Days such as this usually only exist deep in the subconscious of every sports fan — a wild fantasy, if you will.
But Saturday, May 2, is a day that won’t be forgotten any time soon.
It’s Sports Armageddon. Or Sportsmageddon.
This will mark one of the greatest sports television viewing days in recent history, with wall-to-wall sports from early in the morning to deep into the night, from the pitch to the track, to the ice to the diamond — and that’s only part of the action.
First things first: make sure you’re awake by 7:30 a.m. That will give you just enough time to roll out of bed and throw on some comfortable clothes, maybe eat a quick breakfast. Then, it’s time to head for the couch and dive into the tastiest sports buffet ever:
7:40 a.m., Newcastle United at Leicester City (NBCSN): It’s never too early for sports, and the day gets started bright and early with English Premier League soccer as Leicester City — trying to avoid relegation — squares off against Newcastle United.
9:55 a.m., Queens Park Rangers at Liverpool (NBCSN): So you had a fun Friday night out, but waking up before 8 a.m. to watch soccer sounds unconscionable. Don’t worry, you can sleep in a bit and still catch some EPL action, as Liverpool hosts Queens Park Rangers.
Noon, NFL draft, Rounds 4-7 (ESPN, NFLN): How fascinated is America with football? People go out of their way to watch an event in which a man calls out a player’s name and the player walks across a podium — all in the hopes that this player will put their team over the top. Three rounds of the NFL draft are complete, and the final four rounds are jammed into an afternoon’s time.
Noon, Kentucky Derby undercard (NBCSN): Get your mint juleps and fancy hats ready — it’s time for the Kentucky Derby undercard. Some of the (many) races to watch are the American Turf Stakes, the Churchill Distaff Turf Mile Stakes and the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes.
12:30 p.m., Stanley Cup Playoffs, Eastern Conference semifinals: Capitals at Rangers, Game 2 (NBC): Maybe it’s too early to watch horse racing, and you want to pace yourself for the actual Derby. Maybe you want to see end-to-end, heart-stopping action after a morning of watching soccer. Or, you’re a fan of the Rangers or Capitals. If any of those conditions apply, turn to NBC. After being stunned in the waning seconds of Game 1, the Rangers will look to bounce back against Washington and avoid going down 2-0 in the best-of-7 series.
1:30 p.m., Yankees at Red Sox (YES): The only thing better than Yankees-Red Sox is Yankees-Red Sox when both teams are in contention, and the Yankees entered Friday with a one-game lead in the American League East over their archrivals. If baseball doesn’t get your blood flowing, you can make it interesting by making a wager with your buddies: Will the game end before the Kentucky Derby goes off? Remember, the two teams played a 19-inning game last month that lasted six hours and 49 minutes.
3 p.m., WGC-Cadillac Match Play Round of 16 (Golf Channel): After three days of group play, the field has been trimmed to 16. If you need a break from the no-holds-barred action of hockey and auto racing, tune in to watch the world’s elite golfers battle for a spot in the quarterfinals.
4 p.m., Kentucky Derby coverage (NBC): The early afternoon was filled with undercard races, but now “showtime” at Churchill Downs is drawing nearer as NBC picks up the coverage for the final races leading up to Run for the Roses.
6:24 p.m., The 141st Kentucky Derby (NBC): It’s post time in Louisville, Ky., as American Pharoah — ridden by Victor Espinoza, and trained by Bob Baffert — looks to affirm his favorite status with a win. However, the last time a horse won the Kentucky Derby from 18th position was 1982.
7 p.m., Nationals at Mets (PIX11): Though they have shown signs of mortality lately, the Mets still are enjoying life in the National League East penthouse. Meanwhile, the Nationals, who were pegged to win the division, struggled mightily in April and entered their series against the Mets six games off the division lead.
7:30 p.m., WGC-Cadillac Match Play Quarterfinals (NBC): After an afternoon of golf by the Bay, the Match Play field will have been whittled to eight for the quarterfinals.
By now, you have been watching sports for 12 hours. Your eyes are bloodshot. Your head is pounding. Your body wants to quit. But you can’t. Not with (arguably) the two best events still to come.
8 p.m., NBA Playoffs, First Round: Spurs at Clippers, Game 7 (TNT): From the moment the field was determined, everybody circled the Clippers-Spurs series as one that could go the distance. And go the distance it will, after the Clippers came up with a big road victory to force a decisive Game 7 at the Staples Center. Can the Spurs find the extra gear needed to keep their hopes of a repeat alive? Or will Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and company dethrone the defending champs?
9 p.m., Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao undercard (PPV): You’ve made it this far. You’ve shelled out $100 to get the fight on pay-per-view. Well, guess what? You still need to wait another few hours for the cherry on top of the sports sundae. To whet your appetite, you can watch two undercard bouts, as WBO featherweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko faces Gamalier Rodriguez, and in the other televised undercard fight, Jose Cayetano squares off against Leo Santa Cruz for the WBC super bantamweight championship.
11 p.m., Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao main event (PPV): This is it. After years of buildup, the main event is finally, at long last, upon us. Can Mayweather Jr. make it 48 fights and 48 wins? Or willPacquiao stun the world at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas?
