PRESS BOX: Mayweather-McGregor fight set for Aug. 26

The long-rumored bout pitting boxing champion Floyd Mayweather vs. mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor became a reality on Wednesday.

Mayweather made the announcement on Twitter, confirming that the 40-year-old will end a 23-month retirement to face McGregor in a boxing match on Aug. 26.

Specific terms of the bout were not revealed, such as number of rounds, weight class or location. The event is thought to be held at either MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas or the T-Mobile Arena, also in Las Vegas.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission approved a request submitted by Mayweather Promotions to host a boxing event on Aug. 26 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, ESPN reported earlier on Wednesday.

NBA

–The Philadelphia 76ers exercised the contract option on forward Robert Covington for the 2017-18 season, the team announced.

Covington, 26, will make $1.57 million next season, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Sixers had until June 24 to pick up the final year of Covington’s deal before he became a restricted free agent.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

–The Michigan football team’s recent trip to Rome will end up costing between $750,000 and $800,000.

Wolverines athletic director Warde Manuel said Tuesday he is still waiting for the final numbers to come in from the late April trip, which the school previously said was paid for by a private, anonymous donor who put no restrictions on the cost.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh took the Wolverines to Rome after finals for a week of sightseeing and team bonding, in addition to three spring practices.

TENNIS

–Tommy Haas, a 39-year-old German, turned back the clock when he saved a match point on his way to a 2-6, 7-6 (8), 6-4, second-round upset of top-seeded Roger Federer, a close friend, at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, Germany.

This was just the second loss of the year for Federer, who was playing his first grass-court event of the season and his first tournament match on any surface since beating Rafael Nadal in the finals of the Miami Open on April 2.

–Dominika Cibulkova’s stay at the Ricoh Open in The Netherlands was a short one. German Antonia Lottner, who is ranked 161st in the world, surprised the top-seeded Slovakian with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 victory in the first-round match at s’-Hertogenbosch.