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Sources: Bears finalizing hire of Lions' Johnson
The Chicago Bears are finalizing a deal to hire Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as their next head coach, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Monday.
Johnson, who has been the Lions' offensive coordinator the past three seasons, ---will fill the job vacated when Matt Eberflus was fired during the season.
Johnson, 38, was available to be hired after the Lions, who were the NFC's No. 1 seed in the playoffs, were stunned Saturday night by the Washington Commanders.
He has rebuffed interest from teams over the past few years but now will take over in Chicago to coach quarterback Caleb Williams, who said earlier this month that he was intrigued by Johnson's offense with the Lions.
Ahead of the Bears' 34-17 loss to Detroit in December, Johnson offered similar praise over what he'd seen from Williams. In two games against the Lions, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft threw for 681 yards and five touchdowns without an interception.
Johnson, known for his innovative playcalling, has coached the Lions to top-10 offenses the past two seasons, including second overall in 2024, when they were No. 1 in points scored and finished 15-2.
The Bears were 5-12 this season, last in the NFC North standings.
With Februarys season-opening events in Florida rapidly approaching, Robert Ballou will once again contest the AMSOIL USAC National Sprint Car Championship this year, but also has winged aspirations on his mind.
It has been a great offseason for our team, and I cant wait to get our season underway in Florida as we gear up for another USAC National Sprint Car Series title chase, Ballou said.
On top of our USAC slate, I am equally as excited for the winged schedule we have put together.
Cutting his teeth running a winged sprint car in his native Northern Calif., Ballou uprooted himself in 2007 and began his non-winged journey in Indiana, though dipped his tow in the winged ranks from time to time.
Committed to a full USAC National slate again this year, Ballou has plans to up his winged racing count as well as he hopes to mix in array of 25 winged shows with the World of Outlaws as well as High Limit Racing.
The winged stuff will always be a challenge for me despite getting my start running winged cars, Ballou said. In 2025 I am looking forward to running a very heavy national schedule and limiting the local shows we hit.
I think continuing to run with the best in both disciplines will keep me at my best and hopefully equate a lot of wins and hopefully another USAC championship.
At one time a small, brick-front building crammed between Helens Café and Jim Narins Machine Shop on West Jefferson Street in Los Angeles, housed the most important race shop in America.
The sole indicator of its purpose was a large Champion Spark Plug sign over the door, and above that, Traco Engineering.
In the 1960s and 70s if your sprint car, Indy car, Trans-Am car, Can-Am car, or sports car wasnt powered by a Traco-built engine, you were running for second.
The proprietors of the little shop of horsepower were Jim Travers and Frank Coon. The Whiz Kids who created the first Indianapolis roadster, and wrenched Bill Vukovich Sr. to back-to-back 500 wins in 1953-54.
The duo got into the engine-building business when their eccentric Indianapolis car owner, Howard Keck, unexpectedly pulled out of racing in 1956.
They were unemployed, but not for long.
In 1957, Ford Motor Co. clandestinely initiated an Indianapolis engine project. For advice, they contacted 1925 Indianapolis 500 winner Pete DePaolo. DePaolo recommended Travers and Coon.
The Henry Ford Museum possessed a Mercedes Benz 300 SLR, powered by an engine with a desmodromic valve system. A system Ford desired for their Indy engine.
But they had no drawings, and the engine mystified Fords engineers. So, they tasked Travers, and Coon to disassemble the engine, explore how it functioned and collect critical details and dimensions.
The museums curator was adamantly against it, but relented when Henry Ford II got involved and assured him the engine would run afterward.
Travers and Coon completed the daunting task, and to the curators glee, fired the engine. Travers commented later, that damn thing probably didnt run before we tore it apart.
Ford was pleased, continued Travers, and in a meeting with the upper brass about the project, they asked our company name. We didnt have one. So, I thought real quick, combined our last names, and said Traco.
Ford eventually shelved the Indy engine, but Travers and Coon put the data gleaned from Ford to use. Betty Huttons son, Lance Reventlow, dreamed of creating an American Grand Prix car and hired Traco to design the engine.
Working with famed Miller/Offy engine designer, Leo Goossen, the result was a 2.5 liter, 4-cylinder engine, incorporating a desmodromic valve system similar to the Mercedes.
The engine proved powerful and reliable. Unfortunately, the Scarab was overweight and front-engined at a time when Formula 1 was transitioning to rear engines. Before the 1960 season concluded, Reventlow dropped the project.
Though done with Scarab, Traco had no shortage of work. They turned their focus to USAC oval racing where the Chevy was beginning to challenge the venerable Offy for supremacy. When Roger McCluskey won the 1963 USAC National Sprint Car Championship with a Traco Chevy, customers lined up at their door.
A.J. Foyt was in the queue and liked his Traco Chevy so well, he ran his sprinter as the Traco Special.
God almighty, exclaimed Travers. Talk about somebody hard to work with. Hell, Foyt was never happy. But we won a lot.
Foyt also figured prominently in the diversification of Tracos business. Driving John Mecums rear engine Scarab sports car with a Traco Chevy, Foyt beat a bevy of international racers at Nassau, in December, 1963. The entire road course community took notice, not the least of which was Roger Penske and Bruce McLaren.
McLaren, just beginning to build his namesake cars, used Traco engines in his sports cars, and Can-Am cars. When he built his first Formula 1 car in 1966, a Ford four cam engine, built by Traco powered it.
Penske, equally enamored by Tracos ability, used Tracos in his successful Daytona Corvettes. Still driving at that time, Penske trounced Carroll Shelbys highly touted Cobras at Nassau in 1964. In 1966, Penskes Traco Corvettes won both the Daytona 24 hours and the Sebring 12 hours.
With that, Tracos business spread internationally, and an extensive list of international drivers won with Traco power. Among them, Jack Brabham, Bruce McLaren, Dan Gurney, Graham Hill, Chris Amon and John Surtees.
Penske remained a loyal customer until he took his engine program in house. The famed Trans-Am Championship winning Sunoco Camaros, the Trans-Am Championship AMC Javelins, Penskes NASCAR cars, and the 1972 Indianapolis winning McLaren of Mark Donahue, all used Traco power.
Travers and Coon are gone now, but the shop Travers described as, 2100 square feet of organized confusion, remains on West Jefferson Street. A unique landmark in auto racing history.
Toronto forward Max Pacioretty has been ruled out for the Maple Leafs' game Monday night against the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning because of an upper-body injury.
Pacioretty, 36, took a slap shot to the side of his head from teammate Auston Matthews during Toronto's 7-3 road victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. Pacioretty played an additional 10 minutes and 19 seconds, and was able to finish the game.
Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube said after Pacioretty missed practice Monday morning that the 17-year veteran won't play and that his status for returning is day-to-day.
The Maple Leafs will replace Pacioretty with center Fraser Minten on a line with Max Domi and Nicholas Robertson.
Minten, 20, has been a healthy scratch for two games since being recalled Thursday from the team's AHL affiliate. He has two goals and two assists in 11 games with the Maple Leafs.
Pacioretty signed a one-year, $873,770 contract with Toronto in October. He has 12 points (5 goals, 7 assists) in 32 games this season.
An All-Star in 2020, he has 680 points (335 goals, 345 assists) in 934 games with the Canadiens (2008-18), Vegas Golden Knights (2018-22), Carolina Hurricanes (2022-23), Washington Capitals (2023-24) and Maple Leafs.
Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone has continued his spat with his Real Madrid counterpart Carlo Ancelotti.
Simeone implied that refereeing decisions have gone Madrid's way for "100 years" when asked about their 5-2 Copa del Rey home win over Celta Vigo last week, with the away side not awarded a penalty after appealing for one.
Ancelotti responded at the weekend to Simeone by stating that "there are some 'thorns' that might hurt" while Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos added that the Atlético manager "hasn't overcome the two [2013, 2016 Champions League] finals he lost to Madrid."
Simeone hit back on Monday claiming both Ancelotti and Ceballos viewed Madrid differently when they were at Bayern Munich and Real Betis, respectively.
"I never comment on my colleagues' comments," Simeone said in a news conference. "I simply refer to memory. It's normal, they're on the team they're on. They're doing very well. They're a great team. But when they were on another team they thought something else."
Simeone told Ancelotti to remember the comments he made as Bayern Munich coach when the German team lost to Real Madrid in the 2017 Champions League quarterfinal return leg.
At the time, Ancelotti described that loss to Madrid as "an injustice" and that it "wasn't something normal."
On Monday, Simeone said: "When one goes back to the past and goes to the [Real Madrid] match with Bayern Munich, the coach's [Ancelotti's] comments had been according to what had happened on the field.
"It is clear that it is not to play to the gallery. And the same thing about Ceballos. It's the same comments when he was at Betis."
Real Madrid overtook Atlético at the top of LaLiga after their 4-1 win against Las Palmas on Sunday. Atlético lost 1-0 at Leganés on Saturday to see their 15-game winning run in all competitions end.
Auburn now unanimous No. 1; Duke up to No. 2
A wild week of upsets and court stormings led to a massive shake-up in the AP Top 25.
One constant: Auburn.
The Tigers were the unanimous pick at No. 1 in the Associated Press men's college basketball poll released Monday, holding on to the top spot following a week in which 19 ranked teams lost at least once -- including seven teams in the top 10.
Auburn claimed the program's second No. 1 ranking last week and won both its games despite playing without injured big man Johni Broome. The Tigers rolled over No. 14 Mississippi State 88-66 and survived a late comeback to beat then-No. 19 Georgia 70-68.
No. 2 Duke moved up a spot after winning both of its games last week and swapped places with No. 3 Iowa State, which blew out No. 12 Kansas but lost to No. 23 West Virginia. Alabama and Florida rounded out the top five despite each losing a game last week.
Only three teams -- Alabama, Florida and No. 6 Tennessee -- held the same spot from a week ago. The chaotic week allowed No. 8 Michigan State to move into the top 10 for the first time this season and No. 22 Missouri into the poll for the first time since 2022-23.
Louisville has made quite a turnaround under first-year coach Pat Kelsey.
The Cardinals won a combined 12 games the previous two seasons but are playing some of their best basketball in years. Following a three-game skid, Louisville has won eight straight to move into the poll for the first time in four years at No. 25. Last week, the Cardinals won at Syracuse for the first time in eight years and capped the week by sweeping Virginia for the first time since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013.
No. 20 St. John's moved back into the poll this week and has its highest ranking since reaching No. 15 on Dec. 29, 2014, under coach Steve Lavin. The Red Storm, in their second season under Rick Pitino, moved into first place in the Big East with their win over Seton Hall and Marquette's loss to Xavier. They haven't won a share of the Big East regular-season title since 1992.
St. John's (16-3) is off to its best start through 19 games since opening 17-2 (ultimately 20-2) in 1985-86. And the Johnnies are 7-1 in Big East play for the first time since opening 8-1 in 1998-99.
No. 11 Purdue and No. 18 Wisconsin had the biggest jump among the teams in the poll, each climbing six spots. No. 16 Ole Miss is up five places after splitting games against No. 4 Alabama and No. 14 Mississippi State.
No. 24 Memphis had the week's biggest drop, losing six places after losing to Temple and beating Charlotte. Two-time NCAA champion UConn fell five places to No. 19 after seeing its 28-game home winning streak end in a 68-63 loss to Creighton.
No. 22 Missouri is ranked for the first time this season after ending Florida's 16-game home winning streak and posting an 18-point win over Arkansas. No. 23 West Virginia is back in the poll after taking down Iowa State.
Louisville had not been ranked since reaching No. 25 on Jan. 25, 2021.
Three ranked teams lost both of their games last week and dropped out of the poll.
Gonzaga lost to Oregon State and Santa Clara, falling out of the AP Top 25 for the first time since early last year. Georgia dropped out from No. 23 following losses to Tennessee and Auburn. Baylor, No. 25 a week ago, is out after losses to Arizona and TCU.
Utah State's stint in the AP Top 25 lasted two weeks. The Aggies dropped out from No. 22 following a 65-62 loss to UNLV.
The SEC has eight ranked teams after Georgia dropped out of the poll, including five in the top 10.
The Big Ten was next with six, followed by the Big 12 with five. The Big East and Atlantic Coast each had two ranked teams, with the American Athletic and Mountain West conferences at one each.
Underdog Djokovic must 'raise his game' for Alcaraz
Djokovic triumphed when the pair last played - in the Paris 2024 Olympics final - but Alcaraz has won their past two meetings at a Grand Slam tournament.
Alcaraz outlasted Djokovic over five sets in the 2023 Wimbledon final before demolishing his out-of-sorts opponent, who had knee surgery less than six weeks before, to retain the All England Club title last year.
Djokovic avenged those losses on faster grass courts by landing Olympic gold, a high-octane performance over three sets on the slower Roland Garros clay earning him a 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-2) win.
"Carlos is a very dynamic, explosive player. Incredibly talented and a charismatic player," said Djokovic, who has won a record 24 Grand Slam men's titles.
"We've had some long battles, long exchange kind of matches. They remind me of my match-ups against [Rafael] Nadal in terms of the intensity and the energy on the court."
Djokovic knows he is likely to need the same intensity over five sets on the quick Melbourne surface.
The most eagerly-anticipated match of the Australian Open so far will be the first time they have played at a hard court major.
"It is not often that Djokovic is an underdog in Melbourne, it's probably been 15 years since he was," added Australian Cash.
Swiatek, who defeated Britain's Emma Raducanu 6-1 6-0 in the third round, conceded just 10 points as she wrapped up the first set in 24 minutes.
She had won 20 straight games across the two matches before Germany's Lys, ranked 128th in the world, eventually managed to hold serve.
"Usually I don't feel comfortable with my game at the Australian Open, but this year it is a bit better," said Swiatek, who will replace Aryna Sabalenka as world number one if the defending champion fails to reach the semi-finals.
Lys was the first women's singles lucky loser to reach the Australian Open fourth round in the Open era and she described her run in Melbourne as "the nicest week in my life".
The 23-year-old had her flight home booked after losing in the final round of qualifying, but she was given a spot in the main draw following Anna Kalinskaya's withdrawal.
"I've had a lot of nights where I was actually talking to my parents, often with tears, asking, 'When will the time come?'," Lys said.
"Because I know I have the potential, but sometimes I was the only person that's really standing in my own way.
"Everything just came down to this week where on one side it's definitely the tennis I played, but also it was the luck in the beginning."
Swiatek will face Emma Navarro in the last eight after the American eighth seed clinched a narrow 6-4 5-7 7-5 win against Russian Daria Kasatkina, the ninth seed.
Defending champion Jannik Sinner came through a tough physical battle against Holger Rune to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals.
In a match disrupted by medical timeouts and a broken net, both Sinner and Rune seemed to struggle with the 32C heat on Rod Laver Arena.
Sinner, towards the end of the second set and into the third, was visibly shaking during the changeovers as he wrapped ice towels around his neck.
But the world number one prevailed to win 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-2 against the Dane.
"I was not feeling really well," said Italy's Sinner.
Speaking on court after his win, the 23-year-old said: "I knew in my mind even before the match I would struggle today.
"This morning was a very strange morning because I didn't even warm up today, trying to go on court as fit as I could."
He will face Alex de Minaur, the last Australian standing in the singles, next after he claimed an assured 6-0 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 win over American Alex Michelsen to reach the Melbourne last eight for the first time.
"There's nothing I want more than to play well here in Australia in front of you guys. I'm glad I finally made it to the quarter-finals here but let's go for bigger and better things," said eighth seed De Minaur.
Elsewhere, fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego beat American qualifier Learner Tien 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-1 to reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final.
Sonego will play 21st seed Ben Shelton next after the American's fourth-round opponent, Frenchman Gael Monfils, retired with a back issue while trailing 7-6 (7-3) 6-7 (3-7) 7-6 (7-2) 1-0.
Djokovic, a 10-time champion at Melbourne Park, plays world number three Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals on Tuesday.
Channel Nine also apologised, saying "no harm was intended towards Novak or his fans".
The Serbian Council of Australia has called for Jones to be sacked, saying his comments were "offensive, racist and only serve to incite further discrimination of Australian-Serbs".
Jones said he particularly felt he had "overstepped the mark" with his "kick him out" comment - which he accepted could be interpreted as a reference to Djokovic's 2022 deportation from Australia because of the country's Covid-19 regulations.
"That has angered Novak I completely understand that," said Jones.
"It has been an unfortunate situation and one of personal angst for Novak and personal angst for me as well. The priority now is to focus on the tennis. He has an amazing match and I hope he can focus on that.
"I can only again tell Novak what I told him 48 hours ago which is I do apologise if he feels I disrespected him.
"I agreed to meet him in person, they came back and yes, that hasn't transpired yet but I hope it will happen in the next 24 hours."
Tennis Australia said: "Novak acknowledges the apology has been given in public as requested and is now moving on and focusing on his next match."
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