Some people love the old joke about the young race fan who grows up believing the last four words to the national anthem are “Gentleman, Start Your Engines.”

Others don’t see the humor in that. Maybe it all comes down to personal experience.

In July 1964, Johnny Rutherford was standing near Mario Andretti on the grid at New Jersey’s Trenton Speedway. On tap was a 150-mile Indy car race. Rutherford was starting 14th. Andretti, three rows further up, was in his maiden race with the Dean Van Lines team. Chief mechanic Clint Brawner and his assistant, Jim McGee, were performing the usual last-minute checks as the first notes of “The Star-Spangled Banner” rang out.

In those days, before TV coverage turned everything into a pose, pre-race formalities were for spectators. For the combatants, the work went on.

“McGee was hammering on the wheel nuts, the old spinner type,” recalled Rutherford. “Mario, an immigrant, was standing there at attention. McGee kept banging the wheels as the national anthem played. Mario turned his head, just slightly, and in a thick Italian accent — much thicker than how he sounds today — said, ‘Jimmy! Jimmy! Don’t bang!’”

INDIANAPOLIS – Chicago Blackhawks goaltender and two-time Stanley Cup champion Corey Crawford will lead the field to the green flag for the sixth annual IndyCar Grand Prix on May 11.

Crawford will serve as the driver of the Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Coupe Pace Car for the opening event of the Month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Twice an NHL All-Star (2015, 2017) and a member of the NHL All-Rookie team in 2011, Crawford is just the eighth Blackhawks goaltender to win more than 100 games in the team’s storied history. The Windy City fan favorite is also an avid car enthusiast who enjoys restoring vintage vehicles.

“I’m honored to have been selected to drive this year’s Pace Car at a place as famous as the Brickyard,” Crawford said. “Indianapolis is an incredibly passionate sports city, and I couldn’t be more excited to represent the Blackhawks and see their love for IndyCar racing in person.”

Crawford, 34, a native of Montreal, was selected by the Blackhawks in the second round of the 2003 NHL Draft. He lifted the Stanley Cup with his teammates in 2013 and again in 2015.

“It’s great to have such a popular athlete with Hoosier sports fans and a dedicated car enthusiast like Corey Crawford lead the IndyCar Grand Prix field to the green flag in a Corvette,” said Michael Stouffer, Chevrolet motorsports marketing manager. “The IndyCar Grand Prix will be a thrilling race that kicks off an exciting three weekends of action in May at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.”

Crawford will lead the starting field of the NTT IndyCar Series race on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course at IMS in a Corvette Grand Sport that features:

– 460-horsepower (343 kW) LT1 direct-injected V-8 engine

– Eight-speed paddle-shift automatic transmission

– Z07 performance package

– Polished aluminum 19-inch front/20-inch rear wheels

– Competition sport bucket seats

– Performance data recorder

– Selective magnetic ride control

– Arctic white body color with unique GM design graphics package

“Corey is going to have a blast driving this year’s Corvette Pace Car, especially since he’s such a true fan of cars and racing,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “Many Indy residents have long enjoyed cheering for Corey and his teammates, and between today’s news and the return of Jim Cornelison to the Indy 500, the Blackhawks are fast becoming the preferred NHL team of IMS.”

ESCALON, Calif. – After five years of racing together, Cody Hodgson has made the tough decision to depart Double Nickel Racing and the Weiher family and seek other opportunities this season.

Double Nickel Racing was born in 2014 as a combination effort between the Hodgson and Weiher families, with Cody Hodgson tabbed as the driver.

“It has been a great five plus years racing with Todd Weiher and everyone involved with this race team, but I really feel that in every driver’s career they have to take a step back from running their family car, and that is where I am at,” Hodgson said. “Initially I had planned on getting through this season, and spending the offseason trying to put something together, but it feels like right now is the right time for both myself and the Weiher’s to change directions.

“I truly wish the Weiher Racing team all the best moving forward.”

With a strong racing pedigree, Hodgson has had success in nearly everything he has sat in.

A three-time National Karting Champion, Hodgson has also picked up two Super Kart USA Pro Shifter Titles, and he became the second American to ever podium at a Rotax Karting World Championship event when he did so in Egypt back in 2009.

In 2011 Hodgson spent time as a NASCAR development driver with Dave Davis Motorsports in the K&N Pro East Series, before making the jump to sprint cars back in 2014.

“Again, Todd Weiher has been like a second father to me, and without him and his family none of this would have been possible,” Hodgson added. “I have a lot of racing left in me, and I am already on the hunt for my next opportunity.

“I have a lot of fire in me, and all I want to do is go racing.”

Longtime Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland was named the new GM and president of hockey operations of the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, and he got right to work.

At his introductory news conference, he said he had already informed Ken Hitchcock that he will not return as coach of the team.

Holland had spent 36 years with the Red Wings organization, including 22 as GM, and was the architect of three Stanley Cup winning teams.

Two weeks ago, Holland's position with the Red Wings shifted to an advisory role when Detroit welcomed Steve Yzerman as the GM. Yzerman, a former Red Wings great, had previously served as the general manager in Tampa Bay.

According to multiple reports, Holland's deal with the Oilers is for five years, at $5 million per year.

The Oilers have missed the playoffs in 12 of the past 13 seasons, despite picking first overall for three straight years from 2010 to 2012 and again in 2015. There is pressure to win while superstar captain Connor McDavid is still in his prime -- and under contract. McDavid, 22, has a deal that runs through 2025-26 with a $12.5 million cap hit.

Holland will report to Oilers CEO Bob Nicholson. According to owner Daryl Katz, Holland will have "full autonomy" in roster decisions.

"I know fans don't want plans and promises," Katz said. "They want results."

Holland said he does expect to implement "some change" but did not provide a timeline or details. He emphasized long-term sustainability, but added: "I'd like to think we are talking playoffs in '19-'20."

Holland will help choose the team's next coach. The Oilers fired Todd McLellan in November, and used longtime NHL coach Hitchcock for the remainder of the season.

Holland, a British Columbia native, called himself a "Western Canadian boy" and he spent lengths listing his personal and family connections to provinces in Western Canada. Holland called the decision to leave the Red Wings "emotional" but said he still had the passion and enthusiasm to be a general manager, which led to him taking the new job.

"I've got a core to work with," Holland said. "Now I've got to go out and support that core, find a coach, and provide stability, and build a program here that our fan base is excited about."

"My job is to provide stability," Holland said, one of a number of times he used the word "stability."

In Holland's tenure, the Red Wings made the playoffs for 25 seasons, which ended in 2017 as the team entered a rebuild.

FC Cincinnati has relieved Alan Koch of his managerial duties just 11 games into the team's expansion season in MLS, the team announced on Tuesday.

Assistant coach Yoann Damet will take over on an interim basis.

"After a series of recent issues and a team culture that had deteriorated, we determined that it's time to make a change to return a club-centered focus to the team," said FCC president Jeff Berding.

"This decision is not driven by recent game results themselves, but rather the underpinnings that have led to those results. We have not come close to maximizing the talent we have in the dressing room this year, nor have we seen a foundation being built that will set us up for success this year and into next year.

"Our whole locker room is committed to our club goal of earning an MLS postseason bid, and we need to put them in the best position to do so," Berding added.

The move comes a week after Koch publicly questioned the talent at his disposal.

That didn't go over well with the players, with forward Fanendo Adi lamenting the team's lack of identity following last weekend's 1-0 defeat to the San Jose Earthquakes, a match in which FCC played a man up for the final 39 minutes.

With the team currently mired in a seven-game winless streak, Berding felt compelled to make the move.

Questions still remain regarding the construction of the roster. Heading into the season, Cincinnati was widely viewed as being short of attacking options, even after the acquisition of on-loan U.S. international midfielder Kenny Saief. That has proven to be the case, with FCC currently suffering through a 521-minute goalless run.

Koch didn't help himself either, making some curious personnel decisions, including the playing of usual center midfielder Fatai Alashe in a wide midfield role for 45 minutes during the match against San Jose.

Koch was in his third season with the club. With the team playing in the second-tier USL, he was hired just prior to the start of the 2017 campaign after the team dismissed John Harkes. He led FCC on a memorable run to the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup that season, dispatching MLS sides the Columbus Crew and the Chicago Fire. The following year, he led Cincinnati to the USL regular season championship.

He departs with an MLS record of 2-7-2. His record at USL level was 35-13-8.

The lion's roar was quieter last weekend.

One week after LA Galaxy forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic made news for alleged verbal threats against Real Salt Lake defender Nedum Onuoha, the Swede let his play get the attention, tallying a goal and an assist in the Galaxy's 3-2 loss to the New York Red Bulls. The verbal fusillades were nowhere to be found.

"He didn't really say anything to us today," said Red Bulls defender Tim Parker about Ibrahimovic.

"[Zlatan] didn't talk trash to me," added defender Aaron Long.

Granted, just about everything that Zlatan does -- no matter how innocuous -- gets noticed. But the incident with Onuoha went up a level. It started in the 60th minute when Ibrahimovic horse-collared Onuoha to the ground, earning a booking in the process. Onuoha alleged that after that incident, Ibrahimovic threatened to injure him. Ibrahimovic got the final word on the field, netting a 78th-minute winner, and proceeded to let Onuoha know all about it.

But Ibrahimovic also felt compelled to go to the RSL locker room afterward in an attempt to continue the conversation. Onuoha was having none of it, however, calling Ibrahimovic "a complete thug" and implying that the Galaxy forward crossed a line and should be punished.

"It's one thing to be competitive but it's another thing to be threatening harm against another professional," Onuoha told Love Sport Radio.

Whether Ibrahimovic crossed a line with his threats is open to interpretation. Every player has his own standard for what constitutes a violation of the unwritten players' code. For every Diego Valeri at one end of the spectrum, there's a Carlos Ruiz at the other. That goes for trash talk, too, and there isn't much that can be done about it, regardless of who is engaging in it.

"It's funny because you look at some other sports now and they've done a good job of curbing that [trash talk]," said D.C. United manager Ben Olsen. "I think in the NBA you probably don't get away with that. But it's a different sport. You can't call a technical [on Ibrahimovic]. You can't put him in a penalty box. What do you do? Give him a yellow? Does the league suspend him? I've got too much on my brain to worry about that. I saw it, I don't know. I think overall, he's been refreshing for the league."

There's also a general sense that such verbal sparring isn't as rare as Onuoha made it out to be. D.C. United defender Steve Birnbaum is of the view that the kind of verbal jousting that took place between Zlatan and Onuoha didn't cross the line.

"[I've] been threatened before," he said, noting that it happened with enough frequency that he couldn't remember who was the offender. "I think it crosses the line if a player deliberately acts on it and tries to seriously injure someone."

Brian Dunseth, who provides color commentary on RSL's local television broadcasts and spent nine of his 10 years as a professional player in MLS, added, "With trash-talking, the threat of physical violence, that's always been there. It's the psyche of two players trying to unsettle each other, whether that's with words or a physical confrontation. I think you'd have a harder time finding someone who hadn't been threatened on the field at any point, as opposed to finding people that have."

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Even Onuoha admitted this wasn't the first time he had been threatened, so what was the big deal? The answer to that question is that it wasn't so much what happened on the field, but afterward. Ibrahimovic did cross a line by entering the Real Salt Lake locker room without asking beforehand if Onuoha really wanted to continue the conversation. There simply can't be situations where players can enter the opposing locker room uninvited, especially when emotions might still be running high in a match's immediate aftermath.

"The locker room, that's the sanctity of safety," Dunseth said. "When Zlatan went into the locker room without anybody's approval, that's when a whole other layer got added to this."

Multiple sources confirmed to ESPN FC that RSL complained to the league about the incident, asking in so many words how Ibrahimovic was allowed to be in the locker room of RSL, but a league spokesperson stated that no action was taken.

Which leads to the other aspect of the incident: whether there is a double standard that gets applied in favor of the league's best players, and in particular Ibrahimovic.

"There are certain instances where they get special treatment," Parker said about the high-profile players, "but I guess that's really all you can say."

In last weekend's match, Long was the victim of more than one wayward elbow that required medical attention, although he didn't seem to bear any ill will toward the Galaxy forward. In neither case was Ibrahimovic cautioned. Onuoha, of course, sees a clear disparity.

"I'm not the type of person to say that the better MLS players get preferential treatment, but from what I've seen so far, it's a lot easier to be Zlatan than it is to be the striker for Real Salt Lake," Onuoha said.

It's a topic that most players are somewhat reluctant to get into. It can look like a player on the losing end is making excuses. Birnbaum feels that the scales have begun to tip back in a league where VAR is used as well as retroactive discipline.

"I haven't noticed [a different standard] too much in the games that I've played," he said. "I think that Designated Players draw more attention because of who they are, but I don't think they get certain calls, especially now that they get VAR. I think that evens it out a lot."

There's also the reality that in the case of Ibrahimovic, you're talking about a player with an otherworldly amount of skill combined with his 6-foot-5 frame. That, more than anything, is why he's had so much success in his career. But Ibrahimovic also plays with well-honed edge, whether it's the taunting of opponents following a goal, or the "afters" when he challenges for a ball.

These are tradeoffs MLS is quite willing to accept. The league needs Zlatan's villainy as much as his virtuosity. He just needs to think twice about unsolicited visits to opposing locker rooms. Otherwise MLS may be forced into a choice it would rather not have to make.

Additional reporting by Chris Wondoloski.

Liam Dawson could yet replace Joe Denly in England's World Cup squad, according to coach Trevor Bayliss.

Dawson missed out on selection when England named a 17-man squad - including their provisional World Cup 15 - for the early international matches of the summer, but has continued to impress in county cricket. He made a List A century against Surrey last week and has conceded just 4.01 runs per over in claiming 17 wickets - only four men have more - in this year's Royal London Cup.

As a result, Bayliss says he could be called up to join the England squad before the end of the five-match Royal London ODI series against Pakistan, which begins at The Oval on Wednesday. Dawson has played just three ODIs.

That means Denly faces a couple of defining games over the next few days. With Moeen Ali injured - he has the "slightest of slight" cracks in a rib having been struck while batting at the IPL, according to Bayliss - England have a perfect opportunity to test their bench strength. Denly is not only all but certain to play at The Oval, he will be given an extended bowl with a view to seeing how he fares. He has so far been unable to cement his place in the squad, with the first two balls of his only over on Sunday thumped for sixes.

While Bayliss was keen to stress that Denly is not just seen as the reserve spinner - he can also bat and field in a variety of positions - much the same could be said about Dawson. And while previous games have seen Denly limited to supporting opportunities - he bowled only five overs in Dublin and one in Cardiff - it seems likely he will be given an extended opportunity at The Oval with a view to coming to a conclusion about his ability to perform at the top level.

"Denly's is probably the other position that I'm sure we - the selectors - will discuss," Bayliss said ahead of the opening match of the ODI series against Pakistan. "He is not the only bowler to run in and bowl a couple half-volleys to start a spell. But we're going to try to give the guys at least two or three games in this series so I wouldn't necessarily put it all down on one game.

"But it is getting to the business end. So the performances of everyone will count.

"Someone like Dawson will certainly be in discussions. He's done well this year and he's done well for us in the past when he's been given an opportunity at this level. I'm sure he'll be discussed as well. I don't think it would be out of place for me to say the final World Cup 15 will come down to the 17 we have in this squad and Dawson. It's probably down to that 18."

The other issue the selectors have to decide is whether to include Jofra Archer and, if they do, who he should replace. While it remains possible he could be included in place of Denly or Dawson, it is clear Bayliss believes that would leave a squad "over-stocked" with fast bowlers.

"It's not out of the question," Bayliss said. "But if we went that way, you might ask the question if we're over-stocked with fast bowlers. The answer, probably, would be yes.

"So that final fast bowling position is the big decision we have to make. If a fast bowler misses out - whoever it is - they are going to be bitterly disappointed. And it will be a difficult decision to make.

"Jofra looked fairly nervous in Ireland and I think that showed in his bowling. But he is very skilful, he has a bit of extra pace and he's fitted into the team in a short space of time very well. He can be a good player for England in the future, that's for sure. He's certainly in the mix."