LEBANON: After a thrilling Azerbaijan Grand Prix, it seems like nearly half the field is capable of winning races in Formula 1.
McLaren chief executive Zak Brown, whose driver Lando Norris is Max Verstappen’s closest title challenger, says he’s enjoying the best show he’s seen in his eight years in F1.
There have been six different winners in the last eight races, representing four different teams. Verstappen, whose dominance in 2022 and 2023 broke records, still leads the standings but his last win was in June.
“I think this is the best season I can think of ever in Formula 1 since I’ve been here,” Brown told The Associated Press from the IndyCar season finale at Nashville Superspeedway in Tennessee.
Could it even be better than the 2021 fight between Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, which was decided on the final lap of the year and helped fuel F1’s Netflix boom? Brown thinks it might be.
“That was mega exciting, but it’s just two guys, two good guys. Now you’ve got four good teams in today’s race,” he said.
“To have four teams that can win any weekend, and (Sergio) Perez was obviously back on form today, eight drivers going into Singapore and we’re going ‘I don’t know which of these four teams might win. I don’t know which of these eight drivers might win,’ I can’t recall Formula 1 having that level of competitiveness.”
There was non-stop action Sunday.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri took the win in Baku, but only after a daring overtake on Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Perez was in the mix for Red Bull until he and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. collided, handing third to Mercedes driver George Russell.
Further back, Norris surged through the field from 15th on the grid to finish fourth ahead of Verstappen and take another bite out of the champion’s standings lead.
Teams’ performances fluctuate week by week, depending on upgrades from the factories, track conditions and setup changes, like the one which Verstappen blamed for ruining his weekend in Azerbaijan.
Even a change of tires can turn an also-ran into a contender, Russell said Sunday.
“Just in this one race, we had a car that could have won if you took the pace from half of the race and a car that should have been outside the top 10 from the other half,” he said, adding: “So I hope we’ve got the faster version” for next week’s race in Singapore.
The Singapore street track hosted one of the most competitive races of an otherwise Red Bull-dominated 2023 season. On worn tires, Sainz held off Norris’ McLaren and the two Mercedes of seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton and Russell, who crashed from third on the last lap.
Piastri is F1’s on-form driver with the most points of anyone in the last seven races. He knows just how many moving parts are involved in success this year, and how quickly it can all change.
“We’ve been in with a chance everywhere, and I think today was definitely one of those days where we weren’t necessarily the quickest, but we had a car that could put us in the fight,” the Australian said.
“We had a pit stop that could put us in the fight. We had some teamwork that put us in the fight. And it all managed to pay off.”
Formula 1 races take an unpredictable turn as McLaren boss Zak Brown revels in ‘best season’
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Formula 1 races take an unpredictable turn as McLaren boss Zak Brown revels in ‘best season’
- There have been six different winners in the last eight races, representing four different teams
- Verstappen’s dominance in 2022 and 2023 broke records
AC Milan and Bologna reach Italian Cup quarterfinals with convincing wins
- Bologna will play the winners of Atalanta’s match against Cesena. Both those round of 16 matches take place next week
- The Rossoneri will face either Roma or Sampdoria in the last eight
MILAN: AC Milan and Bologna advanced to the Italian Cup quarterfinals with convincing victories on Tuesday.
Milan thrashed Serie B leader Sassuolo 6-1, while Bologna routed Serie A struggler Monza 4-0.
The Rossoneri will face either Roma or Sampdoria in the last eight. Bologna will play the winners of Atalanta’s match against Cesena.
Both those round of 16 matches take place next week.
Tuesday’s match at San Siro was all but over after less than 23 minutes as Sassuolo was swept away by a double from Samuel Chukwueze and other goals by Tijjani Reijnders and Rafael Leão.
It had been a much-changed starting lineup for Milan ahead of a tough Serie A trip to Atalanta on Friday and the Rossoneri made four further changes at halftime.
Milan nevertheless extended its advantage through Davide Calabria and Tammy Abraham, either side of a consolation goal for Sassuolo from Samuele Mulattieri.
Bologna scored two goals in each half, with Tommaso Pobega and Riccardo Orsolini netting in the first period and Benjamín Domínguez and Santiago Castro in the second.
However, Orsolini limped off shortly after scoring and Bologna now faces an anxious wait to discover the extent of his injury. The Italy forward is Bologna’s top goalscorer this season, with six goals.
After Verstappen victory, F1 finale in Abu Dhabi brings auto racing season to a close
ABU DHABI: Heading into the season finale, Verstappen has won 53 of 89 races in his championship seasons, or 59.6 percent. Verstappen can match Michael Schumacher’s record of five straight F1 season titles (2000-04) by winning again next year. Verstappen joined Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton (2017-20), Sebastian Vettel (2010-13) and Juan Manuel Fangio (1954-57) as drivers with four straight championships. Esteban Ocon, 14th in the point standings, has been released by Alpine and Jack Doohan will replace him in the season finale, making his F1 debut.
The race will take place on the Yas Marina Circuit and is 58 laps long.
Last year, Max Verstappen won from the pole position, his seventh consecutive victory to end his third consecutive series championship season.
Verstappen, already crowned the season champion for the fourth straight year, won in Qatar for his second victory in three races and ninth of the season.
Djokovic to begin bid for 25th Grand Slam crown in Brisbane
- In a bid to surpass Margaret Court in Melbourne, he has teamed up with long-time rival and the now-retired Murray
- Other men’s players starting their year in Brisbane include Grigor Dimitrov, Holger Rune, Frances Tiafoe and Matteo Berrettini
BRISBANE: Novak Djokovic will begin his 2025 season and bid for an 11th Australian Open title at the Brisbane International, it was announced Wednesday, with the Serbian superstar now coached by Andy Murray.
The 37-year-old is targeting a record 25th Grand Slam crown after failing to add to the total during a frustrating 2024, although he did win Olympic singles gold in Paris.
The ATP-WTA event runs Dec. 29-Jan. 5, with the Australian Open to begin on Jan. 12.
“I’m excited to be kicking off my Australian swing at the Brisbane International and to compete again at Pat Rafter Arena,” said Djokovic.
“I am looking forward to experiencing the incredible support from the Australian fans and making this tournament one to remember.”
Should he win, it would be his 100th career title, just the third man in the Open era behind Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) to achieve the feat.
Djokovic was beaten in the Australian Open semifinals this year by eventual champion Jannik Sinner with his failure to lift another major leaving him tied with Margaret Court on a record 24 Grand Slam singles crowns.
In a bid to surpass her in Melbourne, he has teamed up with long-time rival and the now-retired Murray.
The Brisbane tournament will also mark the return to competitive tennis of Australian Nick Kyrgios, who has played just one ATP Tour singles match in two years after knee, foot and wrist injuries.
Other men’s players starting their year in Brisbane include Grigor Dimitrov, Holger Rune, Frances Tiafoe and Matteo Berrettini.
Reigning Australian Open women’s champion and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka had previously announced she too would start her season at the Queensland Tennis Center.
Three other top-10 players including Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro and Daria Kasatkina will also play, as will former Brisbane champion Victoria Azarenka.
A host of other players have opted to start their year at the mixed-teams United Cup in Sydney and Perth, including women’s world No. 2 Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Jasmine Paolini.
Men’s world No. 2 Alexander Zverev and fourth-ranked Taylor Fritz have also signed up for the United Cup.
Tiger Woods in favor of Americans getting paid at the Ryder Cup as long as it goes to charity
- Woods: We didn’t want to get paid, we wanted to give more money to charity, and the media turned it around against us and said we want to get paid
- The $5 million figure came about when Woods was asked if it should be made clear the money would go to charity, which it has for the last 25 years
NASSAU, Bahamas:Tiger Woods dropped a big financial number related to the Ryder Cup that is sure to make headlines, particularly in Europe.
“I hope they would get $5 million each and donate it all to charity, different charities,” Woods said Tuesday at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. “I think it’s great. What’s wrong with that?”
The source of the topic was a report last month on the PGA of America considering a proposal to pay American players $400,000 at the Ryder Cup, an amount that was a mystery to the executive level at the PGA of America, which still doesn’t have a CEO.
Woods is well-versed on the topic, which dates to 1999 when Woods, David Duval and Mark O’Meara were among those questioning how much money the PGA of America was making off the Ryder Cup. That resulted in $200,000 for each player, half to a charity of their choice and the other half to a golf management program at their university.
“We didn’t want to get paid, we wanted to give more money to charity, and the media turned it around against us and said we want to get paid,” Woods said. “No. The Ryder Cup itself makes so much money, why can’t we allocate it to various charities? And what’s wrong with each player, 12 players getting $1 million and the ability to divvy out to amazing charities that they’re involved in that they can help out?”
The $5 million figure came about when Woods was asked if it should be made clear the money would go to charity, which it has for the last 25 years.
The issue is money coming in and where it goes, and it’s different for each team. The European tour is the lead partner in Ryder Cup Europe, and money from the matches in Europe is crucial in funding the tour. The PGA of America — not the PGA Tour — runs the matches in the US. The PGA of America gives the tour 20 percent of the television deal.
Rory McIlroy was among European players who, when asked about the report, said they would pay to play in the Ryder Cup.
“If the Europeans want to pay to be in the Ryder Cup, that’s their decision to do that, that’s their team,” Woods said. “I know when it’s on European soil that it subsidizes most of their tour, so it is a big event for the European tour and if they want to pay to play in it, so be it.”
Masters stretch run
Nicolai Hojgaard at No. 58 in the world ranking, Mackenzie Hughes (No. 57) and Thomas Detry (No. 61) are among those playing in South Africa at the Nedbank Golf Challenge.
At stake is finishing the year in the top 50 to qualify for the Masters, and time is running out. The Nedbank Challenge is followed by the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa, and golf concludes with the Mauritius Open.
On the bubble are Min Woo Lee (No. 49), Lucas Glover (No. 51) and Stephan Jaeger (No.53), neither of whom are playing this week or are entered next week.
Corey Conners also is playing in South Africa, although at No. 42 he should be safe for the top 50. For those who don’t make it, there is another top 50 cutoff from the world ranking a full week before the Masters.
The field for Augusta National, currently at 75 players expected to play, could add as many as eight players through the world ranking by the end of the year. Still to be determined is whether the Masters offers special invitations. Joaquin Niemann, Thorbjorn Olesen and Ryo Hizatsune received them for the last Masters.
Crypto payoff for LIV against PGA Tour match
The made-for-TV match between PGA Tour and LIV Golf League starts has a title sponsor and a new form of payment.
Crypto.com is the title sponsor of the Dec. 17 match at Shadow Creek just north of Las Vegas that pits Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy against Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka.
The Crypto.com Showdown will be televised across TNT, TBS, truTV and Max, with a commentary crew that includes David Feherty and Charles Barkley. It will be the first broadcast appearance by Feherty outside of LIV since he signed on with the Saudi-funded league.
The 18-hole match will be split among six holes of foursomes, six holes of fourballs and six holes of singles.
As for the payoff? Front Office Sports reports it will be at least $10 million paid for the first time in Cryptocurrency.
Quick study
Nick Dunlap started the year as a sophomore at Alabama. Eleven months later, he is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour and in the Bahamas for the Hero World Challenge hosted by Tiger Woods.
There have been rough patches along the way, especially getting used to the travel, the cuts and courses he had never seen. But he proved to be a quick study, and he gave credit to Will Zalatoris for a practice round at The Players Championship.
“It wasn’t anything he said — it wasn’t really anything — it was just watching the way he prepared for that golf tournament and strategically where he chipped from, where he putted from, where he hit iron shots to,” Dunlap said. “It was eye opening to me because I never really paid that much attention in practice rounds.”
The rest of the year, Dunlap said he spent pre-tournament week trying to learn the course.
“It may only save you a half a shot or a shot and that could mean the difference at the end of the year,” he said.
On the rebound
Anthony Kim posted rounds of 71-72-73-71 and tied for 37th in the International Series Qatar on the Asian Tour. It was the first time Kim made the cut in any tournament since the 2012 Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.
Kim walked away from golf two months after Bay Hill that year and didn’t return until he joined Saudi-backed LIV Golf as a wild card this year. LIV is 54 holes with no cut. In the only other 72-hole tournament Kim played this year, he missed the cut in Macau.
Kim made $14,510 in Qatar. He also moved up 2,281 spots in the world ranking to No. 2,314. The 39-year-old American is playing in Saudi International this week on the Asian Tour.
Divots
Hero MotoCorp. in India has extended its title sponsorship of the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas through 2030, along with extending its relationship with Tiger Woods as an ambassador. Woods is the tournament host in the Bahamas. ... Jon Rahm makes his debut in the Dubai Desert Classic next January. Rahm typically spent January in California for The American Express and Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines before going to LIV Golf. ... Claire Welsh of Canada, who previously worked senior roles in player relations for The R&A, is the new tournament director for the CPKC Women’s Open in Canada.
Stat of the week
Japanese amateur Rintaro Nakano had a 25-shot differential between his first and final round at the Australian Open. He started with a 65. He closed with a 90.
Final word
“The players have benefited from it whether you’re on LIV or you’re not on LIV. Love him or hate him, as a golfer, he’s certainly helped our lifestyle.” — Marc Leishman on fellow Aussie Greg Norman, the CEO of Saudi-funded LIV Golf.
US women’s national team beat Netherlands 2-1 in goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher’s final match
- Naeher: I definitely wasn’t thinking about it during the game, just wanted to win the game and do what I could to come away with the ‘W’ for us to close out the year
- Naeher is the only US keeper with shutouts in both a World Cup and an Olympic final
THE HAGUE, Netherlands: Alyssa Naeher ended her national team career with one last win.
The stalwart goalkeeper made two critical saves in her final match for the US, and the Americans beat the Netherlands 2-1 on Tuesday.
“I definitely wasn’t thinking about it during the game, just wanted to win the game and do what I could to come away with the ‘W’ for us to close out the year,” Naeher said.
Lynn Williams scored the go-ahead goal in the 71st minute for the US, who won their fifth Olympic gold medal in France this summer and wrapped up the year on a 20-game unbeaten streak. The Americans were coming off a scoreless draw with England on Saturday at Wembley Stadium.
Naeher announced two weeks ago that the European exhibitions would be her final matches. The 36-year-old goalkeeper played in 115 games for the US, with 111 starts, 89 wins and 69 shutouts.
Naeher is the only US keeper with shutouts in both a World Cup and an Olympic final. She was in goal when the US defeated the Netherlands 2-0 in the 2019 Women’s World Cup final.
“I feel like in my heart I would love to keep going. In my head, in my body and mind, I feel like it’s the right time. And I think it’s the right time with this team as well as it builds toward the future and toward 2027,” Naeher said. “This environment, this team, is an incredible team to be a part of, but it’s also really hard and really challenging in a lot of ways as well.
“I feel like I’ve given everything I have to give for this team and that’s why I feel at peace with that.”
The Netherlands took the lead on center back Veerle Buurman’s header off a corner kick in the 15th minute. Naeher prevented a second goal when she punched away Dominique Janssen’s shot in the 38th.
The US drew even at the end of the first half on an own goal that deflected off Buurman and past Dutch goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar.
Naeher slid to stop Danielle van de Donk’s shot in the 69th minute before Williams, a second-half substitute, scored her fourth goal of the year and 21st of her career.
“I wouldn’t say that this was our prettiest game of soccer ever. And sometimes that’s how games go. You can talk about tactics, you can talk about formations, you talk about everything, but the biggest thing was matching their intensity. Getting to the second ball, getting to the first ball. That was the shift that needed to happen,” Williams said about the team’s second-half mindset.
Naeher finished with six saves.
She is not quite finished with soccer yet: She will continue playing next season for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women’s Soccer League.
“She’s been consistent again and again. Even when she’s been questioned at times in her career, she’s always found the answer,” US coach Emma Hayes said. “Not only has she been a great player in this program, but let me tell you, she’s so loved by everyone, players and staff alike. She is the best teammate you could ask for and that just speaks volumes to the person that she is.”
Lily Yohannes came in as a substitute in the second half. Yohannes, who has dual citizenship, opted to play for the US over the Netherlands last month. She plays professionally for the Dutch club Ajax.
The US finished the year without the trio of Mallory Swanson, Trinity Rodman and Sophia Smith, who were left off the roster for the final two matches to rest and heal nagging injuries.
The US are unbeaten in 15 matches under Hayes, who took over in May.
