Category News

Lando Norris will lead the world championship for the first time in six months if the race ends in the manner of qualifying.

Prior to the race, Norris, who is a McLaren driver, was 14 points clear of his team-mate Oscar Piastri, but the Australian is a distant second.

With only five grands prix remaining after this one, the reward for one of the qualifying laps of the season might be a significant declaration of intent.

Max Verstappen’s remarkable run of form at Red Bull was the subject of all the discussion when he arrived in Mexico.

In his previous four races, the Dutchman had collected three victories and a second, reducing his deficit to just 40 points from 104 points.

Verstappen also had a challenging weekend, with his seemingly unstoppable momentum stalled by a bizarre lack of grip, like Piastri.

Piastri would need to move up to fourth from his grid position if Norris wins the race to maintain even a slim lead. When the Australians have struggled this weekend, it’s not easy to get through.

But Norris is not taking anything for granted because he is aware that George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari are immediately in danger, so he can take risks in a more extreme way.

Verstappen and Piastri, you’re talking about two of the best drivers on the grid, according to Norris, who was speaking with Leclerc and Hamilton at the post-race news conference. You can never, in my opinion, get past them and come back through.

Our race pace has always been very high this season, so I’m still hoping Oscar will come back strong and compete well. He does it frequently. So, let’s see. That’s what I’m hoping for.

“And the same with Max,” he said, “when has he ever come forward and not been on the attack?”

With what he called “an incredible lap,” Norris moved to the top of the grid.

Leclerc’s lap was so impressive that when Norris finished his final run, even though he knew it had been good, he immediately thought, “If I’d get ahead of Charles, I’d be pretty happy. “

For his first pole position since Belgium in late July, he had actually won by a respectable 0. 222 seconds.

Norris continued, “When I saw [one minute] 15.5 on my dash, it put a pretty big smile on my face because it was… everything just came together in terms of feeling.”

“To take pole in Monaco was very natural and similar to my lap. A good feeling because it’s been awhile. Even with how quickly it moves, I don’t get that feeling in this car all that often this year.

The car is “extremely quick,” but it’s not simple to drive. When we both complained about that as drivers, it “flys” when you just get into that little rhythm, which is where I am today.

The drivers starting in the second and third corners can benefit from the nearly 800-meter run from the grid to the first corner.

Leclerc and Hamilton both declared they would be “aggressive” into the first corner, despite Hamilton’s best grand prix qualifying performance of his first season at Ferrari. Something about which Norris is aware that he needs to be cautious.

Meanwhile, Piastri had a rather depressing figure cut. He believed he had found the solution after a challenging weekend in the US last week. However, as he put it, “The gap has just been the same pretty much every session,” which is what has been a little surprising.

“Over the course of the weekend, I feel like I did some respectable laps, but everything seems to be going about 0 – 0 secs off.”

Andrea Stella, the team’s principal, said Piastri was losing a little bit everywhere, and he responded, “I think I did a good job and the car felt good as well.” Yes, the lack of lap time is a little mysterious.

It is more likely that Piastri will have some fun if he can unlock the pace in the car because he has been off Norris’ pace on short runs or long runs, low fuel or high runs. We just need to make an effort to unlock it.

Since winning in the Netherlands at the end of August, Piastri has now had his fifth difficult weekend in a row. His form has mysteriously vanished.

There was no hiding the meaning behind one of his statements, which he did not directly address regarding what this might mean for the championship: “There are many things I could worry about, but being so far away when you feel like you’ve done a reasonable job is a difficult place to be.” And so I’m currently concerned about that.

Stella asserted that the conditions in Mexico, similar to those in Austin, favor Norris and Piastri, who has hot tyres and low grip, are both favorable.

And he claimed that “every piece of evidence, every piece of data, every indirect measurement of information we have, tells us that the car has no problems.”

Verstappen, who has struggled all weekend, shared Piastri’s concerns, with his Red Bull no longer resemblening the fear McLaren had experienced in its previous four races.

He claimed that it has simply been very challenging. We’ve tried a lot of things,” he said. Although it’s not because of the lack of effort, it’s still not great.

Simply put, it slides because there is no grip and traction when you turn and traction when you traction.

Red Bull made a floor for this weekend, their second of four races, following the one in Monza, which was a component of a package of chanciness that altered the car’s pace.

Verstappen acknowledged that the team would need to consider “if that was what was wrong.” He also pointed out that despite winning five games there, he also wasn’t as competitive there last year.

His pessimism is reflected in his race expectations, saying, “It’s going to be challenging. We don’t have that on tires, but you need a good balance on them.

The Ferraris are likely to be Norris’ biggest challenge in the race, as they did in qualifying.

Hamilton and Leclerc both performed quickly over the weekend, and Hamilton recorded their best grid position of the year.

Although it’s a journey, I have grown a lot as a result, Hamilton said, “I can’t believe it has taken me this long to get here.” I want to move forward, and third is not a bad place to start.

neither side believed their step had a significant impact.

Hamilton said, “The team truly deserves it because this is our first qualifying performance this year.” We’re only putting in as much effort as we can.

After Ciryl Gane’s accidental eye poke made Tom Aspinall unable to continue at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi, his first attempt to defend his undisputed heavyweight title was met with bitter disappointment.

The referee ended the match when France’s Gane attempted a punch and ended the contest by stopping Aspinall in both eyes.

Aspinall, 32, was seen holding a cloth to his eye as he was reportedly told, “I can’t see,” and the referee decided the fight was a no-contest due to the Briton’s inability to fight on.

Aspinall continued to hold his title after the outcome, but not in the way he had hoped, and he expressed his frustration in his post-fight interview as the audience applauded the outcome.

“Guys, I was just knuckled in the eyeball knuckle-deep. What’s up with you, booing? A distraught Aspinall yelled, “I can’t see.

“The fight was just getting going,” he said. I’m hardly able to focus on anything. Look ! A double eyed poke was used.

After the fight, Aspinall was taken to a hospital, but he did not attend the post-fight press conference.

The referee deeming the incident to be accidental rather than intentional, which would have resulted in a disqualification.

Aspinall would have profited from a disqualification.

Gane could be seen pacing around the octagon, shaking his head, as the outcome was announced, and being equally irritated by it.

“I’m sorry,” I said. I’m sorry for the crowd, the fans, Tom Aspinall, and myself, Gane said.

“This is the sport, this is life, and we put a lot of effort into this fight,” I said disappointed.

Aspinall stated his intention to move the heavyweight division, and the fight was touted as a beginning of a new era for the organization.

Aspinall received cheers throughout fight week, while Gane received booes on the other hand.

The support grew jeers when the Briton was unable to continue the fight, but the cheering grew on fight night as the arena’s “Tommy Aspinall” chants rang out throughout the entire.

Aspinall, who had been appointed interim champion in June after Jon Jones’ retirement, was now defending his belt for the first time.

He waited for an uncontested fight with Jones while remaining in charge for 19 months.

Because Gane tested Aspinall before none of his previous UFC opponents, the outcome is all the more upsetting.

Aspinall entered the fight with seven of his eight first-round UFC victories, but he was unable to overthrow Gane.

Gane used skilled footwork to keep away from Aspinall’s dangerous range while performing quick one-twos and leg kicks.

Aspinall had the most damage from the two, with blood pouring from his nose prior to the eye poke.

After the eye poke, Aspinall, the UFC president, said at the post-fight press conference that he didn’t want to go on.

He then suggested that Gane and the pair hold a rematch, which would generate more interest than the first fight, due to Gane’s impressive performance.

He said, “I think the rematch will be much more interesting because it’s unfortunate that it ended the way it did.”

Tom was bloodied up and refusing to continue fighting, Gane claimed. Therefore, a rematch is very intriguing.

The Briton was clearly distressed after the incident, and reports claimed Gane’s fingers had slit deeply into both Aspinall’s eyes.

Aspinall’s frustrations following the fight also reflect his bitter disappointment with the way the match ended, which he repeatedly told the referee he could not see.

I can’t start a fight, I promise. When asked about whether the fight could continue, White said, “You can’t make someone continue if they feel they’ve been injured.”

Aspinall might be able to get a spot on the UFC 324 card in January given that the main UFC 323 events are already being announced.

Aspinall has suffered a serious knee injury in the first round of the 2022 defeat against Curtis Blaydes.

However, he will take comfort from the fact that, in the best form of his life, he won his next three fights in the first round. He bounced back after a year out injured.

With only four uncontested title fights taking place in almost four years, this is the most recent blow for Aspinall and the heavyweight division.

Brazilian-American Mackenzie Dern won the strawweight belt and her first UFC title in Abu Dhabi when she defeated Brazilian-American Virna Jandiroba.

Main Card :

a preliminary report

Joseph Parker’s ambitions to become a two-time world heavyweight champion on Saturday were ruined by Fabio Wardley’s huge upset, setting up his own chances of defeating undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.

After he stunned the veteran New Zealander in the 11th round of a fun and harrowing battle at London’s O2 Arena, the British fighter is now the top competitor for the Ukrainian.

When Wardley, 30, swarmed former world champion Parker, who had been badly hurt by a right uppercut in the 10th, he forced referee Howard Foster to stop the fight, earning the WBO’s “interim” title.

As his corner team piled into the ring to celebrate, the Ipswich native brought the crowd to their feet and to the floor.

The former white-collar boxer’s remarkable rise to the professional ranks was captured in stunning images.

The stoppage was argued that it was premature, especially given that Wardley had suffered numerous injuries with right hands in the fight and Parker had dominated the fight.

Foster, a 33-year-old New Zealander, intervened without much rebuttal, and his trainer Andy Lee did not appear to be remonstrate as his team suffered their fourth career defeat.

Wardley remarked throughout the build-up that Joseph Parker was chosen because he believed in and demonstrated his leadership.

Joseph deserves the full respect of the boxing community, and he deserves it. We were aware that he was going nowhere quickly when he took a chance when he wasn’t supposed to. We had to choose our spots, but we eventually managed to get them out.

In the 10th round, Wardley gave the opponent a right uppercut, which set the tone for the fight.

Wardley won his 20th career victory, and it was his most significant. Possibly in the early next year, Usyk will wait.

Parker lost his fourth straight defeat in front of his own time by taking on Parker, who would become the top contender for Usyk’s crown.

Tyson Fury, Daniel Dubois, Moses Itauma, Derek Chisora, and Dillian Whyte were among the onlookers who attended the arena’s who’s who of British heavyweight boxing.

Usyk was not present, but he was the hero of this fight.

Wardley donned his football team’s crest and kit, which were emblazoned on the side of the ring, before heading to the ring.

He described how remarkable it was that Parker was the only boxer competing in white-collar boxing when he won the WBO heavyweight title in 2016.

Yet he was standing next to the veteran Kiwi in a fight to find out who would defeat Usyk, the greatest heavyweight of his time.

Parker had a red-hot run going into this fight, which included victories over Martin Bakole, Deontay Wilder, and Zhilei Zhang, with Lee in his corner.

As the arena’s cries of “Oh Fabio Wardley” rang out, Parker took control with a jab that quickly drew blood from the Ipswich fighter’s nose bridge.

Parker lost all control when Wardley struck him with his right hand in the second.

It would serve as a prelude to the conflict’s later events. The New Zealander looked unsteady on his and it was a beautiful shot that erupted in cheers from the crowd.

In this case, Parker’s 40th professional fight seemed to have a certain amount of potential. Parker was consistently dangerous, but Wardley was making the better shots during the middle rounds.

The Kiwi’s left body uppercuts and right hand over the top were a particular highlight, but Wardley’s own backhand remained a threat.

In the eighth round, it appeared to be dying before returning to life in Wardley’s favor in the ninth.

When he swarmed Parker in the eleventh with a barrage of shots in which Foster was forced to step in, he made sure his stunning story would face Usyk in another chapter.

Due to a back injury, Usyk requested a medical exemption to delay his mandatory defense of the WBO title, but his advisor Serge Lapin recently confirmed that the unbeaten champion was prepared to face the WBO champion.

Warren will now attempt to win that fight for his man the following year.

Wardley is still raw, and his ascent to this position has been very quickly ascent because he only has 21 professional fights to his credit, none of which have come from the white-collar scene.

However, he is now able to take on the most successful Hollywood-style heavyweight of the time.

Given his age and how long he has been competing at the highest level, Parker will now have to carefully consider his next move.

When Barcelona made a summer loan deal with Marcus Rashford, they were backing themselves to resurrect a player who was one of the best in the world.

The gamble appears to have paid off so far. In the first few weeks of his season-long loan at Manchester United, the 27-year-old has scored five goals and contributed six assists.

At the end of the campaign, Barca, who are two points behind Real Madrid, have the option of making the signing permanent, and Rashford seems interested in that happening.

A distinction must be made between roles and positions when analyzing players. Rashford’s position appears to be left-wing, but that does not completely explain the situation.

Rashford made his first appearance for Manchester United in the middle of a winger and a striker, scoring 30 goals and adding 12 assists.

Rashford can float between playing wide left and moving centrally because Flick has tapped into this.

Rashford has become more close to the goal, which has made it easier for him to take more shots from dangerous positions while utilizing his world-class ball-striking prowess.

Rashford rotating inside helps to bring together Barca’s attacking play because Flick likes his attacking players to cluster together centrally.

This season, it has been a common pattern for Barca for him to enter the left half-space and be found by a midfielder with his back to goal.

However, Rashford’s transition prevented the team from becoming unbalanced.

The full-back marking him typically moves infield when he moves centrally. The left-back can enter this wide-left space by allowing the flank to be left open.

With their left-side personnel combining in this way, Barca’s typical left-back Alejandro Balde demonstrated his strong ability to get up and down the flank and make good crosses.

Rashford can play penetrating through-balls for the left-back thanks to this off-the-ball movement from the full-back, which allows him to enter dangerous spaces in space.

Teams are centrally wary of Rashford’s threat, which can expose the flank as they overcommit to defending the middle of the pitch.

Gerard Martin, Balde and Barca’s other left-back, frequently found themselves in risky crossing positions as a result.

Rashford is one on one with a defender because of how frequently their runs, which alternate, draw players away from him.

Although tactics, roles, and formations all matter, footballers’ performances naturally have a human component.

If Rashford had not already scored in the game, he might have excelled against Newcastle because he is confident when he is confident.

However, overall, he seems to have gained confidence, and Flick’s decision to start him in his current six matches, primarily in the same position, is likely to have helped.

He will now have found his rhythm, and his delivery has impressed enough to allow him to be trusted in Barca’s corners.

Former Manchester United players who have moved to excel appear to be following a trend.

Some people think this is because the Premier League is football’s most competitive league, but it could also be because new teams and coaches are maximizing a player’s potential while minimizing their weaknesses.

A footballer’s quality is rarely compromised by injuries, age, or off-the-field issues despite a bad run of form.

To maintain his quest for a fifth Northern Ireland Open title, Judd Trump defeated Mark Allen 6-3 to advance to the final on Sunday against fellow Englishman and close friend Jack Lisowski.

Trump class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> made class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> the class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> final class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> four class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> of class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> the class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> ranking class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> event’s class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> semi-finals class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> in class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> Belfast, class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> but class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> he class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> is class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> now class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> on class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> track class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> for class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> his class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> first class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> tournament class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> success class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> since class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> winning class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> the class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> UK class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> Championship class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> in class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> December. class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> He class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> had class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> yet class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> to class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> reach class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> the class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> semi-finals class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> of class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> the class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> ranking class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> event class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> this class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″> year.

After snooker, the world number one needed the opening frame, and even though Allen won the next level, Trump gained momentum with a 73-foot break.

The Northern Ireland international put up a 68-run lead after the mid-session break, going 3-2 in front.

Trump fought back over the course of his final four frames to win the title and reach his 50th career ranking final. His best break came in frame seven, scoring an 82.

Allen, who had previously won the trophy in 2021 and 2022, was denied a chance to win a third NI Open title as a result of his defeat.

After defeating the world number eight, Trump claimed, “Mark never makes it easy now, but it was a tough game.”

“I missed a few easy balls in the first half, but once it got to 3-3, I found some form and gained some momentum.”

In the Waterfront Hall final match, Jack Lisowski scored three centuries to put him in the running for the win.

With a 125 clearance and break of 124, Lisowski added the next two frames.

Before the break, he moved 4-0 in front, but his Chinese foe reclaimed the 34-year-old’s four-frame advantage before posting a comfortable win in the seventh frame.

The 29-year-old world player, who has lost six of his final six games, is aiming for success in the first ranking event.

For the first time since March 2021, he lost to Donald Trump in the Gibraltar Open final. He will participate in a ranking event decider.

In addition to the semi-finals, Lisowski defeated Kyren Wilson in the quarter-finals, Mark Selby, and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh from Thailand in the last 32, and Kyren Wilson.

It’s been a great week so far, but now it’s all about the final, Lisowski said.

I think I can pot any shot, but I’m more taken aback when I miss.

It’s nice when you work hard and it pays off because I’ve been practicing hard and putting in the effort. I have complete confidence.