Category Sports News

Mercedes’ rivals have succeeded in securing a rule change following a pre-season technical row over engine performance.

Audi, Ferrari, Red Bull and Honda had been pushing for a change in the regulation governing compression ratios on the basis they believed Mercedes had secured an advantage through clever use of materials technology.

Formula 1’s governing body the FIA said on Saturday that a change to the way the compression ratio was measured would be introduced on 1 June, with a further revision for the 2027 season.

A statement said the rule change had been approved unanimously by all power-unit manufacturers.

The compression ratio is a measurement of the cylinder displacement between the two extremes of the piston stroke. Typically, an increase will lead to more power.

Some estimates of the gain Mercedes could be achieving have been as much as 0.3 seconds a lap, but Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has said it amounts to “a few horsepower – in England you would say a couple, which is more like two and three”.

The original rule stated the ratio would be limited to 16:1 in the new engine rules introduced this year – a change from 18:1 under the previous regulations – and this was measured at ambient temperature.

Mercedes’ rivals were pushing for the compression ratio to be measured at operating temperature.

The Mercedes engine has been measured by the FIA at both ambient and operating temperature and complied with the limit of 16:1 at all times, senior F1 insiders have told BBC Sport.

Compression ratios tend to decrease as an engine rises in temperature because of thermal expansion of the materials involved. The belief was Mercedes had found a more effective way to limit this loss than other manufacturers.

From 1 June, the compression ratio will be measured at 130C as well as ambient temperature, and from next year only at 130C.

That means that from next year, manufacturers will be able to have engines that exceed a compression ratio of 16:1 at ambient temperature, even though this reduction from the previous limit was introduced into the 2026 regulations to make the rules more appealing to new manufacturers.

Audi and Ford both entered F1 because they were attracted by the new power-unit rules, which introduce a near 50-50 split between internal combustion and electrical power, and Honda reversed a decision to quit.

A statement from the FIA said: “A significant effort has been invested in finding a solution to the topic of compression ratio.

“The regulations introduced for 2026 represent one of the biggest changes in recent memory.

“All parties acknowledge that with the introduction of such significant regulatory changes, there are collective learnings to be taken from pre-season testing and the initial rounds of the 2026 championship.

“Further evaluation and technical checks on energy management matters are ongoing.”

This last sentence is a reference to discussions over energy deployment and recovery.

Hayley Ladd begins World Cup qualifying with Wales on Tuesday believing her move to Crystal Palace came at “the right time”.

The 32-year-old joined WSL2 side Palace in January after limited opportunities with top-flight club Everton.

Ladd, who can operate in defence or midfield, links up with Wales for their opening qualifiers against Czech Republic and Montenegro having made a bright start to life with the Eagles.

She marked her debut by coming off the bench to score the winning goal against Sheffield United, a day after signing for the London club.

Ladd has praised the influence of Palace manager, former England international Jo Potter, who convinced her to make the switch from Merseyside.

“I played against her and you could see the calibre of player and her competitiveness and desire,” said Ladd.

“That’s important for me as a player, to feel I have that passion and energy from a manager.

Ladd’s debut Palace goal was a spectacular one, with the former Manchester United player’s free-kick nominated for goal of the month in WSL2.

It was a dream beginning to life at a new club, as Ladd’s late strike secured a 1-0 win.

“I didn’t start the game and just thought I’ll be happy to get on the pitch at some point,” said Ladd.

“I happened to get introduced at half-time and we had a free-kick in the 86th minute.

Head coach Rhian Wilkinson has been keen to ensure her players are getting regular game time at club level as she seeks to lead Wales to a first World Cup.

Having taken the plunge by joining Palace, Ladd feels in good shape as she prepares for a new qualifying campaign.

“Rhian always speaks to us and finding out how things are going club-wise,” said 111-cap Ladd.

“She was careful not to put pressure on, but has said she wants people playing and being competitive within squads, which is totally understandable.

Wales’ bid to reach Brazil in 2027 starts with what promises to be a tough test in Czech Republic, before their second Group B1 qualifier against Montenegro in Llanelli next Saturday.

After a 12-game winless streak in 2025, Ladd says Wilkinson’s team are buoyed by their December friendly victory against Switzerland and, despite the retirements of Jess Fishlock and Kayleigh Barton, competition is rife for places.

“It’s the most competitive I’ve ever seen the squad,” she said.

Wales were blessed with 19 years of Fishlock, but the loss of the country’s all-time leading goalscorer brings a different look to their World Cup qualifying campaign.

Fishlock will be part of the coaching staff for the Czech Republic game but leaves big boots to fill on the pitch.

Ladd says it is up to Wales’ other senior players to lead the way.

“Jess is a phenomenal player – she’s such a trailblazer with what she’s done in the game,” she said.

“There’s obviously me, Angharad James, Ceri Holland and Sophie Ingle with a wealth of experience. There’s hopefully enough to carry the squad through and make sure we don’t lose any momentum in this next campaign.

Ladd insists the youth will help the team’s evolution.

“We’ve always been fortunate to have managers that have really trusted our younger players,” she said.

“We’ve always had young players, a 16-year-old Carrie Jones comes to mind straight away. If you’re good enough, you’re ready.

“They’ve always been in and around the squad, so it’s something that we’re used to.

Tadhg Beirne insists Ireland must remain focused as attention shifts to Friday’s Six Nations game with Wales in Dublin (20:10 GMT) following last week’s record away win over England.

With the tournament’s fallow week offering time for teams to regroup, the 34-year-old said Ireland’s mindset is firmly fixed on improvement rather than just reflection.

“A better performance against Wales is what we’ll be chasing,” said the Munster forward.

“You can’t just pat yourselves on the back and think it’s going to happen again. You have to focus on what went well, bank it, and then also focus on what to improve on.

“There’s no point saying that was a good performance, we’ll just do it again next week. It doesn’t work like that. You have to work incredibly hard to get those performances and it’ll be no different next week.

Ireland produced one of their best performances under head coach Andy Farrell to secure a thumping 42-21 win over England.

However, Beirne says he is expecting a stern challenge from Wales, who were denied a first Six Nations win since 2023 by Scotland in a close encounter in Cardiff last week.

“Wales, much like us, are improving game on game,” said the British and Irish Lion.

“A lot of the scorelines against the teams they’ve played against have probably not painted them in the best picture in terms of how well they played in parts of those games.

“They’re chasing better 80-minute performances and they were very close to getting the win against Scotland. I think that performance will give them a lot of confidence coming in against us.

Friday’s fixture carries personal resonance for Beirne. A two-year spell with the Scarlets proved transformative in his career, leading to his Ireland debut and a move to Munster in 2018.

Having won the Pro12 title with the Llanelli-based region in 2017, Beirne says he is “incredibly sad” to see current plans to cut the number of Welsh professional sides from four to three.

“There’s probably two or three players still there from when I was there – a big change in the guard,” he said.

“I haven’t really spoken to any of them about it. It’s a tough time. I do remember when I was there, there were whispers of the same thing happening.

“It just seems a little bit more serious at this point. I feel incredibly sad for all those individuals who have families and everything at home and it’s going to create a lot of pressure for those guys.”

Beirne added: “When you’re in these camps, you can use it and also you try to put it in the back of your mind at the same time because you have an opportunity to put on the jersey and represent your country.

Lewis Crocker’s manager Jamie Conlan says the IBF welterweight champion’s hand injury is “nothing too serious” and expects the Belfast fighter’s first title defence against Liam Paro to take place in May.

While no date or venue had been officially confirmed by Paro’s promoter No Limit, early April was rumoured to be their preferred time for the bout to take place on Australian soil.

However, Conlan’s team provided a medical notice to Paro’s team and the IBF requesting extra time for the champion to recover from the injury, with May in the Queensland city of Townsville now looking likely.

“[Crocker] has a small niggle on his metacarpal, nothing too serious but it’s strained and that put him back about four weeks,” Conlan confirmed to BBC Sport NI.

“We just made sure we gave [medical notice to the IBF] in enough time and to give No Limit enough time to get a date that suits everybody.

“We have a tentative date we are working towards but until it’s official, we won’t really know.”

Crocker won the title with a split decision verdict over Paddy Donovan at Belfast’s Windsor Park in September and his team had hoped to stage the defence against mandatory challenger Paro back in his home city.

However, with no agreement reached between both parties, the matter was resolved by a purse bid with No Limit outbidding Crocker’s promoter Matchroom by $27,000 (£20,000).

The 25,500-capacity Queensland Country Bank Stadium is understood to be a leading contender to host the fight and, despite travelling to opposition territory, Conlan says it is “a really exciting time” for his fighter.

“It will be back-to-back headliners outdoors. He won [the title] at Windsor Park and now to do it in Australia, in his opponent’s back yard against the hardest fighter you’ll be in the ring with creates a great legacy and that’s what Lewis Crocker is out to do.

West Ham United say they will need to sell players this summer even if they avoid relegation from the Premier League, after revealing a £104.2m loss for the last financial year.

Figures released by the club outline West Ham’s finances to the year ending 31 May 2025 – and show a dramatic change from a profit of £57.2m in 2023-24.

Turnover fell £42.1m to £227.6m after a lower league finish, fewer live TV games, no European football and a reduced profit from player sales, West Ham said.

The accounts forecast a cash shortfall this summer – even before the “severe but plausible scenario” of dropping into the Championship.

West Ham are currently 18th in the top flight, two points behind 17th-placed Nottingham Forest with 11 games to play.

The Hammers say “further player trading” will be needed in the summer, while shareholders will have to provide more funding.

“The primary mitigating action within the control of the Group is cash receipts from further player trading,” the report adds.

“Should this not be preferred or sufficient, additional funding from the shareholders would be required.

“In the event the severe but plausible scenario occurs, the Group is also forecasting a liquidity shortfall in summer 2026 to a greater severity.

“Accordingly, more significant mitigating actions would be required such as further player disposals to generate transfer fee income and wage savings, or additional funding from the shareholders, or a combination thereof.”

West Ham have won just six league games this season but are unbeaten in their past three. They face Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday (15:00 GMT kick-off).

The Hammers signed five players in January in an attempt to avoid relegation, including forwards Pablo, Valentin Castellanos, Adama Traore and defender Axel Disasi.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander marked his return from injury with 36 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 127-121 in overtime.

The NBA’s reigning Most Valuable Player had been out of action since sustaining an abdominal strain on 3 February and missed nine games.

He played 34 minutes on his return, but remained on the bench in overtime as Alex Caruso guided the Thunder to their sixth win from their past eight games.

“Felt good,” said Gilgeous-Alexander. “I’m just thankful to be back.”

The 27-year-old was in the action from the start, opening his account with a layup before being called for an early technical foul for throwing the ball at Denver’s Nikola Jokic who made contact with him after play had stopped.

Thunder forward Luguentz Dort was later ejected for a flagrant foul after he tripped Jokic, sparking a shoving match that saw Jokic and Oklahoma City’s Jaylin Williams receive technical fouls.

Caruso drove to the basket in the final seconds of regulation, but his shot bounced off the rim at the buzzer to send the game to extra time.