I Dig Sports
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Through the first quarter of the new century in an ever-evolving domestic sports car landscape, one IMSA class has stayed relatively consistent: the Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport class.
A hotbed for pony cars, home-built specials and, most recently as of 2017 to present day, SRO GT4 homologated thoroughbreds, GS often provides some of IMSAs best racing on any given weekend.
The March 14 Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 at Sebring Intl Raceway marks the 250th race since for the class since it came under Grand-Am sanction in 2001. That total covers 249 previous GS and GSI class races through the 2025 Michelin Pilot Challenge season-opening BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona Intl Speedway.
Reflecting on the road to 250 GS races, some of Michelin Pilot Challenges most frequent GS winners weighed in on the class and what its meant to the North American sports car landscape.
Ive always felt for most of my career, GS tends to be better than GT in terms of battles the field has for close racing, said Billy Johnson, the 2016 GS champion and co-leader in all-time Michelin Pilot Challenge wins with 24 total, 20 in GS.
Its the perfect example of human evolution, added Matt Plumb, a two-time GS champion (2013, 2024) and the man tied with Johnson on 24 Michelin Pilot Challenge wins, although hes got 21 in GS. Everything has progressed to be so specialized and technical. Its light years ahead of where it was even 10 years ago in 2015.
The GS format has always had a minimum drive time, and a pit stop. That consistency levels the playing field between pro/am and pro/pro teams, noted Will Turner, whose Turner Motorsport team is the all-time winningest GS team with 29 victories.
As a GT4 category, there isnt another one globally the way GS operates in IMSA. Proper pit stops. Proper strategy. Its a proper race. Its old school, reflected Robin Liddell, a 17-time GS winner and 2015 GS champion.
This quartet of longtime GS stalwarts encapsulate just some of the evolution thats happened in the class over 25 years and the first 249 races. The consistent theme thats emerged is the GS of today has shifted from a build-your-own battler to a buy-from-manufacturer model. What hasnt changed is the competitiveness, depth and door-to-door action.
When we first started in 05, we built new cars for Grand-Am, said Turner, who like many GS competitors started in World Challenge. I still remember in the shop building everything from the cages, to where wed put the fuel cells, even coming up with splitter designs at the front. Then wed need to run to the Turner parts side of things to find parts for the race car! It was that easy, for us, having the parts store related to the race team.
KohR Motorsports team principal/driver Dean Martin, an engineer by background, added, Your job here is to figure out what someone is doing better and then evolve your own attention to detail to beat them. I say a lot that more races are won back in the shop than at the track. If you dont prep right, youre going to struggle.
Many memorable races stand out. For the Plumb brothers, Matt and older brother Hugh, it meant showing up in Daytona with only their helmets and no rides in 2002.
I essentially thought to myself, Im either going to quit racing or make this happen, Matt Plumb said. I started doing some coaching and I wandered down to Daytona just to check out the sports car thing and that ultimately led to a pivot into closed top racing.
Hugh Plumb added, Showing up two days before the race, hoping to get a ride, those were the days where that could happen. It sounds hysterical now, but the fascination of getting a ride at Daytona seemed like this really cool thing.
For Johnson, it included winning historic races for the Roush family as part of a dynamic run of form from 2009 to 2013, when he won 10 GS races in a five-year span.
At Miller Motorsports Park in 09, I was battling Bill Auberlen the last 10 laps, changing the lead two-three times a lap, Johnson recalled. I came out on top there and that gave Jack Roush Jr. his first professional race win.
Then at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 10, we won again, and that was Jacks fathers 400th victory as a team owner across NASCAR, drag racing and sports car racing. Theyd made challenge coins with 400 on the back. Other teams tried to achieve that win for Jack Roush Sr., but we got it done. Jack came back through the field after a tech issue and we won the race anyway. Those were good memories.
For Turner, it was his first win in a GS-only race nearly 20 years ago in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic with Bill Auberlen and Justin Marks.
Our team was in its infancy; we werent all professional race crew. It felt going in like a fun vacation as well as a race, Turner laughed. Beyond the win, I remember two things. One, how many fans we had in the Dominican Republic. It was so fan-heavy that when Justin and Bill won, they had to do a human chain around them to get them from the car to the podium!
The second was how good the race was. It was a low-grip, makeshift track and very hot, dry and dusty, but it was so good for the fans to see it from everywhere. To win our first one there was nuts. Justin was a baby back then, and even Bill had hair!
Liddells last laps fourth-to-first charge in the rain at Road America 2019, passing two cars in Canada Corner and then leader Kuno Wittmer just before the start/finish line, stands as a GS all-timer.
As I came onto the frontstraight I was pretty happy about finishing second but the next thing I saw was the leader slowing and pulling over in front of me. I just kept my foot in it, drove onto the grass and squeezed past just before the line, Liddell reflected.
The battle between Plumb and Johnson has carried through three decades of GS, even if both drivers havent always overlapped in the series. Whats clear is that both have a huge amount of respect for each other, and a desire to beat the other one.
Its been awesome throughout our careers, Johnson said. Our rivalry has gone back so many years, even as I was out of the series for several years. That one period from 09 to 12, it felt like if I didnt win, Matt won, or vice versa. That speaks to the depth of the field. I think a common denominator is us winning throughout different generations of cars and formats of racing.
Plumb added, I think I said it to him at Daytona, but Im glad that he is the one who Im competing against for this win (record). Because I do respect the hell out of him. Knowing hes in front or behind me, hes got just enough sense to race him where it works out for both of us. No matter when youre around him, he races you the same. Im happy to share that record with him, but Ill still do anything to kick his rear end.
Winning is hard in GS. Turner, BMWs longest serving customer team, has made more than 600 starts and estimated its made more than 370 of those in GS, running at least two cars most years.
Behind Turners 29 wins, among active GS teams, KohR is the second-winningest team with nine GS wins, with its predecessor Rehagen Racing adding five more wins. Rebel Rock Racing has eight, BGB Motorsports six, RS1 and Team TGM five apiece, CarBahn four and Winward Racing three.
Jeff Lapcevich and John Shreiner won the first GS race on February 4, 2001 in a Ford Mustang Cobra R at Daytona. Nearly 24 years later, Michael Cooper and Moisey Uretsky won the 249th GS race in Daytona in their No. 44 Accelerating Performance McLaren Artura GT4, to become the 149th and 150th drivers to win a GS race.
ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Blues No. 1 defenseman Colton Parayko is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after injuring his left knee in the team's shootout victory at the Los Angeles Kings.
President of hockey operations and general manager Doug Armstrong said Thursday that Parayko will undergo a scope on the injured knee and be evaluated in six weeks. The Blues play their final regular-season game two days short of the six-week mark.
Parayko, 31, plays more ice time than anyone else on the Blues, averaging nearly 24 minutes over 62 games and recording 35 points. His absence is a blow to their hopes of making the playoffs and comes after beating LA put them one point back of the second and final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Manchester United took the lead through Joshua Zirkzee but were held to a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie on Thursday.
United had the only real chance of the first half against Sociedad when Bruno Fernandes had a goal-bound shot blocked and Zirkzee's follow-up effort was saved.
Alejandro Garnacho hit a shot into the side netting but 12 minutes into the second half he pulled a pass back to the unmarked Zirkzee on the edge of the area and the Dutch forward drove a first-time shot past keeper Alex Remiro.
Sociedad pushed for an equaliser with Brais Mendez bending a shot just wide of the post and they were awarded a penalty for a handball by Fernandes which Mikel Oyarzabal converted to level the tie with 20 minutes remaining.
As the hosts grew in confidence, Mendez forced United keeper Andre Onana into a fine save and substitute Orri Oskarsson put a close-range effort wide but United hung on to remain the only unbeaten side in the competition this season.
Title, UCL, relegation: Premier League is at stage when only results matter
Something changes for players in the Premier League when winter turns to spring. The dark nights and the yellow match ball are behind you for another season, replaced by bright afternoon games and the white ball. This final stretch of the season is still a time of hope for many teams, but a dip in form quickly turn that into despair. Everyone is playing for something, and one mistake can define your season.
Up to this point of the campaign, teams and coaching staff have been focused primarily on performance levels -- how well is the manager's playing style bedding in? Which players are forming effective partnerships? But by the time you get to March and April, the reality is that it's all about the outcome. Results are the most important thing. If you're down at the bottom, you have to get a result. If you're up near the top, it's a must-win game. Springtime is business time.
Even with Liverpool, who have a 13-point lead on Arsenal at the top of the table having played an additional game, have moved into the mode of just getting it done. Their general performances were probably at a higher level a few months ago, whereas now they're finding ways to get results, which is the sign of a team that is worthy of winning a league title. They are not just the best team in the country. They have also shown in the last few weeks after a couple of bad setbacks -- exiting the FA Cup to lower-league Plymouth and then being held to a combustible draw at Everton which earned their manager a touchline ban -- that they are also the best at getting the job done.
Of course, all 38 games of a campaign have the same number of points available, but at this stage of the season those results become more pivotal. Last season, there was one weekend in April when Liverpool and Arsenal were both above Manchester City but lost at home to Crystal Palace and Aston Villa respectively. That allowed City to go above them, and they held on to that lead for the rest of the season. If those results had happened in gameweek 12 or 13, they could have been written as stumbles with a lot of road still ahead of them. But, when it happens with only five games left, there is barely any time to bounce back.
City are way out of the picture for the league and Europe this season -- they are 20 points behind Liverpool in fourth and out of the Champions League -- but they still need to be getting results. Even with the Premier League likely to have five qualification spots for next season's Champions League, City cannot relax. They are away at third-placed Nottingham Forest next and then play the Brighton & Hove Albion, who are currently on the longest winning run in the league. So even though they are in the unfamiliar position of not chasing for the title, they still are in a position whereby they know the value of every single game. They've had to adjust their goals from the start of the season, but this is the final objective; they need to be in the Champion League next season. The players know that -- it's important not only for their status as stars but potentially for their futures at the club. So that's the thing that will be motivating them on a day-to-day basis.
Pep Guardiola's team are still in the FA Cup, too, and there is no situation in which results trump performances than knockout cup football. How many cup finals are actually great games? In general, people remember the winners of finals, not how they won.
Arne Slot believes Liverpool can't be called the best team in Europe until they win the Champions League ahead of their first-leg game against PSG.
Whether you are at the top of the league or fighting relegation, everything just feels that bit more definitive. Wolverhampton Wanderers may have a cushion between them and the relegation zone, where Ipswich and Leicester are five points behind them, but that is only two wins for either of those sides and two losses for Wolves. Trying to get two wins is one thing, but trying to get two wins of your last three games when you are battling to stay up and then also looking out for the results of the teams around you is something else entirely.
That's a situation that those teams should be doing their utmost to avoid while they still have 10-11 games left, because depending on other teams is a difficult place to be. The aim at the end of the season to be playing for something and to have your fate in your own hands but sometimes. when you are requiring other things to go your way, it can really affect the mood if they don't.
Some of the games against teams down near at the bottom could actually be really tough, especially when you're away from home, because they are desperate. So you need teams that aren't just going to focus purely on the football, but understand that the nature of this game is different to what it could have been earlier in the season.
You want all your players available to this important stretch because you know the gravity of every single game. The pressure rises for everyone now, based on the goals that they are trying to achieve. And when some teams are outperforming what others might have expected of them, as a consequence that puts an internal pressure on that team but also squeezes the teams around them who suddenly have another rival to worry about.
For teams who have real genuine requirements, whether it be the vital financial boost of reaching the Champions League or avoiding the potential calamity of relegation, the team getting the results they need in this final stretch can be change the fate of the football club. The pressure is massive. The fans will feel it, the players will feel it, the management will feel it. And so when you go out in those matches, if you win, it feels great, but if you're losing all of a sudden there's a more anxiety from everyone involved.
ESPN analyst Nedum Onuoha was speaking to Tony Mabert.
Bengals letting star DE Hendrickson seek trade
The Cincinnati Bengals have granted All-Pro defensive end Trey Hendrickson permission to seek a trade.
"It's been an honor and privilege to represent Cincinnati over the last four years," Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17.5 sacks last season, said in a statement released to ESPN's Adam Schefter on Thursday. "I love this city and organization. I appreciate the privilege of now being allowed to explore my options."
Hendrickson is under contract through the 2025 season but has stated a desire for a new contract, dating back to a failed trade request last season.
Hendrickson, 30, is coming off his eighth season in the league. All four of his seasons with the Bengals have resulted in Pro Bowl appearances.
The former third-round pick, who signed with Cincinnati as a free agent in 2021, requested a trade at the start of last offseason, despite receiving a one-year extension in 2023. Despite being one of the league's most productive players over the past few seasons, he ranks 11th in average annual salary among edge rushers, per Roster Management System.
He has 77 sacks in his eight-year NFL career.
ESPN's Ben Baby contributed to this report.
MERRILL, Mich. Second-generation driver Mike Keegan is going all-in on his 2025 campaign with the Great Lakes Super Sprints Presented by PERFIT and ARP.
The son of 14-time All Star Circuit of Champions winner Mark Keegan will embark on the Great Lakes Super Sprints Tour in 2025.
A native of Fremont, Ohio, Mike Keegan has been bouncing around the 360 and 410 winged sprint car scene for a few seasons.
In that time, Keegan has secured two wins with the Great Lake Super Sprints while running a part-time schedule. Both wins came in thrillingly close finishes at Waynesfield Raceway Park in 2023 and 2024.
Keegan also touts a Limaland Motorsports Park win in 2022 prior to the GLSS sanction of 360 racing in Ohio.
Last year, Keegan ran his own schedule between Attica Raceway Park, Fremont Speedway, and the Great Lakes Super Sprints. Keegan says after traveling on their own last year, theyre ready for the grind of hitting the GLSS Tour.
Were gonna run every race, Keegan said. Were running for a championship and we feel like we have a good chance at getting the title this year.
Keegans team has made big strides in the off-season to go head-to-head with the GLSS faithful.
Were hoping to be competitive every night, he explained. We feel like any night we unload the car, we have a shot to win. It would be nice to pick up more than one win a year, he said, referring to his back-to-back one-win seasons.
HAMILTON, Ohio The International Hot Rod Assn is returning to its roots with announcing the 2025 National/Pro-Am schedule.
The season kicks off June 13-14 with an event at a soon-to-be-announced track, featuring powerful 11,000-horsepower Nitro machines and other thrilling classes.
Fans can also look forward to the IHRA Night of Fire, igniting the sky with high-energy action at Galot Motorsports Park on June 27-28.
The schedule includes some of the countrys most iconic drag strips, such as National Trail Raceway and Dragway 42 in Ohio, Milan Dragway in Michigan, and Maryland International Raceway. The 10-race series wraps up with a Pro-Am at the legendary Darlington Dragway on Oct. 24-25, followed by the National Finals on Oct. 31-Nov. 1.
More events may be added, complementing an already exciting lineup of grassroots racing, including Ironman Classics, Sportsman Spectaculars, Summit Team Finals, and the Summit SuperSeries World Finals.
IHRA National/Pro-Am Schedule
June 13-14 TBA
June 27-28 Galot Motorsports Park Dunn-Benson, N.C.
July 9-10 National Trail Raceway Kirkersville, Ohio
July 11-12* National Trail Raceway Kirkersville, Ohio
Aug. 8-9* Maryland Intl Raceway Mechanicsville, Md
Aug. 23-24 Milan Dragway Milan, Mich.
Sept. 19-20* Dragway 42 West Salem, Ohio
Sept. 26-27 Dragway 42 West Salem, Ohio
Oct. 24-25 Darlington Dragway Darlington, S.C.
Oct. 31-1* Darlington Dragway Darlington, S.C.
*Denotes national event
The Florida Panthers have acquired forward Nico Sturm and a 2027 seventh-round pick from the San Jose Sharks on Thursday in exchange for a 2026 fourth-round pick.
It was the second trade between the teams in two days. Florida had acquired goaltender Vitek Vanecek from San Jose on Wednesday in exchange for forward Patrick Giles.
Sturm, 29, figured to be the focus of a few calls to the Sharks, as he's in the final season of a three-year contract that carries a $2 million salary cap hit.
After a stint on the injured reserve list with a lower-body issue in February, the 29-year-old Sturm, who has seven goals and six assists this season, seems to be ready for a postseason run with the Panthers.
The steady, 6-foot-3 center from Germany can take up space on the Panthers' fourth line and is a capable penalty-killer who has won 62.7% of his draws this season with the Sharks, the highest total of anyone who has taken part in at least 200 faceoffs.
This will be Sturm's fourth NHL club, after stints with the Sharks, Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild. He has 91 career points (46 goals, 45 assists) and won a Stanley Cup with Colorado during the 2021-22 season.
With top winger Matthew Tkachuk on long-term injury reserve, Florida still has space to potentially add another forward prior to Friday's trade deadline in the aim of becoming the third series of back-to-back champs over the past decade.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Vegas Golden Knights have acquired forward Reilly Smith from the New York Rangers on Thursday in exchange for prospect Brendan Brisson and a third-round draft pick.
Smith played for Vegas previously and was part of their Stanley Cup-winning team in 2023.
On a star-laden New York team that struggled for offense at times, Smith posted decent numbers with 10 goals and 29 points.
Smith, who had 26 goals with the Golden Knights in 2022-23, is skating out the final weeks of a three-year deal he signed with Vegas that carries a hefty $5 million salary cap hit.
New York Red Bulls academy product Astin Mbaye has signed with Italian Serie A giants AC Milan, a source confirmed to ESPN.
The source added that while there is no fee involved, the Red Bulls will receive training compensation from Milan, as specified by FIFA's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players.
Fabrizio Romano was the first to report Mbaye's move to Milan.
Mbaye, 16, has represented the U.S. at under-15 and level before recently being promoted to the U16 roster.
The young center back possesses a German passport, which allowed him to head over to Europe at age 16 instead of having to wait until he is 18. Mbaye is also eligible to represent Senegal.
The Jersey City, New Jersey, native joins a club that already has two U.S. internationals in its ranks, Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah, though Mbaye will be expected to initially play in Milan's youth setup.
Mbaye is the latest Red Bulls academy product to head overseas, a group that includes Bournemouth midfielder Tyler Adams and Holstein Kiel defender John Tolkin.
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