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year Award
Dyantyi capped off a memorable year when he won the World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year Award. The youngster became the first South African to win this award for players in their debut season.
Siya Kolisi Named Springbok Captain
Siya Kolisi became the first black African Bok captain when he led the team out against England in June. The Stormers loose forward led the Springboks in what can be considered a successful 2018. There’s no doubt he’ll be captain when the South Africans head to Japan next year.
Springboks win epic clash against New Zealand
South Africa claimed a momentous 36 – 34 win against New Zealand in Wellington.
Boxing/MMA
Conor Mcgregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov
We saw the return of Conor McGregor after his much-publicised fight with the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather. The Irish MMA fighter stepped back into the octagon to fight Russian Khabib for his UFC lightweight title. Conor McGregor tapped out in the fourth round when the Russian managed to lock in a rear naked choke hold. But what ensued was absolute chaos. Khabib went on to taunt McGregor after his submission and followed that up with a moment of madness as he lept out of the octagon and attacked McGregor’s training partner.
Anthony Joshua vs Wladimir Klitshko
In one of the heavyweight fights of the decade, Anthony Joshua successfully defended his title against the heavy hitting Wladimir Klitshko.
Formula 1
Hamilton and Mercedes claim victory
Lewis Hamilton won fifth world title to go two behind the legendary racer, Michael Schumacher. The 33-year-old closed out the year with Mercedes winning their fifth consecutive Constructor’s Championship title.
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Cricket
Sandpaper Gate
Sandpaper gate was easily one of the biggest sporting scandals of 2018. In March, the Australian men’s cricket team was involved in a ball-tampering scandal in the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town. Cameron Bancroft – a junior player in the team – was seen rubbing the ball with a piece of sandpaper under instruction from senior players Steve Smith and David Warner. All three players being slapped with massive bans. Check out a video of the incident below:
Dale Steyn Breaks Shaun Pollock’s Record
Dale Steyn officially became South Africa’s highest ever Test wicket-taker when he dismissed Fakhar Zaman who edged off to Dean Elgar in the slips. The wicket took Steyn to 422 Test wickets, a record for any South African bowler. Check out the moment the ‘Steyn Remover’ broke the record below:
Athletics
Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya stunned the world in Septemeber 2018 when he smashed the marathon World Record, winning the Berlin Marathon in a time of 2:01:39 (the previous record was held by Dennis Kimetto who ran a 2:02:57 at the 2014 Berlin Marathon. Check out his record-breaking performance below:
Golf
2018 certainly was the year of the Tiger. Tiger Woods’ return to the PGA tour was nothing short of sensational. He went from a world ranking of 656 to 13 and claimed the Tour Championship in September. Check out his winning putt at the Tour Championship below:
Horse Racing
2018 proved to be a memorable year for South African horse racing fans! Down in the Cape, Justin Snaith-trained Oh Susanna claimed the 2018 Sun Met after a brilliant ride by jockey Grant van Niekerk. Anton Marcus than piloted another Snaith horse, DO IT AGAIN, across the line in first place in the Vodacom Durban July. In December, TILBURY FORT – ridden by Lyle Hewitson and trained by Sean Tarry – claimed top honours at the G-BETS Gauteng Summer Cup. Check out the three races below:
Sun Met
Durban July
Gauteng Summer Cup
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Wagga Tips – 6 May 2021
Winning Form Tips
Turffontein Tips: Thursday 6 May 2021
