LE CASTELLET, France: World champion and series leader Max Verstappen sizzled in the sun on Saturday when he topped the times for Red Bull ahead of both Ferrari drivers in third and final practice session at the French Grand Prix.
Making the most of a superior straight-line speed, the 24-year-old Dutchman clocked a best lap in one minute and 32.272 seconds to outpace Carlos Sainz in the leading Ferrari by three-tenths of a second.
Sainz, who claimed his maiden Formula One triumph at the British Grand Prix earlier in July, will start Sunday’s race from the back of the grid alongside Jan Magnussen of Haas after the two Ferrari-powered cars took more new engine parts.
Charles Leclerc, who trimmed Verstappen’s advantage in the title race to 38 points by winning the Austrian Grand Prix, was third fastest six-tenths down on the pace.
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton was fourth for Mercedes ahead of Sergio Perez in the second Red Bull and George Russell, in the second Mercedes.
It was a measure of Verstappen’s dominant pace that he was more than a second quicker than his Red Bull team-mate on another hot day in the south of France.
Two-time champion Fernando Alonso was seventh for Alpine with a late lap to lift him ahead of Alex Albon of Williams, Lando Norris of McLaren and Yuki Tsunoda of Alpha Tauri.
Both German drivers Mick Schumacher and four-time champion Sebastian Vettel endured difficult sessions and wound up 19th and 20th respectively for the Haas and Aston Martin teams after completing only 12 and 11 laps.
In scorching conditions, the session began with only seven cars venturing out and Perez setting the first lap time in 1:33.628 after seven minutes — a time obliterated immediately by Verstappen in 1:32.837 — but little else for the sell-out holiday crowd to enjoy.
As the air temperature rose to 34 degrees, the fans raised a cheer for Pierre Gasly as he passed the grandstand named after him before the Mercedes set times more than 1.5 seconds adrift of the champion. “1.7?” said Hamilton. “Jeeze...”
Ferrari were also struggling to match the Red Bull pace and Leclerc, pushing hard, spun through a full 360 degrees on his hard tires before Hamilton and Yuki Tsunoda of Alfa Romeo each survived brief ‘moments’ in pursuit.
Vertappen’s pace on medium tires remained the standard to catch as his rivals tested ‘softs’ and ‘hards’ before galvanizing themselves for a late flurry of qualifying simulation runs.
With 12 minutes remaining, both Leclerc and Sainz had improved to second and third, but were still 0.1 seconds adrift, with Hamilton fourth, four-tenths down. At this time, Red Bull were still to use soft tires.
The stubborn Sainz persisted and went top after 51 minutes of the hour, replacing Verstappen in 1:32.626, an advantage of 0.182 to enthuse the ‘prancing horse’ fans sweltering in the open grandstands.
Finally taking softs, Verstappen re-joined the fray to beat the Spaniard by 0.354 seconds while Leclerc conceded his tires were ‘dead’, a familiar Ferrari problem at the high-degradation Paul Ricard circuit.
By this time, the track temperature was 57 degrees — hot enough to pose a serious challenge to cars, drivers and teams and certain to make strategy a major factor in Sunday’s race.
Verstappen sizzles in the sun to dominate final practice
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Verstappen sizzles in the sun to dominate final practice
- The 24-year-old Dutchman clocked a best lap in one minute and 32.272 seconds to outpace Carlos Sainz
- Sainz will start Sunday's race from the back of the grid alongside Jan Magnussen of Haas
Saudi Arabia set for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup qualifier in Qatar
- Saudi Arabia are familiar with their rivals after taking part alongside them all in T20 tournaments this year
Qualification for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place in India and Sri Lanka, is in full swing. From Nov. 19-28, Doha takes center stage for Asia Sub-Regional Qualifier Group B.
With seven nations taking part it looks set to be an exciting competition, with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Bhutan, Cambodia, Thailand and the UAE joining hosts Qatar. The teams are competing for the last two places in the Asia-East Asia-Pacific regional final, to be held in Malaysia in August 2025.
Malaysia and Kuwait emerged successfully from the Asia Group A qualifier, while Samoa and Japan won the East Asia-Pacific A and East Asia-Pacific B qualifiers, respectively. Nepal, Oman and Papua New Guinea have already qualified by virtue of taking part in the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies.
The seven teams competing for these last two places will play in a round robin league, with the top two teams in the table progressing to the next qualifier.
Saudi Arabia are familiar with their rivals after taking part alongside them all in T20 tournaments this year. These matches were in either the Asia Cricket Council T20 Challenger Cup in Thailand or the ACC Premier Cup that followed in Nepal. In the Challenger Cup, Saudi Arabia convincingly beat Bhutan, Thailand, Japan and Cambodia in Bangkok, the latter in the final. This maintained their excellent record in Thailand, where they won the ACC 50-over version in 2023.
Saudi Arabia’s convincing qualification in February for the ACC T20 Premier Cup provided an opportunity for the team to test itself against strong opposition in Nepal. The bridge proved too large to gap, however, as only one match out of four played was won.
This ought not to be the case in the current Asia Group B qualifier in Qatar. The UAE are arguably favorite to win, sitting 16th in the ICC T20I men’s rankings. Closest to them are Bahrain (26), Qatar (28) and Saudi Arabia (33). Behind them come Cambodia, ranked 42nd, Thailand in 59th and Bhutan in 77th. Saudi Arabia have comfortably beaten each of them in the ACC T20 Challenger Cup so it is the matches against the three higher-ranking teams that are likely to prove crucial.
Three matches will be played each day for 10 days at either the West End Park International Cricket Stadium or the University Stadium in Doha from Nov. 19. Saudi Arabia’s first match is against Bahrain, who are just ahead in the T20I rankings.
If the Saudi team can start their campaign with a victory, they will have a good chance of challenging for one of the top two spots in the table — and a place in the Asia-East Asia-Pacific regional final. From there, the dream is the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Six-time Race to Dubai champion Rory McIlroy celebrates as Dubai Basketball earns dominant home victory over Krka
- Dubai Basketball record impressive win in their first home game in a month, advancing to 7-2 on the season
- Golfing legend Rory McIlroy celebrates courtside and misses full-court charity putt by just inches
DUBAI: After three straight games on the road, Dubai Basketball made it a homecoming to remember as they stormed to a 91-76 victory against Slovenia’s Krka in front of an energized crowd that included Sunday’s Race to Dubai champion Rory McIlroy.
It was the first time in a month fans could watch their team in action at Coca-Cola Arena and the hosts put on an impressive performance to bounce back from last week’s defeat and improve their ABA League record to 7-2.
The Dubai Basketball team was welcomed by more than 3,300 spectators, including Rory McIlroy — one of the greatest golfers of all time and an avid basketball fan. The five-time Ryder Cup winner and four-time major champion put it an appearance just hours after triumphing at the DP World Tour Championship and landing his sixth Race to Dubai title at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
McIlroy also took part in a full-court “Putt for Purpose” challenge, bidding to donate 1 million dirhams ($272,258) to charity for a hole-in-one, but missed out by just a few inches.
The hosts started slowly, finding themselves 7-3 down, but soon found their rhythm to level the score at nine apiece, thanks to Danilo Andusic’s three-pointer. Elevated by the passionate home support, Dubai continued their momentum with Isaiah Taylor’s jump shot and a two-pointer from JaCorey Williams helping the team take a 21-15 lead before they closed out the first quarter at 24-23.
In the second quarter, the noise went up a notch when Filipino Thirdy Ravena took to the court. He was almost on the scoresheet within seconds, his driving layup sadly hitting the arc.
Dubai picked up where they left off in the second half, taking a healthy 13-point advantage into the final quarter at 70-57. From there it was one-way traffic as Klemen Prepelic, Nate Mason and Williams were among the scorers sealing the victory. Andusic ended with a game-high of 18 while Leon Radosevic hit eight rebounds.
Williams said the home support had spurred the team on and added he cherished the opportunity of meeting McIlroy, who had brought along the Race to Dubai trophy.
He said: “We knew it was going to be a difficult game, especially ahead of a break. It’s always hard to play these types of games. But we did a good job of staying locked in defensively. I think when we lead with our defense, our offense just flows. First half, we had some turnovers. They scored a lot of threes on transition from the turnovers. In the second half, we corrected that mistake and kept the defense at a high level and we got the big win.”
He added: “Rory is a very high-level player in his sport and much respect to him. We’re in Dubai so we see all kinds of people, it was good to see him though. I got to hold a trophy and I’ve never seen a trophy like that in real life. It was kind of cool … and heavy, too.”
Off court, cheerleaders from Sharmila Dance Center took the spotlight, dazzling the crowd with jaw-dropping dance moves that brought fans to their feet with non-stop cheers. The performers captured everyone’s attention, turning the halftime break into a spectacular display of talent.
Global Village, one of Dubai’s top attractions, brought along a selection of its roaming artists, making the evening even more memorable.
With no ABA League games scheduled next week, Dubai Basketball return to on-court action in Serbia on Nov. 29, when they face FMP. Their next game at Coca-Cola Arena is against Mornar Bar on Dec. 15.
Clippers upset Warriors, Lillard saves Bucks
- Franz Wagner poured in 32 points to help the Orlando Magic claim a 109-99 win over the depleted Suns
- Jimmy Butler finished with 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as the Miami Heat pummeled the struggling Philadelphia 76ers 106-89
LOS ANGELES: The Los Angeles Clippers held off a furious late rally to upset the pace-setting Golden State Warriors 102-99 in the NBA on Monday.
Norman Powell led the Clippers scoring with 23 points including five three-pointers as the Los Angeles club improved to 8-7 for the season after downing the Western Conference leaders.
The Clippers led by 15 points late in the second quarter only to see the Warriors chip away at the lead to narrow the margin to three points at the end of the third quarter.
The Clippers dug deep to hold off Golden State in the fourth quarter, and the Warriors missed a three-point attempt from Gary Payton II on the buzzer that would have tied it to force overtime.
Stephen Curry led the Warriors scorers with 26 points, with Andrew Wiggins adding 22.
Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said he had rallied his team at the end of the third quarter.
“I told them ‘they’re the number one team in the West for a reason’ — but we’re still up by three points, at home,” Lue said.
“But I’m proud of the team. They made a big run like they always do, and we were able to keep our composure and come away with the win.”
Elsewhere on Monday, Damian Lillard returned from a three-game concussion layoff to score a driving layup with 3.9 seconds remaining and give the Milwaukee Bucks a much-needed 101-100 victory over the in-form Houston Rockets.
Houston had gone into the game on the back of a five-game winning streak and looked ready to extend that run after racing into an early 13-point lead in the first quarter.
But Milwaukee, who are four places off the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 5-9 record after Monday’s win, responded superbly to lead by 12 points at half-time.
Houston regained the initiative in the fourth quarter to grab the lead, but a late run by Milwaukee culminating in Lillard’s winner settled an enthralling battle.
Lillard, who finished with 18 points and 10 assists, admitted that his enforced layoff due to concussion had been a challenge.
“Normally when something is wrong with me I feel like I can will myself through it — but this was probably one of the first times in my life and definitely in my NBA career where I was like ‘something is off,’” Lillard said Monday’s win.
“It was a little frustrating. I just didn’t like not being with the team.”
Brook Lopez led the Bucks scoring with 27 points while Giannis Antetokounmpo added 20.
In Phoenix, Franz Wagner poured in 32 points to help the Orlando Magic claim a 109-99 win over the depleted Suns.
Wagner was boosted by 20 points off the bench from Anthony Black while Goga Bitadze added 17.
Phoenix, missing the injured Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Jusuf Nurkic, slumped to their fourth straight loss. Phoenix, who made a blistering 8-1 start to the season, fell to 9-6 after the defeat.
Phoenix coach Mike Budenholzer called on his team to rally around each other as they weathered the injury-driven dip in form.
“Just stay together,” Budenholzer said. “You’ve got to keep going, keep doing the work and keep your head up. This group will do that. They’re very resilient.”
Elsewhere on Monday, Jimmy Butler finished with 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as the Miami Heat pummeled the struggling Philadelphia 76ers 106-89. Tyler Herro added 18 for Miami as the Sixers once again stumbled despite leading by 19 points early in the second quarter.
Philadelphia are now bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 2-11 record. Sixers star Joel Embiid once again struggled with just 11 points.
Messi’s Argentina could move a step nearer World Cup spot by beating Peru
- Victory would give defending champions Argentina 25 points from 12 matches
- Brazil and Uruguay will meet in Salvador, and both coaches expect to finish the year better than they started
RIO DE JANEIRO: Lionel Messi’s Argentina will be on the verge of confirming a 2026 World Cup spot if they beat Peru in Buenos Aires in South American qualifying on Tuesday.
Victory would give defending champions Argentina 25 points from 12 matches, historically good enough for at least sixth place in the 10-team standings. South America have six entries into the World Cup.
But Argentina will be without five injured players after losing to Paraguay 2-1 last Thursday when they host Peru, who are second to last.
Meanwhile, Brazil and Uruguay will meet in Salvador, and both coaches expect to finish the year better than they started.
Dorival Junior, in charge of Brazil since January and still struggling to convince fans he’s the right choice, could move to second place with a win.
Marcelo Bielsa, who was recently under fire by Uruguay great Luis Suarez, will seek to add at least one point to the team’s tally to prove Friday’s last minute 3-2 victory against Colombia was no fluke.
Uruguay and Colombia are three points behind Argentina. Brazil are fourth. Ecuador are a point behind in fifth.
Argentina’s defense
Argentina left behind defenders Lisandro Martinez and German Pezzella when they traveled to Paraguay. Another three were injured out of the home match against Peru: Cristian Romero, Nahuel Molina and Nicolas Tagliafico. The trio started against Paraguay.
Argentina left a poor image against Paraguay in Asuncion from their third loss in qualifying. Veteran Messi had a quiet performance, and strikers Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez were no better. Observers wondered whether the team’s magic was running out.
“I don’t know whether (rival coaches) they found an antidote (to Argentina),” coach Luis Scaloni said. “We hope to go back on a positive patch.”
Scalopni is expected to field Gonzalo Montiel in Molina’s place; Leonardo Balerdi in Romero’s; and Facundo Medina replacing Tagliafico.
Derby
Brazil summoned right back Danilo in the only change to the team that drew with Venezuela 1-1 on Thursday. Danilo replaced Vanderson, who was suspended. Dorival Junior was already under pressure to bring in the experienced right back and avoid testing too many new players.
Brazil’s unimpressive form this year has caused many fans to openly say they won’t be watching the national team until performances improve. But that narrative has prompted a plea from captain Marquinhos.
“I am asking you not to abandon the national team. Don’t leave us, no,” he said in a news conference. “This is my third cycle here, I can say 100 percent sure that everyone here has pride, faith and hope. And dignity. We are living this moment as if it was the last in our life. Unique.”
Brazil have lost four matches in qualifying and won some others in unconvincing fashion. Plus, their biggest available star, Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior, has so far not delivered a good performance.
Uruguay’s Nahitan Nández and Santiago Bueno are not playing in Salvador but Bielsa has yet to say who will replace them.
Many Uruguay players also need to be extra careful on Tuesday so they don’t miss the following clash against Argentina in March. Manuel Ugarte, Jose Maria Gimenez, Brian Rodriguez, Darwin Nuñez, Nicolas Fonseca, Rodrigo Bentancur and Rodrigo Aguirre will be out if they get a second yellow.
Croatia, Denmark qualify for Nations League quarterfinals with draws
- They joined France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands in the last eight
- In Warsaw, Liverpool fullback Andy Robertson scored an injury time header to give Scotland a 2-1 win over Poland
MADRID: Denmark and Croatia completed the Nations League quarterfinals lineup after both sides secured draws on Monday.
Denmark went 0-0 in Serbia, and Croatia came from behind to share 1-1 with visiting Portugal.
They joined France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands in the last eight.
The quarterfinals will be held from March 20-23.
In Warsaw, Liverpool fullback Andy Robertson scored an injury time header to give Scotland a 2-1 win over Poland and send the host down into League B. Scotland has a playoff to secure its League A status.
Northern Ireland will step up to League B after topping its group. Northern Ireland let slip a two-goal lead but drew in Luxembourg 2-2. Romania hammered Cyprus 4-1.
San Marino will jump into Group C after beating Lichtenstein 3-1.
Scotland wins again
After going nine matches without a win, Scotland appeared rejuvenated as they condemned a Robert Lewandowski-less Poland to League B.
Scotland took just one point from their first four games in Group A1 but beat Croatia at home on Friday and were 1-0 up after three minutes in Warsaw.
Billy Gilmour’s threaded pass found Ben Doak, who rolled the ball to John McGinn to score his second goal in four days.
Scotland hit the woodwork twice in the first half and its inability to open a greater lead almost cost it when Kamil Piątkowski lashed a stunning strike into the top corner of the net to equalize 14 minutes into the second period.
However, Scotland pushed forward for a winner and Robertson headed the decider in the third minute of stoppage time.
Croatia struggle
Croatia needed only a draw to secure qualification but they made the home fans in Split sweat before getting the point they needed against group winners Portugal.
With 32 minutes gone, Joao Felix brought down a superb 45-yard pass from Vitinha and slipped the ball under the advancing keeper to give the visitors the lead. When Andrej Kramaric hit the post and Josko Gvardiol had a 62nd minute goal ruled out for offside it looked like it might not be Croatia’s night.
Bu Manchester City’s Gvardiol got the equalizer just a few minutes later and Croatia held on to take the second quarterfinal spot from Group A1.
Spain beat Switzerland
There was little to play for in Tenerife, where Spain, top of Group A4, took on the already relegated Switzerland.
Coach Luis de la Fuente offered a first start to Barcelona midfielder Marc Casado and gave debuts to Samu and Aitor Paredes in a much-changed Spain side.
But it was the two Bryans, Gil and Zaragoza, who got the goals that mattered for the European champions.
Pedri’s first half penalty was saved but Yeremi Pino converted to put Spain ahead.
Joel Monteiro equalized for Switzerland after 63 minutes but Bryan Gil got Spain back in front five minutes later. Andi Zeqiri equalized again from the penalty spot with five minutes remaining but a stoppage time penalty from Bryan Zaragoza at the other end gave Spain all three points.
Denmark draw in Serbia
In Leskovac, Serbia controlled most of the game against Denmark but could not get the goal they needed to progress from Group A4. Dusan Vlahovic was in fine form for the home side but the Danes held out to take second spot, eight points behind winner Spain but two ahead of the Serbs, for which Strahinja Pavlovic was sent off near the end.
Northern Ireland step up
Northern Ireland finished on top of Group C3 even though it blew a 2-0 lead in Luxembourg.
Isaac Price opened the scoring after 19 minutes and the Standard Liege midfielder set up Conor Bradley for the second five minutes into the second half. The opener was Northern Ireland’s 100th under coach Michael O’Neill.
However, even though the home side scored twice in the last 18 minutes, Northern Ireland ended its campaign with 11 points, two ahead of Bulgaria, who drew at home with Belarus 1-1. Luxembourg finished last.
Romania and Kosovo win
Romania finished on top of Group C2 with a 4-1 win over Cyprus. Daniel Bîrligea put Romania ahead after two minutes and Razvan Marin scored twice before Florinel Coman made it four.
Ioannis Pittas got Cyprus’ goal and the Cypriots’ Konstantinos Laifis was sent off 13 minutes from time.
Kosovo beat Lithuania 1-0 with an early goal from Muharrem Jashari, who was also sent off on the stroke of halftime.
Kosovo finished second, three points behind Romania, but an asterisk remains over the final placings following the abandonment of Friday’s match between the teams in Bucharest.
The Kosovo players alleged they were victims of pro-Serbian chants by the home fans and walked off the field in the final minute. UEFA has opened disciplinary proceedings.
San Marino advance
San Marino will go into Group C at the expense of Gibraltar after beating Lichtenstein 3-1. Gibraltar started the day in pole position with six points but San Marino recovered from being 1-0 down at halftime to score three times in the second half.
Victory also lifted San Marino within reach of a place in the World Cup qualifying playoffs.
