LAS VEGAS: George Russell of Mercedes took pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Friday while title-chasing Max Verstappen was fifth as the Dutchman closes in on a fourth successive world championship.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was second ahead of Pierre Gasly of Alpine with Red Bull’s Verstappen finishing one spot ahead of title rival Lando Norris of McLaren who was sixth.
Verstappen, who won the Las Vegas race in 2023, leads Norris by 62 points with three races remaining and needs simply to finish ahead of him on Saturday night to become only the sixth man to win four world titles.
Norris has to beat Verstappen by three points to keep his slim championship hopes alive.
“At least we are ahead of the McLarens. I didn’t expect that so it’s good,” said Verstappen, hampered by Red Bull’s error in bring the wrong rear wing to Las Vegas.
“We’re just a bit too slow. We have been struggling to get the tires to work over a lap and we’re too slow on the straights.”
Charles Leclerc, in the second Ferrari, was fourth fastest in qualifying and will share the second row with Gasly whose impressive performance on the Las Vegas street circuit followed a shock third-place finish in Brazil last time out.
Yuki Tsunoda of RB was seventh with Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren, Nico Hulkenberg in a Haas and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes completing the top 10.
Russell clocked a best lap in one minute and 32.312 seconds to outpace Sainz by 0.098 seconds for his third pole this year the fourth of his career.
“It feels incredible to be back on pole,” said Russell, who clipped a wall in the third and final qualifying run.
“I had a bit of a moment on my first run and we had to change the front wing so for a while I didn’t think we were going to make the flag, but I am just so happy.”
Norris felt the “top four was out of reach” for him.
“But I will keep going to the end and will do my best in every race whether I am fighting for the championship or not.”
On a cool night in America’s gambling capital, with a track temperature of 13 degrees Celsius, it was Gasly who set the pace as the rest slithered in early pursuit.
Having been quickest in the earlier final free practice, Russell topped Q1 ahead of Hamilton.
Unfortunately for Red Bull, Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez’s miserable season continued as he was eliminated along with Aston Martin’s two-time world champion Fernando Alonso, Williams’ Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas of Sauber and Lance Stroll in the second Aston Martin.
Hamilton set the Q2 pace in 1:33.136. After his dismal outing in Brazil where he finished 10th in the rain, this was evidence of a revitalized Hamilton ahead of a move to Ferrari next year.
Verstappen briefly went top with an edgy lap before Mercedes responded with Russell taking control as both he and Hamilton delivered improved laps, Russell clocking 1:32.881.
At this stage, Verstappen was showing enough pace to stay ahead of Norris before the Q2 segment ended with a yellow flag as Franco Colapinto hit the wall at the penultimate corner in his Williams, climbing out of the wreckage unhurt.
It was his second consecutive crash in qualifying and left the team with a big repair and rebuild job — the British team’s sixth in three Grands Prix.
The Argentine driver was already heading for a Q2 exit in 14th place along with RB’s Liam Lawson, Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu, Kevin Magnussen of Haas and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon.
Hamilton topped Q2 to lead the way into the top ten shootout with a best lap in 1:32.567 ahead of Sainz and Russell.
The Q3 action resumed after a 25-minute delay for repairs, Verstappen leading the way followed by both McLarens before Russell clocked an early marker in 1:32.811 ahead of Sainz while Hamilton locked up and aborted his first lap.
Russell on pole position at Las Vegas GP, Verstappen ahead of Norris
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Russell on pole position at Las Vegas GP, Verstappen ahead of Norris
- Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was second ahead of Pierre Gasly of Alpine
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
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
- 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.
Moves afoot for Saudi cricketers to host Sri Lanka’s stars
- ‘We plan to bring our cricketers for a friendly match with Saudi team,’ Sri Lanka envoy says
RIYADH: With the popularity of cricket in Saudi Arabia growing by leaps and bounds, do not be surprized if you see Sri Lankan cricketers playing with the Saudi team in the near future.
The Sri Lankan ambassador in Riyadh, Omar Lebbe Ameer Ajwad, in an interview with Arab News on the 50 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries, said: “We have very cordial relations and, importantly, have taken initiatives to further elevate our bilateral ties in all areas of mutual interest, one of them is cricket.
“We are in touch with the Saudi Arabian Cricket Federation. So we will work with them in the future, to organize bilateral matches, cricket matches between the two sides, the Sri Lankan team and the Saudi team,” the envoy told Arab News.
“We are planning to have the kind of bilateral ties in which the cricket team can visit. So we are working on that. We have initiated some talks. I met SACF Chairman Prince Saud bin Mishal Al-Saud,” Ajwad said.
The SACF chairman has also visited Sri Lanka for cooperation in cricket, he added.
“We will bring our cricket stars here, to start some kind of a friendly match. Maybe we can work on that to mark the occasion as we are celebrating 50 years of our diplomatic ties,” the ambassador said.
"All these projects are in our plan. Of course, we are having a list of items to celebrate this milestone in our bilateral relations,” he added.
Sri Lankan cricket star and former captain Kumar Sangakkara was in NEOM as part of the second season of the NEOM and Rajasthan Royals’ cricket program, he said.
“He was in NEOM. So in the future we will interact like this, bringing Sri Lankan cricketers to the Kingdom,” he added.
Indian cricket star and former captain Rahul Dravid, who is head coach of the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals, also attended the NEOM cricket program.
The Red Sea city of Jeddah last month hosted the TATA IPL mega auction at the Abadi Al-Johar Arena that attracted a galaxy of international cricket stars and the celebrity owners of the IPL franchises.
The SACF described the TATA IPL mega auction as “a historic sporting achievement in Jeddah.”
On X, the IPL posted: “TATA IPL partners got to experience ‘TATAIPLAuction’ in Jeddah like never before,” describing the event as “a historic moment in the TATA IPL Auction.”
Pakistani cricketing legends including Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar also visited the Kingdom in the recent past and held meetings with the SACF chairman to discuss the development of cricket and ways to cooperate.
Game Changers Falcons crowned champions of World Tennis League season 3
- Game Changers Falcons beat TSL Hawks 20-16
- Coach John-Laffnie de Jager lauds team’s spirit
ABU DHABI: Game Changers Falcons clinched the World Tennis League season three title with a hard-fought 20-16 victory over the TSL Hawks at the Etihad Arena on Sunday.
Despite losing the first two sets — women’s doubles and singles — Game Changers Falcons staged a remarkable comeback, dominating the men’s doubles and singles to claim the title.
In a rematch of the season opener, Game Changers Falcons’ Elena Rybakina and Caroline Garcia began strongly, breaking the opening serve of the match against the TSL Hawks’ Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva.
Despite their stellar performances in the league stage, Sabalenka and Andreeva looked unsettled early on. However, they mounted an impressive comeback as they recovered from a 0-5 deficit to level the score at 5-5.
Rybakina and Garcia then managed to break serve again to regain the lead, but a series of unforced errors allowed their opponents to force a tie-break.
In the tie-break, Sabalenka and Andreeva found themselves trailing once again but displayed remarkable composure to turn the tables and clinch the women’s doubles set 7-6.
Teenage sensation Andreeva carried her remarkable form into the women’s singles against Rybakina. She broke Rybakina’s second and third serves to gain the upper hand and comfortably close out the set 6-2, extending the TSL Hawks’ overall lead to 13-8 in the match.
In the men’s doubles, Game Changers Falcons’ Andrey Rublev and Denis Shapovalov dominated the entire set against the TSL Hawks’ Sumit Nagal and Jordan Thompson. They broke Nagal’s serve twice to maintain the lead and sealed the set 6-2. This win narrowed the overall game tally to 14-15, setting the stage for a thrilling men’s singles.
Rublev held his opening serve to level the overall game tally at 15-15 before winning three consecutive games to take an 18-15 lead. While Nagal managed to pull a game back, Rublev closed the men’s singles set 6-1 to help his team clinch the title 20-16.
“I’ve done team events for a while, and I’ve been very fortunate over the years to have really good people on the team,” Game Changers Falcons coach and captain, John-Laffnie de Jager, said at the post-match press conference.
“They get along well, they’re professional, they show up and at the end of the day, they perform. First time when we played against the Hawks, we were behind, we came back from that point to win it and the same happened tonight.
“So, the format is great, because you are never out and always have a chance to win it. It was an awesome campaign for us, and everybody enjoyed it.”
Game Changers Falcons’ Garcia said: “In tennis it’s not very often you have an opportunity to play in a team setup, and I really enjoyed it. I had a great time knowing a bit more about everyone in the team and looking forward for more fun next year.”
