This Day in Sports History: November 21

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP looks on during the end of season drivers picture during the F1 Grand Prix

Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Sports in November are dominated by the NBA and NHL seasons, the end of the college football season, the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, the Association of Tennis Professionals Tour Finals, Ultimate Fighting Championship Fight Nights, and the start of the college basketball season. Over the years, Nov. 21 has witnessed many notable moments and stories involving sporting legends.

Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records

Great moments in sports history from Nov. 21 include the following:

1902: The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Kanaweola Athletic Club 39-0 during the first-ever night football game.
1905: The first match of the Australian National Tennis Championships took place.
1925: Red Grange played his final University of Illinois football game and went straight on to sign with the Chicago Bears.
1934: The New York Yankees bought Joe DiMaggio from the San Francisco Seals.
1947: Bill Longson beat Lou Thesz and won the National Wrestling Association World Heavyweight title.
1956: Don Newcombe won the National League MVP award and the first-ever Cy Young Award.
1971: The New York Rangers scored an NHL record eight goals in one period.
1972: The Boston Red Sox' Carlton Fisk won the American League Rookie of the Year Award, and the New York Mets' Jon Matlack won the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
1973: Pete Rose won the National League MVP Award.
1976: Cale Yarborough won the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
1977: The Baltimore Orioles' first baseman, Eddie Murray, won the American League Rookie of the Year Award.
1978: The Atlanta Braves' infielder Bob Horner won the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
1982: Darrell Waltrip won the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
1993: Tennis star Michael Stich won his first and only ATP Tour World Championship title.
1993: Tennis player Steffi Graf won the Women's Tennis Association Tour Championship for the 13th time.
1998: In the 63rd Iron Bowl, Alabama beat Auburn 31-17.
1999: Dale Jarrett won the NASCAR Sprint Cup. This was the first and only time he won the title.
1999: Tennis star Lindsay Davenport won the WTA Tour Championships.
2004: Kurt Busch won the NASCAR Nextel Cup.
2004: The Toronto Argonauts beat the BC Lions 27-19 and won the Canadian Football League Grey Cup.
2004: Roger Federer won his second consecutive season-ending Tennis Masters Cup title.
2021: Alexander Zverev won his second ATP Finals men's tennis title in a game against Daniil Medvedev.
2021: Racing Driver Lewis Hamilton won his first Qatar Grand Prix Formula One motor race.
2024: The Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani and the New York Yankees' Aaron Judge were both unanimously selected for the MVP Award in their leagues.

Three athletes who stood out on Nov. 21 were Don Newcombe, Michael Stich, and Lewis Hamilton.

Newcombe was famous for his pioneering baseball career as the first pitcher to win the Rookie of the Year, MVP, and Cy Young awards, and the first Black pitcher to start a World Series game. Stich reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 2 in 1993 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2018. Hamilton is a renowned British F1 racing driver who has won seven World Drivers' Championships, a record he shares with Michael Schumacher.

Sports History