Leclerc takes Singapore GP pole as Verstappen aborts lap

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton after qualifying in 1st, 2nd and 3rd places respectively for the F1 Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay Street Circuit on Saturday. (Reuters)
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Updated 19 October 2022
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Leclerc takes Singapore GP pole as Verstappen aborts lap

  • “They told me to box and then I realized what was going to happen. We ran out of fuel,” Verstappen told broadcaster Sky
  • Leclerc clinched a season-leading ninth pole and finished .022 ahead of Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez and .054 clear of Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton

SINGAPORE: Max Verstappen looked on course for pole position at the Singapore Grand Prix on Saturday when his Red Bull team aborted his lap with just seconds left in qualifying because of a fuel issue and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took pole instead.
“Why? Why? Why?” Verstappen asked when told to box, before unleashing an expletive.
He soon found out why.
“They told me to box and then I realized what was going to happen. We ran out of fuel,” Verstappen told broadcaster Sky. “It is incredibly frustrating and it shouldn’t happen ... At least you (should) track that throughout the session to know you aren’t going to make it. We should’ve seen that way earlier.”
Verstappen starts eighth, although he’s won from 14th on the grid this season in Belgium.
He was well clear of Leclerc at the time splits but Red Bull called him in as he was about to go under fuel limit regulations. Drivers can be disqualified if they don’t have enough fuel left in the tank, which would have meant starting from last place.
Still, he was clearly displeased at what happened.
“I am not happy at all at the moment, I know of course it is always a team effort and I can make mistakes, and the team can make mistakes, but it is never acceptable,” he said. “Of course you learn from it, but this is really bad. It shouldn’t happen.”
Leclerc clinched a season-leading ninth pole and finished .022 ahead of Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez and .054 clear of Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
“It was incredibly close, a really exciting session,” said Hamilton, who has a record 103 career poles but none this year. “A really clean qualifying session. It was so difficult to get that lap perfect.”
Perez is confident he can challenge for victory.
“It’s an opportunity tomorrow from the start to attack Charles and I’ll go for the win,” Perez said. “It’s quite disappointing to miss out by two hundredths but at the end of the day I think they did a fantastic job. Very happy.”
But Verstappen’s grid position deals a blow to his chances of wrapping up the title on Sunday on a street track difficult for overtaking. That gives Leclerc a good chance to win his fourth race of the season.
“I thought we wouldn’t get pole but it paid off and I’m really happy,” Leclerc said. “It was really, really special, every qualifying in street tracks are super on the limit.”
Leclerc called it “a matter of time before Max gets his title.”
Verstappen leads Leclerc by 116 points and will clinch his second straight title only if he scores 22 points more than Leclerc, his most realistic challenger.
He must win to secure the title Sunday, along with two other scenarios involving Leclerc. If Verstappen wins, Leclerc can finish no higher than ninth; if Verstappen wins and earns a bonus point for fastest lap, Leclerc can finish no higher than eighth.
The race buildup has seen bickering between teams over an alleged 2021 budget cap breach by Red Bull, which drew an angry response from Red Bull team principal Christian Horner.
Also, Hamilton was summoned to appear before the stewards for a potential jewelry breach shortly after third practice had ended at the Marina Bay Circuit.
The seven-time F1 champion was later cleared after being investigated for an alleged infringement of Appendix L, Chapter III of the FIA’s International Sporting Code, which includes a prohibition on the wearing of jewelry. The summons related to Hamilton’s nose stud, which he had previously removed when the FIA’s jewelry ban was applied.
Hamilton said he explained to stewards before qualifying started that he needs to keep the stud in due to complications linked to a blood blister on his nose. Hamilton said he has a doctor’s letter showing all this and stewards accepted his explanation after reviewing footage.
Meanwhile, two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso will start behind Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. and from fifth place in his record 350th F1 race on Sunday, which will be one more than 2007 F1 champion Kimi Raikkonen.
McLaren’s Lando Norris was sixth and AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly qualified seventh ahead of Verstappen, Kevin Magnussen (Haas) and Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) in 10th.
Williams driver Alex Albon, racing just three weeks after being hospitalized with appendicitis and then suffering respiratory failure, qualified 19th.
He went out of Q1 with Valtteri Bottas, Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon — who have a combined 19 F1 wins. Bottas starts from 16th spot with Ricciardo 17th and Ocon 18th.
Earlier Saturday, Leclerc led a rain-hit third and final practice ahead of Verstappen. Half the session was lost as marshals swept water off the 5-kilometer (3.1-mile) track, which mostly dried out for qualifying.
Midway through Q2, some drivers changed to the quicker slick tires while other stayed on intermediaries. Mercedes driver George Russell starts 11th after being knocked out of Q2 with four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin).


ICC Champions Trophy schedule announced, matches split between Pakistan and Dubai

Updated 37 min 16 sec ago
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ICC Champions Trophy schedule announced, matches split between Pakistan and Dubai

  • The tournament is set to begin on 19 February in Karachi, with Pakistan taking on New Zealand
  • ICC says Lahore will host the final match of the cricket contest on 9 March, unless India qualify

ISLAMABAD: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday unveiled the schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which will take place from February 19 to March 9, with matches hosted across Pakistan and Dubai in a hybrid model.
The tournament’s structure follows a compromise decision after India refused to play in Pakistan, citing security concerns. Exercising its rights as the host nation, Pakistan designated Dubai as the neutral venue for India’s matches, ensuring all teams’ participation.
“The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 fixtures and groupings have been announced by the ICC ... with the tournament set to begin on 19 February in Karachi with the final on 9 March,” the global governing body of cricket announced in a statement on its website.
“The eight-team tournament will feature 15 matches, and will be played across Pakistan and in Dubai,” it added. “Lahore will also host the final on 9 March, unless India qualify, in which case it will be played in Dubai. Both the semifinals and the final will have reserve days.”


In Pakistan, Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi will host three group-stage games each. Lahore is also set to host the second semifinal.
Meanwhile, Dubai will host all three of India’s group matches and the first semifinal, should India qualify.
The tournament opener on February 19 will feature Pakistan taking on New Zealand in Karachi, while India will face Bangladesh in Dubai on February 20.
This will be the ninth edition of the ICC Champions Trophy and its return after an eight-year hiatus, the last tournament having taken place in England in 2017. The event will feature the top eight teams in world cricket competing for one of the sport’s most prestigious titles.
The hybrid model, while a logistical challenge, aims to strike a balance between accommodating geopolitical realities and ensuring the integrity of the tournament, which cricket fans worldwide await.


West Indies cricket team to arrive for first Test tour of Pakistan in 19 years on Jan. 6

Updated 24 December 2024
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West Indies cricket team to arrive for first Test tour of Pakistan in 19 years on Jan. 6

  • West Indies to play two Test matches against Pakistan in Multan from Jan. 17-29, says PCB 
  • West Indies last toured Pakistan for a Test series in November 2006 for three-match series

ISLAMABAD: The West Indian national men’s cricket team will arrive for their first Test tour of Pakistan in 19 years on Jan. 6, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed on Tuesday, during which they will play two Test matches. 

The last time the West Indies played a Test series on Pakistani soil was in November 2006, when they played three Tests. Their last Test away Test series against Pakistan was in the UAE in October 2016, which was selected as Pakistan’s home venue for cricket series after 2009 when a militant attack in Lahore scared away international cricket teams from touring the country. 

The former two-time ODI World Cup champions have, however, thrice toured Pakistan since April 2018— one for an ODI series in June 2022 and twice for a bilateral T20I series in April 2018 and December 2021. 

“The West Indies cricket team will arrive in Islamabad on 6 January and after playing a three-day match against Pakistan Shaheens from 10-12 January at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, they will take on Pakistan in back-to-back Tests in Multan,” the PCB said. “The first Test will be played from 17-21 January, while the second Test will be held from 25-29 January.”

International cricket teams refused to play cricket in Pakistan for years after militants attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team’s bus in Lahore in 2009, wounding six players and killing two civilians and six security officials.

International cricket and its stars, however, slowly returned to playing in the country as the security situation in Pakistan gradually improved. The South Asian country is gearing up to host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 from February to March next year. 

This will be the first time that Pakistan will be hosting an ICC tournament on its home soil since 1996 when it co-hosted the ICC ODI World Cup won by Sri Lanka. 


Inter beat Como to keep in touch with leaders Atalanta

Updated 24 December 2024
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Inter beat Como to keep in touch with leaders Atalanta

  • Como, coached by Cesc Fabregas, slipped a spot to 16th and sit just one point clear of the relegation zone

MILAN, Italy: Inter Milan saw off Como 2-0 on Monday to stretch their unbeaten run in Serie A to 11 games and move back to within three points of leaders Atalanta.
Defender Carlos Augusto headed in from a corner early in the second half before Marcus Thuram wrapped up a fourth successive league win with a thumping finish in stoppage time.
Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer made a crucial save on the hour to deny Nico Paz an equalizer as Simone Inzaghi’s side showed signs of weariness at the San Siro in what was their third outing in a week.
Thuram’s goal was his 12th of the season and sent him level with Atalanta striker Mateo Retegui for the league lead.
“Marcus is a high-class player who always trains well and has adapted very quickly to the way we play,” said Inzaghi.
“You have to congratulate Como for coming here and giving it their all, but we stayed focused and showed great maturity.”
Third-placed Inter are a point behind Napoli but have played a game less than the top two teams after their match with Fiorentina was called off at the start of December following Edoardo Bove’s sudden collapse.
Reigning champions Inter visit lowly Cagliari this weekend and could put the pressure back on Atalanta, who are away to Lazio in the late game on Saturday.
Como, coached by Cesc Fabregas, slipped a spot to 16th and sit just one point clear of the relegation zone.
Fiorentina lost more ground in the title race after falling to a 2-1 home defeat by Udinese.
Moise Kean’s early penalty gave Fiorentina the lead as they sought to shake off last weekend’s loss to Bologna that snapped the club’s eight-match winning streak in Serie A.
However, Udinese equalized shortly after half-time through Lorenzo Lucca and former France international Florian Thauvin curled in the winner from outside the area.
“The most important thing for me is not the goal but the victory. These are three important points against a very strong team,” said Udinese captain Thauvin.
Udinese stayed ninth and are eight points off the European places.


Complete lineup for February UFC event in Riyadh announced

Updated 24 December 2024
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Complete lineup for February UFC event in Riyadh announced

RIYADH: Organizers confirmed on Monday the complete list of fighters for the UFC Fight Night event in the Saudi capital on Feb. 1.
Israel Adesanya versus Nassourdine Imavov is the main event for the second UFC event held in the Kingdom.
The card features Dagestani fighter Said Nurmagomedov (18-3-0) will face Brazilian Vinicius “Lok Dog” Oliveira (21-3-0), while Tajik Muhammad Naimov (11-3-0) squares off against Australian Kaan Ofli (12-3-1).
In another bout, American Terrance McKinney (15-7-0) will clash with Denmark’s Damir Hadzovic (14-7-0), and Austrian Bogdan Grad (14-2-0) will meet Brazilian Lucas Alexander (8-4-0).
Highlighting Arab representation, Egyptian Hamdy Abdelwahab (5-0-0) will take on American Jamal Boggs (11-4-0), while Bahraini Shamil Gaziev (13-1-0) faces a tough challenge against American Thomas Petersen (9-2-0).
The excitement continues as Americans Jordan Leavitt (11-3-0) and Abdul Kareem Al-Selwady (15-4-0) battle it out, and Russian Sergei Pavlovich (18-3-0) faces Surinamese fighter Jairzinho “Bigi Boy” Rozenstruik (15-5-0).
Dagestani Ikram Aliskerov (15-2-0) will take on Brazilian André Muniz (24-6-0) in a blockbuster bout.
Adesanya, the Nigerian-born New Zealander, is one of UFC’s all-time greats, making a return after a title fight against Dricus du Plessis earlier this year. He is determined to reclaim his dominance with a decisive victory over Imavov.
In June the UFC hosted the first ever event in the Kingdom, bringing the premier fighting championship to Saudi fans of MMA.
Tickets are available for the event at the anb Arena on Jan. 3.


Saudi striker Saleh Al-Shehri out of remainder of Gulf Cup after injury in first match

Updated 23 December 2024
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Saudi striker Saleh Al-Shehri out of remainder of Gulf Cup after injury in first match

  • Loss of the player, a standout performer recently, after picking up a muscle injury in Sunday’s 3-2 defeat by Bahrain is a significant blow

KUWAIT CITY: Saudi national team striker Saleh Al-Shehri has been ruled out of the remainder of the 26th Gulf Cup after sustaining a muscle injury during the Green Falcons’ opening match against Bahrain on Sunday.

Head coach Herve Renard made the decision to send Al-Shehri home from the team’s training camp after medical reports confirmed the injury will require treatment and rehabilitation.

Saudi Arabia suffered a 3-2 defeat in the match against Bahrain. The loss of Al-Shehri, a key player and standout performer for the team in recent months, will be a significant blow for the squad as they attempt to get their Gulf Cup campaign back on track against Yemen at Jaber Stadium in Kuwait on Wednesday.

During a training session on Monday evening, Renard divided the squad into two groups, with the players who started on Sunday focusing on recovery exercises in the gym while the remainder of the squad trained on the pitch at Al-Nassr Club Stadium.